List of Atlantic Coast Conference rivalries

As with most of its traditions, the classic Atlantic Coast Conference rivalries began on the (men's) basketball court. Before the 2003 expansion, the ACC was able to maintain a full home-and-home double round-robin basketball schedule, meaning each team played each other team both at home and away each season. Coupled with the conference's compact geographical footprint (especially before Florida State joined in 1991), this enhanced conference cohesiveness and built strong rivalries, as each school could generally find something historical to be upset about with one another. Some rivalries were, of course, stronger than others — notably those among the four "Tobacco Road" schools located in North Carolina.
Lesser-known are the ACC's football rivalries, with the exception of Florida State-Miami. With the recent expansion, intrastate rivalries in Florida and Virginia that have always been more significant in football than basketball are now under the conference banner. This gives them added meaning, as these games will have more direct impact on postseason bowl game invitations.
In conference rivalries
* Boston College and Miami: These two former Big East colleges have a heated rivalry dating back to the "Hail Flutie" game in 1984, although BC did not beat Miami again until 2007.
* Boston College and Virginia Tech: Another former Big East rivalry transplanted into the ACC. The two schools are permanent football rivals (BC in the Atlantic Division, and Tech in the Coastal), and always meet twice a year in men's basketball. The two football teams met in the 2007 ACC Championship Game and 2008 ACC Championship Game with Virginia Tech winning both meetings but BC winning the regular season games.
* Boston College and Clemson: In football, these two Atlantic Division foes play for the O'Rourke-McFadden Trophy. The trophy was commissioned in 2008 by the BC Gridiron Club to commemorate the budding rivalry and camaraderie between the two schools. The trophy is named for former BC great “Chuckin’ ” Charlie O’Rourke and Clemson standout James “Bonnie Banks” McFadden, the respective stars who met in the 1940 Cotton Bowl.
* Clemson and Georgia Tech: In football, this series has been very close of late. Between 1996 and 2005, 9 of the 10 games were determined by fewer than 7 points. The schools also have a heated rivalry in baseball, as the two are consistently among the top teams in the ACC and national rankings. This rivalry is also born out of their proximity (approximately 100 miles).
* Clemson and N.C. State: Known as the Textile Bowl in football.
* Clemson and Florida State: For several years in the 2000s, this relatively new rivalry was known as because then-Clemson head coach Tommy Bowden is the son of longtime Florida State coach Bobby Bowden.
* Duke and Maryland: Traditionally a lopsided men's basketball rivalry; reached heightened status in the 2000-01 season when the teams played four times in ESPN "Instant Classics." Each school won a in 2001 (Duke) and 2002 (Maryland). As noted earlier, the school's women's basketball teams met for the 2006 national title, with Maryland winning. The match-up has resulted in Maryland supporters' intense dislike for Duke, and this has spilled over into other sports such as football.
* Duke and North Carolina: Their men's basketball rivalry is widely considered the best in the country. (See Carolina-Duke rivalry) The women's basketball rivalry is equally intense, though without the national profile of the men's matchup. Notably, when the two women's teams first met in the 2006-07 season, both were the last two Division I unbeatens; Duke won. In football, the two schools play for a trophy: "The victory bell". It is often colored in the shade of blue of the team who won it last.
* Duke and N.C. State: In-state Tobacco Road rivals, also members of the Big Four
* Duke and Wake Forest: The two private Big Four schools on Tobacco Road have shared a heated rivalry for decades. Wake Forest and Duke were the first colleges in North Carolina to have basketball teams in the early 1900s.
* Florida State and Miami: Arguably the two most successful college football teams of the last 25 years.
* Florida State and Virginia: Compete for the Jefferson-Eppes Trophy in football. This game resulted in Florida State's first-ever ACC loss in 1995 and a tie with Virginia for ACC champions. Virginia also won again in 2005.
* Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech have a relatively new rivalry known as the "Battle of the Techs." Since the ACC began divisional play in football the Hokies and the Yellow Jackets, are as of the 2010 season, the only two teams to represent the Coastal Division in the ACC Championship Game.
