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ACC power rankings after Week 10: Miami, SMU remain unbeaten in ACC play
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Week 10 of ACC play is in the rearview mirror.
It was a very eventful week in the ACC, particularly at the top of the standings. Clemson suffered a loss as a double-digit favorite and Pitt sustained its first defeat of the season courtesy of SMU. There’s also plenty of movement in the middle of the league this week as teams like NC State, North Carolina and Syracuse all picked up important victories.
Here’s Saturday Down South’s updated ACC Week 10 power rankings:
17. Florida State (Previously: 17)
Is this rock bottom for Florida State? If not, is it coming soon?
16. Stanford (Previously: 16)
Stanford got smoked by NC State on Saturday. The Cardinal allowed NC State to get whatever it wanted offensively. Stanford is 1-5 in conference play and it’s tough to find much optimism for this program right now.
15. Wake Forest (Previously: 15)
Wake Forest was on bye this week.
14. Boston College (Previously: 14)
Boston College did not play in Week 10.
13. Virginia (Previously: 13)
Virginia was off this week.
12. Duke (Previously: 8)
Tough game for Duke on Saturday. The Blue Devils played well into the second half and even had a double-digit lead in the third quarter, but they collapsed in the second half against Miami. Still, this was arguably Duke’s best offensive performance of the season on a down-to-down basis.
11. Georgia Tech (Previously: 9)
Georgia Tech was off this week.
10. NC State (Previously: 12)
NC State is surging over the second half of the season. The Wolfpack have won back-to-back games going into next week’s matchup against Duke.
9. North Carolina (Previously: 11)
North Carolina is suddenly playing very well. The Tar Heels crushed Florida State this week, earning their second straight blowout win. It’s been a nice recovery for UNC, who had lost 4 in a row prior to these back-to-back victories. Carolina is now just 1 win away from bowl eligibility.
8. Cal (Previously: 7)
Cal was idle in Week 10
7. Virginia Tech (Previously: 5)
Virginia Tech lost to Syracuse in overtime on Saturday. It’s an unfortunate result for the Hokies, who had been playing very well in recent weeks. They didn’t have quarterback Kyron Drones due to injury, but it was still a disappointing result.
6. Syracuse (Previously: 10)
Syracuse moves up 4 spots this week after beating Virginia Tech in overtime on Saturday. The Orange are 6-2 in Fran Brown’s first season — a tremendous accomplishment, even if things have been a bit bumpy from time to time.
5. Pitt (Previously: 3)
Pitt finally got burned. After an 8-0 start that included several close wins, the Panthers were blown out on Saturday night in Dallas. Pitt is still on track to have a great season, but this had to be a disappointing result for Pat Narduzzi’s bunch.
4. Clemson (Previously: 2)
Clemson’s postseason hopes are now in deep jeopardy. A second loss likely takes the Tigers completely out of the discussion for an at-large berth in the College Football Playoff. And now Clemson is firmly on the outside-looking-in of the ACC title game race. The Tigers will need SMU to lose at least once to have a chance to get back in the mix.
3. Louisville (Previously: 6)
Louisville hasn’t had a stellar season, but goodness was that an impressive win in Death Valley on Saturday night. The Cardinals — at least for 1 week — slot in at No. 3 in these rankings.
2. SMU (Previously 4)
SMU left no doubt in its blowout win over the Pitt. The victory means the Mustangs now control their own destiny in pursuit of an ACC Championship Game berth. After a rough September, SMU has played like one of the best teams in the country for several weeks now.
1. Miami (Previously: 1)
Miami trailed at one point in the second half against Duke on Saturday, but ended up taking care of business with a 22-point win. It sure pays off to have a Heisman Trophy candidate at quarterback. Given the other results in the league this week, Miami seems to be cruising toward a 12-0 regular season.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
