State Near Bottom of ACC in Football Strength of Schedule Ranking
NC State's 2020 football schedule has been rated as 12th in difficulty among the ACC's 14 schools, according to rankings compiled by the online gambling site SportsBettingDime.com.
The rankings were calculated using several criteria, including opponents' efficiency ratings from last season minus the production lost from 2019 and recruiting rankings from the past four years, along with major transfers added and lost. The subjective formula was then adjusted for each game based on whether it's at home or on the road.
Even with the addition of Mississippi State of the SEC and a road game against Clemson at Death Valley, the Wolfpack's upcoming schedule ranks only 72nd nationally out of 130 FBS teams with a strength of schedule average of minus-4.3
One reason for the low number is the lack of respect given to the ACC.
Only one conference school's schedule -- Georgia Tech at No. 2 -- is rated among the nation's top 25 according to SportsBettingDime's calculations.
Louisville is the next highest at No. 28, followed by Virginia at No. 44. National championship favorite Clemson's schedule is rated at No. 79 nationally and 13th in the ACC, one spot below coach Dave Doeren's team.
Here's the entire conference breakdown:
| Team | Conference Rank | National rank | SOS average |
|---|---|---|---|
Georgia Tech | 1 | 2 | 223.97 |
Louisville | 2 | 28 | 101.62 |
Virginia | 3 | 44 | 60.59 |
Miami | 4 | 53 | 45.65 |
Pittsburgh | 5 | 54 | 42.24 |
Florida State | 6 | 57 | 31.77 |
Wake Forest | 7 | 58 | 23,85 |
Duke | 8 | 59 | 22.97 |
Virginia Tech | 9 | 63 | 19.47 |
UNC | 10 | 67 | 14.33 |
Boston College | 11 | 69 | 11.52 |
NC State | 12 | 72 | -4.3 |
Clemson | 13 | 79 | -59.57 |
Syracuse | 14 | 80 | -63.22 |
In addition to the Mississippi State game at Carter-Finley Stadium, State's nonconference schedule also includes contests at Troy (whose schedule is ranked at No. 123) and home against Liberty (No. 128) and Delaware (an FCS team not included in the rankings).
The Wolfpack's conference games are against Atlantic Division rivals Louisville, Clemson, Florida State, Wake Forest, Boston College and Syracuse, as well as crossover Coastal Division opponents North Carolina and Duke.
