ACC Week 3 Power Rankings: Syracuse football, Clemson drop; who takes over top spot?

The second week of the college football season wasn't a good one for the ACC. The conference went 0-5 in games against other power conferences, and even some non-conference wins weren't all that impressive. Needless to say, there were some big movements in the power rankings. Let's look at where things stand two weeks into the season.

1. Miami (last week: 2)

Thanks to some outside help, the Hurricanes move up to the top spot in our power rankings. On the field, Miami handled Bethune-Cookman, 45-3. They didn’t look past an FCS opponent with a surprisingly intriguing showdown with South Florida this week after the Bulls knocked off ranked teams in back-to-back weeks.

2. Florida State (last week: 3)

Credit to Florida State for avoiding a letdown after beating Alabama last week. Of course, blowing out East Texas A&M, even with a 77-3 scoreline, doesn’t prove a lot. The Seminoles will have one more non-conference layup against Kent State before starting conference play.

3. Clemson (last week: 1) 

A 27-16 win over Troy might actually be worse than losing to LSU. The Tigers were down 16-0 to a team that could be among the worst in the Sun Belt this season before they got their act together. This might not actually be the Clemson team we were expecting before the season. That team needs to show up soon, with Clemson traveling to Georgia Tech this weekend.

4. Georgia Tech (last week: 4)

Haynes King missed Georgia Tech’s rout of Gardner-Webb, although the injury isn’t believed to be serious. That’s great news for the Yellow Jackets, who host Clemson this week. That’s when we’ll find out if the Yellow Jackets are a genuine contender in the ACC.

5. Louisville (last week: 6)

Louisville’s two-touchdown win over James Madison is a little misleading. The Cardinals had two big plays on offense and a defensive touchdown, but not much else. In fairness, James Madison is a contender in the Sun Belt, so Louisville deserves some credit for the win.

6. Pittsburgh (last week: 9)

The Panthers have yet to be challenged, but they get some credit for taking care of business against lesser teams. We’ll give them the benefit of the doubt for now. Pitt gets its first challenge of the season this week when the Panthers visit West Virginia for the Backyard Brawl, a game that old Big East fans won’t want to miss.

7. SMU (last week: 5)

A loss to in-state foe Baylor was a big blow for the Mustangs. SMU led for long stretches of the game but couldn’t finish the job. Even with a good showing by the offense, the Mustangs were atrocious defensively, giving up over 600 total yards. If that side of the ball doesn’t get better, SMU isn’t going to be among the ACC’s elite.

8. Duke (last week: 7)

Duke gets some credit for hanging around with Illinois during the first half. But getting blown out in the second half at home is a sign that the Blue Devils aren’t going to measure up to the top teams in the ACC. 

9. Boston College (last week: 13)

The Eagles suffered a heartbreaking double-overtime loss to Michigan State on Saturday night. Granted, the Spartans aren’t an elite Big Ten team, but nearly beating a Big Ten opponent on the road was impressive. Quarterback Dylan Lonergan looks like he could be the real deal, helping the Eagles jump up several spots in the power rankings.

10. Virginia Tech (last week: 10)

What happened to the Hokies Saturday night? They had a 10-point halftime lead at home, only for the wheels to come off during the second half. While both losses have come against SEC teams, Virginia Tech is now 0-2. Playing Old Dominion next week won’t be easy for the Hokies, who are desperate for a win despite playing some decent football at times. 

11. NC State (last week: 11)

Despite not counting as a conference win, NC State earned a hard-fought win over Virginia. It wasn’t an overly impressive victory, but the Wolfpack showed a lot by coming from behind. They’ll have a short week before taking on Wake Forest on the road Thursday, and could be halfway to a bowl game in just a few days.

12. Virginia (last week: 12)

The Cavs played a good first half, but couldn’t hold onto a 10-point halftime lead against NC State. It was no doubt frustrating for a rebuilding program that looked poised to score a big win. However, with Chandler Morris and J’Mari Taylor, Virginia has something positive brewing in 2025.

13. Syracuse (last week: 8)

There’s no sugarcoating what probably should have been a loss at home to UConn. Granted, the Orange was solid defensively in the 27-20 win. Syracuse also deserves some credit for its fourth-quarter comeback. But there were a lot of red flags for this young team.

14. California (last week: 14)

The Golden Bears didn’t exactly blow Texas Southern away in a 35-3 win. Cal only led 11-0 at halftime, so it took some time to get going. But a win’s a win, making the Bears 2-0 before they host Minnesota in an ACC-Big Ten showdown this week.

15. North Carolina (last week: 15)

Congratulations to Bill Belichick on getting his first collegiate victory. However, a 20-3 win over UNC-Charlotte was rather underwhelming, especially with quarterback Gio Lopez only throwing for 155 yards. It’ll take more than that to start moving up the ACC power rankings.

16. Stanford (last week: 16)

Stanford’s defense put forth a decent effort against BYU, keeping the Cardinal in the game. But the offense was anemic at best, scoring three points and managing just 161 yards. Given the schedule ahead, Stanford may not win a game all season.

17. Wake Forest (last week: 17)

The Demon Deacons may have barely hung on to beat Kennesaw State last week, but they at least handled FCS opponent Western Carolina without too many problems. We’ll see if they can crawl out of the ACC basement with a good performance against NC State on Thursday.