CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Queen City is preparing to host the ACC Football Championship in Uptown Charlotte Saturday. Wake Forest will take on Pittsburgh at 8 p.m. Saturday in Charlotte at Bank of America Stadium, and the event is set to bring in thousands of out-of-towners for the weekend.
Team walk-throughs were held at Bank of America Stadium Friday and, for the first time since 2014, a team other than Clemson is in the Queen City to represent the Atlantic Division. Wake Forest is playing for the league championship for the first time since winning in 2006.
When the Demon Deacons won the title 15 years ago over Georgia Tech, they did it by a score of 9-6. That's not expected for Saturday's game against Pittsburgh: both teams average about 43 points per game.
For Wake Forest, there's certainly a lot of excitement among fans, alumni and former players, but ACC coach of the year Coach Dave Clawson said he isn't focused on catching up right now -- this week is about winning a championship.
This game will feature ACC player of the year Kenny Pickett, the Pittsburgh quarterback who some think the Carolina Panthers may be scouting closely Saturday night.
Pickett is responsible for 44 touchdowns this year -- but so is Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman, a Charlotte native who played most of his high school career at Davidson Day School.
Hartman is the first ACC quarterback since Lamar Jackson with 30 passing touchdowns and 10 rushing touchdowns in one season.
Of all the championship games this weekend in college football – not one of them is expected to have more points than this one.
When it comes to COVID-19 precautions at Bank of America Stadium, the usual ones have been in place, but no extra restrictions have been added.
Those planning on attending will want to bring a mask, as masks are required in indoor places within the stadium. Health leaders are also urging people to take advantage of the hand sanitizer stations, and social distance when possible. The stadium does not have capacity restrictions in place.