CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Coming into the season, the ACC boasted some big-name wide receivers surrounded by some major hype. Atop the list were Miami’s Malachi Toney and Florida State’s Duce Robinson. Those two, along with Clemson’s Bryant Wesco Jr., were the league’s preseason All-ACC selections at the receiver position. 

But nearly two months into the season, a new list of wideouts is earning kudos, proving the position is deeper in the conference than many expected going into the year.

Robinson and Wesco have been good and Toney’s been great.

Syracuse’s Umari Hatcher, Wake Forest’s Carlos Hernandez and Virginia Tech’s Que’Sean Brown all warrant first-team all-conference consideration at this point. 

Hatcher’s seven touchdown receptions are second only to Toney (8) and he’s tied with Toney averaging 8.3 catches per game. Hernandez is third in the league in receiving yards behind, you guessed it, Toney and Hatcher. Brown is fourth.

North Carolina’s Jordan Shipp, Louisville’s Lawayne McCoy and Pittsburgh’s Cataurus Hicks have also posted big numbers. 

Toney – and his 50 catches for 758 yards and eight touchdown receptions – rightfully grabs the headlines, but ACC receivers are a deeper group than the preseason chatter indicated.

Here’s a look at who else is up and down in the ACC:

 

Who’s Up?

Wake Forest’s respect: For the second week in a row, it appears the appreciation for what Jake Dickert is doing with the Demon Deacons is on the rise. Wake Forest has pretty clearly established itself as the ACC’s No. 2 team. Now, an open date gives Dickert’s team a chance to rest up for a less-than-daunting stretch run that starts with a Halloween matchup with UVA.

North Carolina: The Tar Heels have won two in a row, both on the road, following up their victory over quarterback-challenged Pittsburgh with a rivalry defeat of Duke. UNC isn’t dominating – it won both games by four points – but it’s winning. And that’s what Bill Belichick was tasked with doing. Suddenly, a seven or eight-win season doesn’t seem out of the question in Chapel Hill.

UVA kicker Will Bettridge: The program’s all-time leading scorer snapped his dry spell with a pair of 40-plus yard kicks against SMU on Saturday. Bettridge had missed from 39 yards against West Virginia and from 37 against Delaware. Virginia didn’t attempt a field goal in games against Florida State and Syracuse. Bettridge’s last made field goal was a 30-yarder on Sept. 11 against Norfolk State. But in Dallas, he drilled attempts from 47 – equaling his career long – and 43.

Who’s down?

Cal’s QB situation: There haven’t been many headline-level misses among ACC quarterbacks in this NIL era, but Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele’s somewhat surprising decision to stick with Cal after his breakout 2025 season has backfired spectacularly. First-year coach Tosh Lupoi didn’t start Sagapolutele in last week’s loss to Wake Forest and wouldn’t commit to him being behind center this weekend against SMU.

Pitt’s title hopes: The Panthers opened October with a road win at Virginia Tech that seemed to announce their arrival on the ACC’s mainstage. But, unable to respond to quarterback Mason Heintschel’s injury, Pitt has fallen off the stage completely. Back-to-back losses to North Carolina and Boston College have Pat Narduzzi’s club downgraded from contender to afterthought. 

Fran Brown’s Syracuse future: Brown debuted with a beyond-encouraging 10-3 campaign in 2024. Since then, the Orange is 5-13 and just 1-11 in ACC play. In Saturday’s home loss to Louisville, Syracuse trailed 28-23 at the half, then did nothing after the break, falling 34-26. It was a disappointing fizzling that mirrors Brown’s time with the team.