Top-ranked Clemson will put its undefeated season on the line when the Tigers take on No. 8 North Carolina in the 2015 ACC Championship Game from Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. The game is scheduled to kick off at 8:14 p.m. and will be televised by ABC.
A win for Clemson will clinch a berth in the College Football Playoff. Clemson was picked as the preseason favorite to win the ACC back in July. Clemson has won 15 straight games, which is the longest active winning streak in the country, while the Tar Heels have won 11 straight—the third longest—after opening the season with a loss to South Carolina.
About North Carolina: The Tar Heels come into the ACC Championship Game playing better than anyone in the country. Not only have they won 11 straight games, but they have done it in dominating fashion. They have scored 30 or more points in each of the last four games and 45 or more in three of them. They have scored in 24 of the last 27 quarters, and at one point scored in 20 consecutive quarters.
North Carolina’s offense: Quarterback Marquise Williams needs just 206 yards to become just the fifth player in ACC history to surpass 10,000 career yards. Williams has 90 career touchdown responsibilities, including 32 rushing touchdowns. Running back Elijah Hood has rushed for 1,280 yards this year and 16 touchdowns – second in the league in both categories. The Tar Heels are averaging 41.3 points (11th nationally) and 495.7 yards (16th nationally) per game.
North Carolina’s defense: The Tar Heels lead the ACC and rank sixth in the nation in passes defended per game. They have 59 PBUs and 15 interceptions. Cornerback M.J. Stewart leads the ACC in PPU’s per game (1.8) with 13 PBUs and four interceptions. Cornerback Des Lawrence has 14 PBUs and two interceptions. UNC ranks 19th in the country in scoring defense (20.8).
Records: Clemson 12-0; North Carolina 11-1
Series record: Clemson leads the series 36-19-1
Games in Neutral sites: Clemson leads 2-1
First meeting: North Carolina won 28-0 in 1897
Last Meeting: Clemson won 50-35 in 2014 (at Death Valley)
Last North Carolina win: 21-16 in 2010 (at Chapel Hill)
Streak: Clemson has won 2 straight and 5 of the last 6
Injuries: Clemson – No new injuries to report. North Carolina – Out: S Sam Smiley (torn Achilles)
Stat worth noting: Clemson and North Carolina are just two of 11 teams nationally to average more than 200 yards per game rushing and 250 yards per game passing. The Tigers are averaging 214.1 yards per game on the ground and 288.4 through the air. The Tar Heels are averaging 229.7 on the ground and 266 through the air.
Second stat worth noting: This will be Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney’s 100th game as a head coach. He currently has a 73-26 record. He moved into third place on Clemson’s all-time win list with last week’s win over South Carolina. He passed his former boss and position coach Tommy Bowden who was 72-45 in nine plus years as the Tigers’ head coach. Swinney will be just the fourth Clemson coach to coach in 100 games, joining Frank Howard (295), Danny Ford (129) and Bowden (117).
Third stat worth noting: This will be the first time since 1982 that Clemson and North Carolina will both come into a game ranked in the latest Associated Press top 25. In 1982, Clemson was 13th and UNC was 18th and Clemson won the game, 16-13. Both teams were ranked in the top 10 in 1981. It was the first top 10 meeting between two ACC schools. Clemson, No. 2 in the country at the time, won the game, 10-8, over No. 8 North Carolina. The only other top 25 meeting between the two schools occurred in the 1959 season opener. The Tigers won that game, too, by a score of 20-18. Clemson, who finished the season 9-2 and ranked 11th in the final poll, entered the UNC game ranked 18th, while the Tar Heels were 12th.
Memorable game: The landmark game of the Clemson-North Carolina series took place on November 7, 1981 in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Tigers won a physical game, 10-8, behind a defense that was led by All-American linebacker Jeff Davis and defensive end Jeff Bryant. It was the first meeting of top 10 teams in the history of the ACC as Clemson came in 8-0 and ranked No. 2 in the country, while the Tar Heels were 7-1 and ranked No. 8 nationally. Running back Jeff McCall scored the game’s lone touchdown, while Bryant recovered a lateral with one minute left in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for the Tigers. Clemson went onto win the ACC and the National Championship after that.