*Maryland and N.C. State: These two schools share a very competitive rivalry in football. As of 2010, Maryland holds a 32-31-4 lead in the all-time series. Maryland has won 8 of 11 meetings in the series since 2000, and in that timeframe, 9 of the games have been decided by 7 points or less. Notably, Maryland's 2001 victory in Raleigh clinched the school's first ACC championship since 1985, and the first outright ACC title won by a team other than Florida State since 1992. Late-game field goals determined the outcome in 2002, 2003, and 2008, with Maryland victorious each time. The winner in each of the season-ending match-ups in 2005 (N.C. State) and 2007 (Maryland) earned bowl eligibility, relegating the losing team to a bowl-less winter. Maryland's 38-31 victory in 2010 denied the Wolfpack the Atlantic Division title and accompanying appearance in the conference championship game. Additionally, these two schools shared a fierce rivalry in men's basketball in the early 1970s, culminating with the , thought to be one of the greatest—if not, the greatest—games ever played .
*Maryland and Virginia: This is a cross border rivalry between the two schools. The two universities are permanent football rivals (See: Maryland-Virginia rivalry) and hold a heated basketball rivalry as well.
* Miami and Virginia Tech: Both schools were football powers in the Big East and the rivalry has continued with both of them moving to the ACC.
* North Carolina and N.C. State: In-state rivals of long standing (See Carolina-NC State rivalry); formerly competed (with Duke and Wake Forest) in the annual "Dixie Classic" basketball tournament ending in 1961.
* North Carolina and Virginia: The ACC's oldest football rivalry is also known as the .
* North Carolina and Wake Forest: Another Tobacco Road rivalry, Wake and Carolina have been at it longer than any other two North Carolina schools. The schools first met on Oct. 18, 1888 when Wake Forest defeated North Carolina 6-4 in the first intercollegiate football game played in North Carolina. As with all Big Four rivalries—and each of the four hates the other three—Wake and Carolina have shared a colorful history.
* N.C. State and Wake Forest: Lesser known outside of North Carolina, but the original rivalry for both schools, as Wake Forest originally was located in the town of Wake Forest, NC, a few miles north of Raleigh. (The other charter members faced their rivals in their final games of the season: Duke and North Carolina, Maryland and Virginia, Clemson and South Carolina, and State and Wake.) The traditional college baseball game these two played on the Monday after Easter in the 1930s and the 1940s, and the fact so many state legislators attended it, was the reason North Carolina's General Assembly created an Easter Monday state holiday, which lasted until the late 1980s. For a time, the two schools also played one of the few trophy games in college basketball, for something called "The Chair," a chair painted in both State and Wake's colors. The Chair's whereabouts are unknown and the series no longer exists. NC State and Wake Forest have met 224 times in basketball, more than any other ACC schools. The two traditionally meet as the last game of the regular season for both teams.
* Virginia and Virginia Tech (See Virginia-Virginia Tech rivalry): Long-standing in-state rivals, compete in the Commonwealth Challenge across all sports and for the Commonwealth Cup trophy in football.
Other rivalries
* Boston College and Boston University (Hockey East): Hockey's "Green Line Rivalry."
* Boston College, Boston University (America East Conference), Harvard (Ivy League), and Northeastern: Hockey's "Beanpot."
* Boston College and the University of Massachusetts (Atlantic 10): Basketball's "Commonwealth Classic."
* Boston College and Providence College (Big East): Former Big East basketball and current Hockey East rivals, they are two of the prominent Catholic New England colleges.
* Boston College and Notre Dame (Independent): Football's "Holy War."
* Clemson and South Carolina (SEC): Natural arch-rivals based in the state of South Carolina (see Carolina-Clemson rivalry). Prior to 1971, this was an intra-conference rivalry in the ACC.
* Clemson and Georgia (SEC): Born of proximity, as the schools are approximately 90 miles apart. This rivalry was intense at its peak in the 1980s.
