After two weeks of the season, the Clemson Tigers are running out of time to prove this year will be different than the last. While Dabo Swinney's team bounced back from its 41-point road loss at LSU to beat Georgia Southern at home 22-7 in Week 2, its next game versus North Carolina should be a real litmus test for the Tigers. Who could have seen this first ACC game being so critical so soon?
Following the Tigers' Baton Rouge beatdown, Clemson started the season ranked 12th in the ACC power rankings. That was quite the drop from being in and around the top five heading into the season. While the Tigers did get their first win of the campaign last Saturday night, it was not against a Power Four team. Now that ACC play is about to begin for them, this team will need to grow up fast.
With the ACC still trying to figure out what it is to start the year, here are this week's power rankings.
17. Boston College Eagles (1-1) (Last Week: 17)
Despite winning their annual Red Bandana game, the Boston College Eagles are still at the bottom of the barrel in the ACC hierarchy. We cannot mistake an emotionally charged game over a dismal opponent in Rutgers for a sign of something positive for BC just yet. Bill O'Brien may be down on his luck in Chestnut Hill, but he is not going down without a fight. A good win for a bad football team.
16. Florida State Seminoles (1-1) (Last Week: 13)
After Michael Alford's termination as athletic director, it is only a matter of time before Mike Norvell follows him on the way out at Florida State. With a brutal road matchup at Alabama coming up on Saturday, there is a non-zero chance this could be Norvell's last game leading the Seminoles. Florida State may be 1-1 on the year, but wins the rest of the way could be hard to come by for this program.
15. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (0-2) (Last Week: 11)
What if Georgia Tech isn't good? We may have to come to that realization sooner than expected. Brent Key's Bees are the only winless team in the ACC. Not only did they lose at home to Colorado in Week 1, but were no match for Tennessee in Week 2. Coordinator attrition is ruining this team. Key is an excellent head coach, but he may have missed his big opportunity to get a bigger and better job.
14. Stanford Cardinal (1-1) (Last Week: 14)
No, the Stanford Cardinal are not expected to do much this season. While Tavita Pritchard taking over his alma mater's program under the guidance of his quarterbacking successor, Andrew Luck, is a cute story, it would be shocking to see Stanford be anything more than a bottom-five program in the ACC this year. That does not mean progress will not be made this season, but they have a long way to go.
13. Clemson Tigers (1-1) (Last Week: 12)
Clemson actually drops down a spot from No. 12 to No. 13 after doing very little on offense versus Georgia Southern last Saturday night. Bad field conditions may have played a factor, but this is not the Clemson that we used to know. While the Tigers have shown they can play great defense and be relied upon on special teams, until the offense takes a gigantic leap forward, things may not improve.
12. Syracuse Orange (1-1) (Last Week: 9)
Syracuse may not be a good team this year, but it is still too early to peg what the Orange are all about. While they did not beat Cal last weekend, this is not a team that is going to keel over at the first sign of adversity like we saw last year. With the talent being questionable at best, how this season goes for the Orange may say more about Fran Brown as a coach than anything. We are all watching.
11. North Carolina State Wolfpack (1-1) (Last Week: 16)
Water is still finding its level with the North Carolina State Wolfpack. After getting their clock cleaned by Virginia in Week 0, NC State bounced back versus less-than-stellar competition in Week 2. CJ Bailey is still an intriguing talent at quarterback, but he is not giving us a reason to trust the Wolfpack moving forward. Odds are, this is a middle-of-the-pack team that can beat anyone or lose to anyone.
10. California Golden Bears (1-1) (Last Week: 15)
Maybe UCLA is just good? Cal kept it interesting with the Bruins in Week 1 before falling apart in the fourth quarter. While beating Syracuse may not amount to much at season's end, Tosh Lupoi got his first win leading his alma mater in Week 2. As long as Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele continues to grow as a quarterback, Cal will be one of the more dangerous ACC teams. That Week 4 date looms large...
