{
  "id": 5111700,
  "title": "ACC Championship picks: Predicting 1 favorite and 1 sleeper for the 2026 title",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/02/acc-championship-picks-predicting-1-favorite-and-1-sleeper-for-the",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-02T15:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "SB Nation",
    "slug": "sb-nation",
    "url": "https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/1126642/acc-championship-picks-predictions-favorite-sleeper-odds-2026"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a league of 17 teams, with two members located near the Pacific Ocean, one in Dallas, and an affiliate in South Bend, IN. In the 2025 season, the ACC experienced chaos due to a five-way tie for second place, which resulted in Duke securing a title game spot due to the highest conference opponent win percentage. However, this created concerns about the league's potential exclusion from the College Football Playoff. As a result, James Madison was granted an autobid into the College Football Playoff as the fifth-highest ranked conference champion. To avoid further chaos, the ACC updated its tiebreaker policies, and in 2026, the league will switch to a nine-game conference schedule.\n\nThe Miami Hurricanes are the overwhelming favorites to win the 2026 ACC title, as they made it to the CFP National Championship Game the previous year. The program has achieved back-to-back 10-win campaigns for the first time since the 2000s, and their roster exceeds $40 million. Notable players include Malachi Toney, Rueben Bain Jr., Akheem Mesidor, and Keionte Scott. The Hurricanes face a manageable schedule, with only one high-profile game against Notre Dame. The Pitt Panthers, on the other hand, are considered a sleeper pick for the ACC title, as they nearly made the cut last year and have promising offensive weapons, such as quarterback Mason Heintschel and running back Ja'Kyrian Turner.",
  "summary": "The Atlantic Coast Conference, a 17-team league that has two members less than an hour from the Pacific Ocean, one in Dallas, and an affiliate in South Bend, IN, that it allows to pop in from time to time. What a beautiful mess. Last year’s ACC’s title race triggered total chaos across the board as […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}