* Duke and Kentucky (SEC): Although they have met only 19 times, five meetings have come in the NCAA tournament. One such meeting was the 1992 NCAA Tournament East Regional Final, considered by many to be the greatest college basketball game ever played.
* Florida State and Florida (SEC): an all-sports rivalry with Florida Cup implications in football.
* Georgia Tech and Georgia (SEC): "Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate" Prior to 1964, this was an intra-conference rivalry in the SEC.
* Georgia Tech and Auburn (SEC): Originally a baseball rivalry, was an SEC conference and proximinity-based rivalry that lasted until the early 1990s. Football games at Auburn were celebrated with a "Wreck Tech Parade". The football rivalry was reinstated in 2003 and 2005 with upset victories by Tech in both games. The teams do not currently meet in any revenue sports.
* Maryland and Johns Hopkins: These two Maryland schools hold what has been called the "greatest" men's lacrosse rivalry.
* Maryland and Navy (independent): An intrastate rivalry rich in history. Dating back to the late 19th century and dormant since the mid-1960s, the "Crab Bowl Classic" was renewed and in 2005. The schools will meet again to begin the 2010 season.
* Maryland and Penn State (Big Ten): Dormant since the early 1990s, there have been talks to renew the series. Like the Maryland-Virginia rivalry, this also has recruiting implications.
* Maryland and West Virginia (Big East): The football series was formerly the longest current continuous non-conference series for both schools, as they played every year since 1980. The game is not scheduled for 2008 or 2009, but will resume in 2010.
* Miami and Florida (SEC): A now seldom scheduled game with Florida Cup implications. The game is seldom scheduled because teams were only allowed three non-conference games, and the Gators would have only one "true" non-conference game if they had to play both the Seminoles and Hurricanes in the same season. The rivalry is nearly non-existent nowadays due to Miami's move to the ACC.
*North Carolina and Georgia (SEC): Both colleges lay claim to being the oldest state college in the United States, although most historians give the honor to UNC (Georgia was chartered first, but UNC opened for classes first, and graduated seniors before Georgia opened).
* North Carolina and Kentucky (SEC): The two winningest programs in men's college basketball now play against each other on a yearly basis.
* North Carolina and Notre Dame (Big East): Two of the winningest women's soccer programs regularly compete for the NCAA championship in that sport.
* North Carolina and Tennessee (SEC): This border war dates back to 1893 and was played annually from 1945 until 1961, when it went dormant. It will be renewed in 2011 and 2012.
*NC State and East Carolina (Conference USA): A rivalry that dates back to 1970 in football.
* Virginia and Johns Hopkins: A rivalry between two of the nation's most historically successful men's lacrosse programs.
* Virginia and Syracuse (Big East): Another traditional lacrosse rivalry. The Cavaliers and Orange have also met on the football field in recent years.
* Virginia and West Virginia (Big East): These schools met in football on a regular basis before the rivalry ended bitterly when West Virginia officials deemed a skit by the Virginia pep band offensive. The teams met in the inaugural Continental Tire Bowl in 2002 with Virginia winning handily.
* Virginia Tech and West Virginia (Big East): The teams used to play for the Black Diamond Trophy in football.
*Virginia Tech and Virginia Military Institute, a rivalry between Virginia's Senior Military Colleges. The two formerly played each other in an annual Thanksgiving day football game known as the "Military Classic of the South." The two schools have not played each other in football since 1984 as Tech's program has significantly outgrown that of VMI. The "Military Classic of the South" is now the game between VMI and The Citadel.
*Virginia Tech and Radford University: The two universities are less than fifteen miles apart and Radford used to be an all female counterpart to Virginia Tech.
Since the 1999-2000 season, ACC teams have played Big Ten teams in the annual ACC-Big Ten Challenge men's basketball tournament; the ACC "won" this tournament every year from its inception until 2009 (ACC teams have won a majority of the games played in every season). The Big Ten won in 2009 and 2010.

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