ACC Week 10 Power Rankings: Making sense of the conference's middle of the pack

The top teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference held serve this week, and in a weird way, so did the teams at the bottom. However, there was a shakeup in the middle of the conference, which continues to be something of a mystery. With seven teams realistically still in play for a spot in the conference title game, it’s worth taking a look at where teams stack up in the power rankings heading into November.

1. Georgia Tech (last week: 1)

The Yellow Jackets may have started a little slow, but once they got into gear, Haynes King couldn’t be stopped. He finished with over 300 passing yards and three touchdowns against Syracuse, not to mention 91 rushing yards and two more touchdowns on the ground. Georgia Tech is now 8-0, and it’s hard to see someone challenging them until they host Georgia the final week of the season.

2. Louisville (last week: 2)

It would have been nice to see Louisville really drop the hammer on Boston College, rather than letting the Eagles hang around and make it a one-score game late in the fourth quarter. But they managed to avoid a letdown after their big win over Miami. That’s enough to keep the Cardinals second in the power rankings.

3. Miami (last week: 3)

The Hurricanes don’t get too many points for blowing out Stanford at home, especially since they were held scoreless until late in the second quarter. On paper, Miami should win out and find a way to the College Football Playoff. But there could be a tricky game or two down the stretch.

4. Duke (last week: 6)

Despite having an extra week to think about their loss to Georgia Tech, Duke’s bye week probably came at a good time. The Blue Devils got extra time to prepare for next week’s trip to Clemson. A win there and Duke has a legit chance to run the table and reach the ACC Championship Game.

5. Virginia (last week: 4)

We have to drop Virginia a little bit in the power rankings this week. To their credit, the Cavs make the plays they have to late in games. But going to overtime with Washington State and North Carolina in back-to-back weeks is now what you expect from an ACC contender. Even if this team is 4-0 in conference play, they are playing with fire.

6. Wake Forest (last week: 10)

For a team that was a two-point try away from beating Georgia Tech, we shouldn’t have been surprised that Wake knocked off SMU. Just one more win and the Demon Deacons will be bowl-eligible, and they’ll have a chance to do it this week in Tallahassee.

7. Pittsburgh (last week: 7)

The now bowl-eligible Panthers deserve some credit on the heels of a four-game winning streak. The caveat is that their four ACC wins are against teams with a combined two conference victories. That non-conference loss against a 2-6 West Virginia team doesn’t look particularly good either. But we can’t completely dismiss Pitt after true freshman Mason Heintschel led them to 53 points against NC State.

8. SMU (last week: 5)

After three straight ACC wins and three straight games with 30-plus points, the prolific SMU offense was completely shut down in Winston-Salem. With games against Miami and Louisville, the Mustangs are very much in contention for a spot in the ACC Championship Game. But after this loss, it’s impossible to be confident that SMU can run the table against its remaining schedule.

9. Clemson (last week: 8)

Winning the ACC is no longer on the table for the Tigers. But it’ll be interesting to see how Dabo Swinney’s team comes out of its bye week. With games against Clemson, Florida State, and Duke, Clemson will still have a say in the ACC title race coming down the stretch.

10. Virginia Tech (last week: 12)

The Hokies found a way to survive a double-overtime game against Cal on Friday, although at times it seemed like they were trying to find ways to lose. While it was a much-needed win and a sign that Virginia Tech is better than its record indicates, it’s too little, too late. The Hokies need to go 3-1 to play in a bowl game and have three ranked teams left on their schedule.

11. California (last week: 9)

Cal’s pipe dream of crashing the ACC Championship Game is over after Friday’s loss to Virginia Tech. Of course, nobody really believed the Bears were among the ACC’s elite teams. They now find themselves in a tough spot, as they still need one more win to become bowl-eligible but face a challenging November schedule.

12. Syracuse (last week: 11)

There were perhaps a few bright spots for the Orange against an undefeated Georgia Tech team, but it turned into another long day for Syracuse. They risk a huge drop in the power rankings next week if they can’t take care of North Carolina at home on Halloween.

13. NC State (last week: 13)

It’s almost shocking to think that this NC State team beat both Virginia and Wake Forest in September. While those teams have improved, the Wolfpack seems to be regressing. They were shredded by a true freshman quarterback over the weekend, leaving them two wins shy of a bowl game with two top-10 opponents left on their schedule.

14. Stanford (last week: 14)

Being tied with Miami at halftime is at least a silver lining for the Cardinal. But they’re going to need to pull off multiple upsets to get to a bowl game.

15. Florida State (last week: 15)

The Seminoles didn’t lose this past week, but only because they had a bye. That means we can’t move them up in the power rankings. But they can start moving up if they can knock off Wake Forest this week.

16. North Carolina (last week: 16)

Bill Belichick was so close to his first ACC win. In true Belichick fashion, he went for the win in overtime rather than the tie, only for the Tar Heels to fail and lose by a single point. But back-to-back close losses will only keep North Carolina out of the bottom spot of our power rankings.

17. Boston College (last week: 17)

To their credit, the Eagles fought hard and gave Louisville a good game. However, this team is still 1-7 and likely to finish 1-11, so it’s hard to justify them being anywhere but last in the power rankings.