ACC Power Rankings: Clemson close to stranglehold on ACC Atlantic

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report•10/03/22

The ACC had a pair of matchups between top-ranked teams, helping to sort out the pecking order in the league as we update our ACC Power Rankings following the Week 5 games.

Clemson knocked off NC State at home, while Wake Forest upset Florida State on the road to stay in the thick of the ACC title chase.

A handful of results between teams in the bottom half of the league, though, probably made things as murky as ever after the top set of teams. Let’s dig into the action and reassess where things are at in the ACC.

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Today we reorder the ACC Power Rankings following Week 5 games.

2022 ACC Power Rankings – Week 5

  1. Clemson

The Tigers tied the ACC record with their 37th-straight win at home, beating NC State 30-20 in a very convincing showing in all phases. Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei was once again terrific, going 21-of-30 passing for 209 yards and a touchdown, also adding 73 yards and two scores rushing. Clemson’s defense was lights out, holding NC State to just 279 total yards, only 34 of which came on the ground.

  1. Wake Forest (+2)

After a tough double-overtime defeat at home to Clemson, Wake Forest had the unenviable task of hitting the road to take on Florida State. Job well done. The Demon Deacons let the Seminoles score very quickly, then ripped off 28 unanswered points to take full control. Florida State made a push late, but Wake Forest stood tall and closed out a 31-21 win that kept it in the ACC title hunt, though obviously needing some help at this point.

  1. NC State (-1)

The Wolfpack put up a good fight against Clemson, on the road, but drop a spot thanks to Wake Forest posting an impressive road win. NC State will have chances to regain ground, though, with games against Florida State and at unbeaten Syracuse the next two weeks prior to the midseason bye.

  1. Florida State (-1)

The Seminoles made it respectable against the Demon Deacons late but the final score was probably a bit closer than most of the game itself was. Florida State made a solid push but ran out of gas, despite quarterback Jordan Travis going 23-of-35 passing for 281 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. No longer unbeaten, FSU doesn’t get any time to regroup. A road trip to No. 14 NC State is next, followed by a home date with No. 5 Clemson.

  1. Syracuse (+1)

Syracuse continued its excellent start to the 2022 season, moving to 5-0 with a very lopsided win over Wagner. There are a couple good wins in there, like a 31-7 win over Louisville in the season opener and a 32-29 victory over Purdue. But we’ll really begin to find out if Dino Babers‘ squad is legit over the next few weeks, starting with this week’s home date with No. 14 NC State.

  1. North Carolina (+1)

What can you say about quarterback Drake Maye at this point? The UNC quarterback has thrown 19 touchdowns this year and just one interception. On Saturday, he notched three more scores through the air and added two with his legs in a blowout 41-10 win over Virginia Tech. UNC’s defense, one of the nation’s worst, finally showed improvement, limiting the Hokies to 273 total yards.

  1. Duke (+1)

Virginia’s road woes continued as Duke simply leaned on the Cavaliers up front with the ground game. The Blue Devils rushed for 248 yards and won their first ACC game in the last 14 tries, continuing a hot start out of the gates this year at 4-1. Duke beat Virginia 38-17 and can follow it up next week on the road at Georgia Tech, which is now working with an interim head coach following Geoff Collins‘ firing.

  1. Miami

The Hurricanes were off this weekend following a brutal home loss to MTSU. If Mario Cristobal‘s squad is going to turn things around, it’ll have to start with a much better defensive effort this week against a very potent North Carolina offense. Neither of Miami’s losses were in conference play, so there’s still a perfectly clear path to the ACC title game.

  1. Pittsburgh (-4)

In one of the most unexpected Week 5 results, Pittsburgh was stunned at home by Georgia Tech 26-21. Just days after firing its head coach, Georgia Tech found a way to rally and play inspired football. The defense came up with three takeaways and Pitt couldn’t get into a rhythm offensively until it was too late. A home date with Virginia Tech before a bye gives the Panthers a chance to bounce back quickly, though.

  1. Louisville

In a duel of talented quarterbacks, Boston College’s Phil Jurkovec outdueled Louisville’s Malik Cunningham. Or outlasted him, anyway. Cunningham left the game with an undisclosed injury and Boston College did just enough in the fourth quarter to eke out a 34-33 win. The Cardinals remain narrowly ahead in the power rankings based on overall body of work, though if Cunningham is out for any extended period you can probably expect Louisville to suffer in the coming weeks.

  1. Boston College (+2)

Truthfully spots 10-14 in the ACC Power Rankings this week could be arranged any number of ways. The Eagles beat Louisville but have also lost to Rutgers and Virginia Tech (as well as Florida State). Cunningham being out for the decisive moments in the fourth quarter, coupled with the Eagles’ lone other win coming against Maine keeps Boston College a hair below Louisville for now.

  1. Georgia Tech (+2)

The Yellow Jackets sure didn’t quit on the season Saturday in a win over the Panthers. Give them that. And though Georgia Tech is now 2-3 on the season, the three losses are against No. 4 Clemson, No. 20 Ole Miss and on the road at UCF. None of those were easy games. So despite having an interim coach, Georgia Tech moves up a couple spots this week.

  1. Virginia Tech (-2)

The Hokies were smoked by the Tar Heels and don’t seem to have many answers right now. They were nearly doubled up in yardage in the 41-10 loss (527 to 273) despite facing one of the nation’s most porous defenses. Even with a relatively weak schedule Virginia Tech’s upcoming stretch at Pitt and then home against Miami before a bye looks tricky.

  1. Virginia (-2)

In a humbling 38-17 loss to Duke, Virginia was simply pushed around up front. Duke ran for 248 yards and controlled the game from start to finish. The Hoos have lost all three of their road games now, though to teams with a combined 13-2 record (Illinois, Syracuse and Duke). The Cavaliers have the nation’s No. 2 passing offense… but are being held back by the country’s No. 121 total defense. A home game against Louisville this week precedes the annual bye.

Want to see how this week’s power rankings compare to our previous edition? Check out the 2022 Week 4 ACC Power Rankings here!