It’s time for one last go on the football power rankings before we shift over to basketball mode. Rivalry week was a great one for the ACC, especially for its members that faced the SEC.
1 – Florida State: Another week, another poll where Florida State drops out of the top spot despite having zero losses since the 2012 regular season. All eyes will be turned towards Jameis Winston’s student conduct code trial, which started today.
2 – Georgia Tech: Both Clemson and Georgia Tech snapped losing streaks against in-state SEC rivals Saturday, and the Jackets did so in dramatic fashion. Now a nation of FSU-hating college football fans will root for the Ramblin’ Wreck.
3 – Louisville: It was an unlikely hero in Louisville’s victory over Kentucky, as third-string quarterback Kyle Bolin led the Cardinals over their rivals. It was a chippy game, with skirmishes even before the opening kickoff, but the redshirt freshman rose above it all to pick up the win.
4 – Clemson: You can’t help but love Steve Spurrier, but you have to be careful how many times you refer to “the team upstate” before they beat you with a quarterback with a torn ACL.
5 – Boston College: The Eagles exceeded expectations this year, finishing ahead of Syracuse and NC State in the Atlantic Division standings. They also played close to the “big three” of the division, which should give them plenty of inspiration for next season.
6 – Duke: The Blue Devils rebounded from its loss to North Carolina by thrashing Wake Forest. The devil getting the best of a demon-possessed deacon? That might be the most logical thing to happen in the ACC this season.
7 – Pittsburgh: Both James Conner and Duke Johnson set school records as their teams met this week. The Panthers also gained bowl eligibility by beating the Hurricanes, which really should be just called the Tropical Depressions at this stage.
8 – NC State: The Wolfpack dominated the Tar Heels, keeping quarterbacks Marquise Williams and Mitch Trubisky uncomfortable all day and scoring at will on the UNC defense. Only one of those two was surprising.
9 – Miami: I was never of the conviction that the Hurricanes should have been Coastal favorites, but I don’t think anyone has done less with more in the conference this season than Miami. Hopefully, Jim Larranaga will counteract that on the hardwood.
10 – Virginia Tech: We’ve come a long way since thinking Virginia Tech was the savior of the Coastal for beating Ohio State. It took a squeaker against Virginia to claim bowl eligibility and finish 6th in the Coastal Division.
11 – North Carolina: UNC – where newspaper column lengths match AFAM paper lengths.
12 – Virginia: It’s almost impressive how the Cavaliers became the Keystone Kops, losing five of their last six. Between the strong start, the Hokies’ struggles this season, and the decision to give the Head Kop a contract extension before Thursday’s loss, this one will stick with Hoo fans for a while.
13 – Syracuse: It may not have been a great season on the field for the Orange, but their SB Nation blog “Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician” gave us the most hilarious post of the year. Thank you, TNIAAM. Thank you.
14 – Wake Forest: God bless you, Demon Deacon fans.
Until next week, peace, love, and #goacc.
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