The ACC is set to kickoff their conference schedule on a widespread scale on Saturday, but each team has shown us a few unexpected things early in the season. Here are our ACC football Power Rankings after four weeks of the college football season:
14) Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Losses to Syracuse and Indiana aren't good for anyone's resume, especially when your two wins are over Elon and Army (by three). This season looks like it will be another struggle in Winston-Salem.
13) Virginia Cavaliers
Virginia needs to make a bowl game this year to save head coach Mike London's job, but that doesn't seem to be in the cards after a 1-3 start. They did almost beat Notre Dame, but they were blown out by UCLA and Boise State and don't have a win over a FBS team yet. Not good.
12) Louisville Cardinals
Louisville finally got their first win of the season on Saturday against Samford, and they have also not beaten a FBS-level opponent yet. Losses to Auburn, Houston, and Clemson were close, but they couldn't make the plays their needed to down the stretch. With two road trips to NC State and Florida State on deck, their season might get a lot worse before it gets better.
11) Pitt Panthers
Pitt has struggled without reigning ACC Player of the Year James Conner in the backfield as they fell to Iowa last weekend. Their offense rates out as one of the worst in the country (109th in points scored), and it won't get any easier in conference play.
10) Virginia Tech Hokies
When will we accept that the Hokies just aren't that good anymore? Virginia Tech followed up their loss to Ohio State in the opener with wins over Furman and Purdue, but then fell to a poor ECU team. They rate about average in every statistical category and have nothing they can hang their hat on - and that lack of identity is hurting them.
9) Syracuse Orange
Syracuse already has a conference win over Wake Forest, and their only loss came to LSU, so how are they only 9th on the list? Well, they've been getting by against lesser competition because of their defense, which is giving up less than 20 points per game. Syracuse's offense ranks 111th in passing and 101st in the country in scoring, neither of which indicate they'll be very successful.
8) North Carolina Tar Heels
UNC's season-opening loss to South Carolina hurts them here, but they appear to have recovered nicely with blowout wins over NC A&T, Illinois, and Delaware. Starting quarterback Marquise Williams is struggling and was replaced by backup Mitch Trubisky in the first half against Delaware, but the offense is still playing at a high level. Their showdown against Georgia Tech this weekend will tell us a lot about how they've progessed.
7) NC State Wolfpack
The Wolfpack are 4-0 against cupcakes Troy, Eastern Kentucky, Old Dominion, and South Alabama, so we're going with them here based off of their eight-win season from a year ago. We'll get our first look at how good they really are on Saturday against Louisville.
6) Boston College Eagles
Boston College's only loss came in an extremely close game against Florida State, and they sport the top ranked defense in the country through the first four games. Their passing offense is a struggle -bottom five in the country - but they make up for it with the 26th ranked rushing attack in the nation. Look for them to play ground-and-pound football all the way to a decent bowl game.
5) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Even though Georgia Tech is 2-2, they still have as much talent as anyone on the list. A narrow loss at Notre Dame turned into another loss last weekend at Duke, putting them behind the eight-ball in the Coastal Division. Still, we know what QB Justin Thomas can do in Paul Johnson's triple-option offense, so we aren't panicking too much.
4) Duke Blue Devils
Speaking of the Blue Devils, their lone loss of the season came to No. 16 Northwestern, but made up for that with their win over GT. They have the seventh-best defense in the country and are one of only a handful of teams to average over 200 yards passing and 200 yards rushing per game. That balance will let them compete for another Coastal division crown this year.
3) Miami Hurricanes
Quarterback Brad Kaaya is the best quarterback no one is talking about, and he has led the 'Canes to an impressive 3-0 start with a win over Nebraska. It's too early to say Miami is officially "back," but the Hurricanes will be a major force in the conference race this season.
2) Florida State Seminoles
Florida State is far from the same team that made the College Football Playoff last year, but they're still a very good football team. Everett Golson has proven to be a very dependable quarterback, running back Dalvin Cook is a bonafide star, and their defense ranks sixth in the country. However, their inconsistency on the field keeps them out of the top spot.
1) Clemson Tigers
Clemson struggled against Louisville, winning by just three points, after beating up on Wofford and Appalachian State, but they still have the most talent of any team in the ACC. Quarterback Deshaun Watson has looked every bit like the star he was expected to be their year, and the skill players around him have kept this offense humming. With an improved defense that's also on of the best in the game, the Tigers look like a very dangerous team.
Back to the ACC Newsfeed