Syracuse Football: Orange checks in at No. 11 in ACC power rankings

Syracuse football has moved up in our weekly ACC power ratings, as the Orange prepare to host winless Duke this coming Saturday afternoon.

Syracuse football had previously resided in the basement of our weekly Atlantic Coast Conference power rankings, but that is no longer the case.

The Orange (1-2) climbed out of the bottom spot after notching its inaugural conquest of the 2020 campaign, a 37-20 besting of Georgia Tech inside the newly renovated Carrier Dome on Sept. 26.

Now the ‘Cuse is set to welcome winless Duke to the Hill this Saturday afternoon, and Syracuse football has a prime opportunity to even its fall term record at .500 and potentially jump up even more positions in the ACC standings.

Here is where things presently stand in the conference, as we put forth our weekly power ratings.

1. Clemson
No surprise here, as the Tigers dismantled Virginia over the weekend. Clemson continues to look like the top team in the league, however, the Tigers have a huge showdown coming up with Miami.

2. Miami
Speaking of the Hurricanes, they are off to an undefeated start and have performed admirably. Miami didn’t compete this past weekend, and their ACC clash at Clemson this Saturday has huge ramifications for the conference.

3. North Carolina
The Tar Heels are a top-10 squad in both major polls, and they squeaked by Boston College on the road over the weekend. I don’t think that UNC is performing at its highest level, but the Tar Heels are still really dangerous on offense.

4. Notre Dame
Off this past weekend, the Fighting Irish is undefeated, but Notre Dame hasn’t seemed overly dominant to date in the 2020 stanza. Yet the Fighting Irish is No. 5 in the top-25 ballots and a serious contender to capture the ACC crown.

5. Virginia Tech
The Hokies scored a solid victory at Duke over the weekend and have yet to lose this season.

6. Pittsburgh
The Panthers, a crew that beat Syracuse football last month, fell in heart-breaking fashion over the weekend to N.C. State. That amounted to Pitt’s first setback of the 2020 campaign, and it dropped the Panthers out of the major polls.

7. N.C. State
The Wolfpack’s slim conquering of Pittsburgh on the road proved one of the best results in the ACC this past Saturday.

8. Virginia
The Cavaliers shouldn’t get penalized too much for losing to No. 1 Clemson, and UVA didn’t get completely blown out.

9. Boston College
After a 2-0 beginning to the fall term, the Eagles were defeated in a tight encounter with highly ranked North Carolina. I believe that BC is better than some pundits think.

10. Louisville
At 1-2, the Cardinals aren’t super stellar so far in the 2020 season, however, Louisville does boast a potent offense.

11. Syracuse
The Orange offense finally woke up in the win versus the Yellow Jackets, which is encouraging. The ‘Cuse needs to continue that development this Saturday at home against Duke.

12. Wake Forest
The Demon Deacons crushed Campbell, 66-14, to secure their initial victory of the fall campaign.

13. Florida State
The Seminoles looked a little shaky when getting in the win column of the 2020 stanza, a 41-24 success versus Jacksonville State.

14. Georgia Tech
After falling to Syracuse football at the Carrier Dome on Sept. 26, the Yellow Jackets were off over the weekend.

15. Duke
This past Saturday, the Blue Devils moved to 0-4 on the year after they lost to Virginia Tech. Duke looks to get into the victory column this Saturday in Central New York versus the ‘Cuse.