9. Wake Forest Demon Deacons (2-0) (Last Week: 7)
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons are not a talented team by any stretch of the imagination, but they are so well-coached. While they did have to go into overtime with lowly Purdue in Week 2, the Deacs are still 2-0. As long as Wake Forest continues to play with grit each and every week, Jake Dickert will be well on his way to either a bigger and better job or a much larger paycheck than what he is getting.
8. North Carolina Tar Heels (2-0) (Last Week: 10)
Slowly, but surely, the North Carolina Tar Heels are starting to figure it out under Bill Belichick. They are 2-0 on the season after winning a defensive struggle over TCU and then showing up offensively versus East Tennessee State. However, even a potential win over Clemson may not send a 3-0 UNC team much higher up these rankings. It is a team everyone will continue to doubt because of last year.
7. Pittsburgh Panthers (2-0) (Last Week: 5)
Outside of maybe only North Carolina State, Pitt is the hardest team to trust in the ACC. After dazzling us all with an offensive explosion in Week 1, Pat Narduzzi's Panthers won a defensive struggle over UCF. Weather was a factor in that game for sure, but buying stock in Pitt never has been and never will be for the faint of heart. While there is a chance Pitt might be more than good, they live to burn folks.
6. Duke Blue Devils (2-0) (Last Week: 8)
If not for Miami, Duke may actually have a halfway decent shot at repeating in the ACC this season. Manny Diaz's team is 2-0 with quality wins over Tulane and Illinois. Nate Sheppard is the best running back no one is talking about. More importantly, Jonathan Patke's Duke defense is starting to match Jonathan Brewer's offense in Durham. This is a team that may win nine games by the end of the year.
5. Virginia Tech Hokies (2-0) (Last Week: 6)
Get ready for it. The other shoe is going to drop like it always does for any James Franklin-led team. However, the vibes are high entering Week 3 in Blacksburg for the Virginia Tech Hokies. Simply put, they look like a decent Penn State program already. That could be an up-for-grabs middle of the ACC. However, until we see them face a team as good as or better than they are, they are not getting to Charlotte.
4. Louisville Cardinals (1-1) (Last Week: 4)
Of the serious contenders to win the ACC this season, Louisville is still very much in the mix for that. After losing a barn burner to Ole Miss in Nashville over Labor Day Weekend. U of L crushed Villanova in Week 2. As expected, Jeff Brohm still has one of the most fun offenses in the conference. The bad part is we still should not have any reason to trust this defense. Yet again, it will only hold them back.
3. Virginia Cavaliers (2-0) (Last Week: 2)
As is the case with Duke potentially winning the ACC again, we could see Virginia back in Charlotte to avenge last year's conference title bout loss to the Blue Devils. Tony Elliott is in his bag leading the Cavaliers, as his team looks to be top-25 caliber throughout the season. Eventually, UVA will lose a game due to talent inefficiencies, but the Hoos are going to steal one versus a team that has a better roster.
2. SMU Mustangs (2-0) (Last Week: 3)
At this time, SMU is arguably the best contender to prevent Miami from running away with it in the ACC. While the Mustangs did everything in their power to give their Week 1 game away to Florida State, they still pulled out a conference victory on the road. Although the Ponies may not have that extra gear or two that the Hurricanes do, it would not be all that shocking to see them win in Charlotte.
1. Miami Hurricanes (2-0) (Last Week: 1)
Until proven otherwise, the ACC is Miami's conference, and we are just playing in it. Darian Mensah might be the way-too-early favorite to win the Heisman Trophy after transferring over from Duke. Mario Cristobal has been a tremendous culture builder at his program. The fact that he has two bona fide rockstars at coordinator in Shannon Dawson and Corey Hetherman, almost makes this an unfair fight.
If Clemson were to upset Miami, it would be a bigger deal than Oklahoma State upending Oregon.
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