Back
The ACC's best quarterback duel in Week 8 took place on the west coast late Friday night.
Davis Warren outdueled CJ Bailey in Stanford's 31-28 victory against NC State. Warren helped earn the Cardinal its second win of ACC play this season and brought about an end to the Dave Doeren era for the Wolf Pack.
Blowouts were commonplace across the Saturday slate. Darian Mensah and Kevin Jennings both guided their teams to blowout victories at home while Mason McKenzie and Boston College ran all over Georgia Tech in the second half of their 49-27 win.
Perhaps the most interesting quarterback performance of the weekend occurred in Kenan Stadium. Just over a month after he was benched, Steve Angeli threw for 256 yards and two touchdowns in Syracuse's 31-30 overtime win at North Carolina.
The better quarterback matchups in Week 9 are concentrated earlier in the day.
In the noon window, Kevin Jennings and SMU travel to Syracuse, whose quarterback situation has been a revolving door all season. Additionally, Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele and California head east to meet CJ Bailey and NC State in a matchup between teams desperate for an ACC win.
The most intriguing afternoon quarterback matchup is between Stanford and Louisville at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. Lincoln Kienholz and Louisville are fresh off a bye while Davis Warren looks to stay hot after his terrific showing from Friday.
Below, we rank the eight best ACC quarterbacks ahead of Week 9 of the 2026 college football season.
Warren has clawed his way back into our rankings after a 303-yard, four-touchdown showing in Stanford’s win against NC State. He struggled mightily against the Cardinal’s three ranked foes, but his work in clean pockets is some of the best among ACC quarterbacks.
The Cardinal heads east to Louisville to close out October (3:15 p.m. EDT, ACC Network). Louisville has yet to keep a Power Four offense under 20 points through seven games, presenting Warren with an opportunity to stay hot.
Daniels and the Seminoles were on a bye in Week 8. In Florida State’s first seven games, he threw for 1,618 yards, 12 touchdowns and eight interceptions to go along with 354 yards and 11 more touchdowns, five of which were in the win against Virginia.
Florida State hosts Clemson in a matchup between 2010s ACC powers (7 p.m. EDT, ACC Network). Darian Mensah is the only ACC quarterback that has thrown for more than 200 yards on the Clemson defense.
NC State fell into an early deficit against Stanford, but Bailey was crucial in keeping the Wolf Pack in the game. He fit touchdown passes in tight windows to Deandre Desinor and Keenan Jackson and led the team on the ground with 59 yards.
The Wolf Pack returns home to host California this weekend (Noon EDT, ACC Network). The Golden Bears have been putrid on defense the last two weeks, allowing 100 combined points to Wake Forest and SMU.
Grunkemeyer didn’t finish with the most eye-popping numbers in Virginia Tech’s 20-16 win at Clemson, but he gave Hokie fans a moment they’ll never forget. He found Luke Reynolds for a five-yard touchdown on fourth-and-1 in a dirty pocket, cashing in on the go-ahead score with 1:44 to play.
The Hokies are on their bye to end October. They’ll open their November schedule at SMU next Friday night.
SMU leaned on its ground success in its 59-20 rout of California, but Jennings still had impressive moments. He threw for 223 yards and three touchdowns, hitting Kendrick Raphael on a wheel route for the first touchdown and finding Derrick McFall and Jalen Hale on contested catches for the other two.
SMU heads to Syracuse this week, marking its first road game in over a month (Noon EDT, ESPN2). The Orange survived North Carolina last week but allowed Billy Edwards Jr. to throw for a season-high 271 yards.
Louisville is coming back from its bye in Week 9. Lincoln Kienholz threw for 1,844 yards, 10 touchdowns and three interceptions while rushing for 251 yards and 10 more touchdowns in the Cardinals’ first seven contests.
The Cardinals return home to square off against Stanford (3:15 p.m. EDT, ACC Network). Walker Eget and CJ Carr are the only FBS quarterbacks to throw for under 250 yards on the Cardinal defense.
Wake Forest’s bye was in Week 8. In the Demon Deacons’ first seven games, Lopez threw for 1,947 yards, 17 touchdowns and just one interception while rushing for another 253 yards and six touchdowns.
The Demon Deacons return to Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium to meet Virginia (3:45 p.m. EDT, ESPN2). The Cavaliers had rough showings against dual-threat quarterbacks in their losses to West Virginia, Florida State and SMU.
Mensah returned to the efficiency he boasted at the beginning of the season in Miami's 52-23 rout of Pittsburgh, completing 31 of his 37 pass attempts. He finished the afternoon with 387 yards and four touchdown passes, connecting with Malachi Toney for over half those yards and three of the touchdowns.
The Hurricanes leave the friendly confines of Hard Rock Stadium for the first time in almost a month to face North Carolina (7:30 p.m. EDT, ABC). The Tar Heels have held steady for most of the season on defense but are coming off one of their worst showings in a 31-30 overtime loss to Syracuse.
Back
Top
| Privacy Statement Terms of Service Contact |
Refresh
|
All the best breaking news stories from Apex Football Lite. Optimised for feature phones and low end Android devices, Apex Football Lite helps users with legacy devices and poor network connectivity access the latest football news and live scores. Particularly relevant for breaking football news in Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa.