There is no formal ACC/Big Ten football challenge – no fancy logo for the field and no advertisements and promos going on and on about it on ESPN. This weekend, though, might as well be the football version of the long-running basketball competition between the conferences.
Half of the 10 games involving ACC teams on Saturday feature matchups against the Big Ten. Two are in the Triangle, where UNC will play Illinois at Kenan Stadium and Duke faces Northwestern at Wallace Wade Stadium.
“It's the Big Ten versus the ACC,” said Frank Beamer, the Virginia Tech coach whose team on Saturday plays at Purdue.