FOOTBALL
ACC schools ranked by acceptance rate for 2026-27 News
Alexander TurriClemson Wire
Updated July 19, 2026, 9:20 p.m. ET
The ACC is known for much more than football and basketball. Along with fielding some of the country’s top athletic programs, the conference is also home to several highly regarded universities, though getting into each one isn’t equally difficult
Acceptance rates vary significantly across the league. Some schools admit only a small fraction of applicants while others welcome a much larger percentage. That doesn’t necessarily make one university, such as Clemson, better than another, however. Admissions selectivity can be influenced by a variety of factors, including the size of a school’s applicant pool, enrollment targets and institutional priorities. It’s simply another way to compare the conference’s universities
Recently, we took a look at how all 17 ACC football schools stacked up in the latest U.S. News & World Report academic rankings. Now, we’re examining a different set of numbers by comparing each university’s reported undergraduate acceptance rate
It’s another interesting snapshot of the conference, especially for fans who enjoy seeing how their school compares beyond the playing field. While success in athletics often grabs the headlines, the ACC has built a reputation for combining competitive sports with strong academic institutions
With that in mind, here’s where every ACC football school ranks based on its latest reported acceptance rate
17. University of Louisville
Undergraduate enrollment: 17,086
Acceptance rate: 79%
No. 16 Southern Methodist University
City: Dallas, Texas
Undergraduate enrollment: 7,285
Acceptance rate: 63%
No. 15 University of Pittsburgh
City: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Undergraduate enrollment: 20,418
Acceptance rate: 58%
No. 14 Virginia Tech
City: Blacksburg, Virginia
Undergraduate enrollment: 31,035
Acceptance rate: 55%
No. 13 Syracuse University
City: Syracuse, New York
Undergraduate enrollment: 15,957
Acceptance rate: 46%
No. 12 NC State University
City: Raleigh, North Carolina
Undergraduate enrollment: 28,422
Acceptance rate: 42%
No. 11 Clemson University
City: Clemson, South Carolina
Undergraduate enrollment: 23,401
Acceptance rate: 38%
No. 10 Florida State University
City: Tallahassee, Florida
Undergraduate enrollment: 32,720
Acceptance rate: 24%
No. 9 Wake Forest University
City: Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Undergraduate enrollment: 5,490
Acceptance rate: 22%
No. 8 University of Miami
City: Coral Gables, Florida
Undergraduate enrollment: 13,250
Acceptance rate: 19%
No. 7 University of Virginia
City: Charlottesville, Virginia
Undergraduate enrollment: 17,901
Acceptance rate: 17%
No. 6 Boston College
City: Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
Tuition and fees: $73,508
Acceptance rate: 16%
No. 5 University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
City: Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Undergraduate enrollment: 21,075
Acceptance rate: 15%
No. 4 Georgia Institute of Technology
City: Atlanta, Georgia
Undergraduate enrollment: 20,592
Acceptance rate: 14%
No. 3 University of California, Berkeley
City: Berkley, California
Undergraduate enrollment: 33,469
Acceptance rate: 11%
No. 2 Duke University
City: Durham, North Carolina
Undergraduate enrollment: 6,523
Acceptance rate: 6%
No. 1 Stanford University
City: Stanford, California
Undergraduate enrollment: 7,904
Acceptance rate: 4%
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