NCAAF · a month ago

ACC Power Rankings Tiers Week 11: It’s Florida State & the Rest

TJ Inman

Tier VI: Syracuse, Virginia & Pittsburgh
The Pitt Panthers and Virginia Cavaliers are both 2-7 and each have one conference win. Virginia is routinely getting blown out and Pitt has not figured anything out on the offensive side of the ball. The Syracuse Orange began the season 4-0 but have fallen completely off of a cliff. They are now 4-5 and winless in the ACC, sitting alone in the basement of the standings.
Tier I: Florida State
The unbeaten Seminoles sit alone at the top of the ACC. They are ranked fourth in the country and are perhaps the conference's only hope to make the College Football Playoff. The Seminoles are outscoring opponents by an average of 22.6 points per game.
Tier II: Louisville & North Carolina
The Louisville Cardinals are now ranked 11th and they have the inside track to reach the ACC Championship Game. Sitting at 8-1, the Cardinals have had an easy schedule but have been impressive in Jeff Brohm's first season. North Carolina lost back-to-back games to fall from near the top ten to number 24 but they are still very dangerous and have a shot to win ten games.
Tier III: Georgia Tech, Duke, Miami, NC State, Clemson
This is a crowded tier. The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are 5-4 but 4-2 in the league. Duke barely has an offense with Riley Leonard still sidelined but the Blue Devils are 6-3, NC State is now bowl-eligible and the Miami Hurricanes are 6-3 with a win over Clemson. The Clemson Tigers are 5-4 but have a win over Notre Dame and are a top 15 team by most advanced metric systems.
Tier IV: Boston College & Virginia Tech
The Boston College Eagles have been a pleasant surprise with five straight wins and a 6-3 record. Those wins include only one contest against a top half ACC team (GT) and that drops them to this tier. The Virginia Tech Hokies are in a similar boat. They are 3-2 in the ACC but have not really beaten anyone. These two teams play each other this Saturday.
Tier V: Wake Forest
The Demon Deacons sit alone in tier five. At 4-5 and 1-5 in the ACC, they are clearly below the others but the Demon Deacons have a solid defense and are at least competitive each week. That cannot be said about the teams in tier six.
Tier VI: Syracuse, Virginia & Pittsburgh
The Pitt Panthers and Virginia Cavaliers are both 2-7 and each have one conference win. Virginia is routinely getting blown out and Pitt has not figured anything out on the offensive side of the ball. The Syracuse Orange began the season 4-0 but have fallen completely off of a cliff. They are now 4-5 and winless in the ACC, sitting alone in the basement of the standings.
Tier I: Florida State
The unbeaten Seminoles sit alone at the top of the ACC. They are ranked fourth in the country and are perhaps the conference's only hope to make the College Football Playoff. The Seminoles are outscoring opponents by an average of 22.6 points per game.