The ACC is positioned to win back the Challenge, finally.

Thanks to Pitt’s impressive victory at Maryland last night, the ACC is in great shape to win its first ACC-Big 10 Challenge in eight years. The Big Ten has won the marquee early-season event five times and forged two ties over the last seven seasons. The ACC, improbably, won the first 10 head-to-head match-ups dating back to the 1999-2000 season.

After eight games, the current Challenge is tied 4-4, with seven teams winning at home Monday and Tuesday night. Pitt’s win at College Park gives the ACC a decided advantage heading into tonight’s final six games. Why? Because the ACC has four of those six games at home and has a great shot at winning at least one on the road. Louisville, Miami, Clemson and Virginia are all playing at home against, respectively, Purdue, Rutgers, Nebraska and Ohio State and all ACC teams are favored to win.

The two road games are Virginia Tech at Michigan and No. 3 Carolina at 13th-ranked Indiana in the grand finale of the made-for-TV extravaganza that looks to go on forever. So if the ACC wins four of the remaining six games, it will reclaim the Challenge for the first time since 2008. That’s why Pitt’s victory at Maryland looms so large since it was the only road win among the first eight games.

The Tar Heels are playing to represent their league, of course, but more so to keep their undefeated season going, in which Jay Bilas of ESPN continues to trumpet them as the best team in the country. Winning at IU’s Assembly Hall will support Bilas’ claim. It won’t be easy; the last time UNC played there, Roy Williams says his team lost by 4,000 points. Not that bad, but it was an 83-59 blowout for the Hoosiers. Williams probably needs a performance from his veteran team similar to his 2004-05 Heels who went on to capture the national championship after a season-defining 70-63 win at Indiana, which was the homecoming for Sean May. Seems like just yesterday.

Let’s go get ’em again, Roy.