ACC Power Rankings Tiers Week 12: Florida State Stands Alone

Tier V: Wake Forest, Virginia & Pittsburgh

The Pitt Panthers and Virginia Cavaliers are both 2-8 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 plus Syracuse just ran for nearly 400 yards against the defense. Wake Forest joins the bottom tier after another toothless offensive performance. The Demon Deacons can't crack 20 points in conference play and head coach Dave Clawson has been unable to find any answers to turn things around.

Tier II: Louisville & North Carolina

The Louisville Cardinals are now ranked 11th. Despite doubts about the strength of their schedule and overall quality, the Cardinals keep winning and are sitting at 9-1. It's impossible to call Jeff Brohm's first season anything but a smashing success thus far. North Carolina lost back-to-back games to plummet in the rankings but they are still very dangerous and rebounded with wins over Campbell and a thrilling victory over Duke. The improved defense has regressed in the past month but Drake Maye leads an explosive offense.

Tier III: Virginia Tech, NC State, Clemson

North Carolina State leads the way in tier three. MJ Morris opted to redshirt so the Wolfpack turned back to Brennan Armstrong at quarterback but it made no difference as the defense continues to excel. NC State now sits at 7-3. Clemson is having a great November and appears to be playing as well as anyone in the conference right now. They beat Notre Dame and hammered Georgia Tech. Virginia Tech moves up to this tier after a resounding win over Boston College. The Hokies are now 4-2 in ACC play and Kyron Drones has turned into a real rushing weapon at quarterback.

Tier IV: Boston College, Georgia Tech, Duke & Miami

This tier is crowded as Georgia Tech, Duke, and Miami slide down after rough weeks. Georgia Tech was behind 42-7 to Clemson before two late touchdowns made the score look better. The Yellow Jackets still have a ways to go to compete with the league's top teams. Miami battled against Florida State but an injury to Emory Williams leaves them without an answer at quarterback. The Duke Blue Devils have had their season derailed by the injury to Riley Leonard and have not been the same team since he left. The Boston College Eagles have been a pleasant surprise but their streak of five straight wins was ended in blowout fashion against Georgia Tech.

Tier VI: Syracuse

The Syracuse Orange halted a five-game losing skid with a dominant victory over the Pitt Panthers. The Orange are now 5-5 and used the running game to get back in the winning column, rushing for 382 yards in the win.

Tier V: Wake Forest, Virginia & Pittsburgh

The Pitt Panthers and Virginia Cavaliers are both 2-8 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 plus Syracuse just ran for nearly 400 yards against the defense. Wake Forest joins the bottom tier after another toothless offensive performance. The Demon Deacons can't crack 20 points in conference play and head coach Dave Clawson has been unable to find any answers to turn things around.