ESPN College Football Playoff rankings crew debate messy ACC, potential best team

Chaos reigned in the ACC over the weekend, with both Louisville and Virginia suffering upsets and tumbling in the College Football Playoff rankings as a result. Where does that leave the ACC? Potentially right back in the hands of Georgia Tech.

The Yellow Jackets seemed firmly in control of their destiny in the league until an unexpected loss to NC State. The team was busy regrouping this weekend as it watched its peers tumble.

ESPN analyst Booger McFarland noted he still thinks Georgia Tech is the best team in the conference. Even if Miami is getting more love overall.

“Miami’s been given the benefit of the doubt because we think they’re the most talented team in the ACC,” McFarland said on an ESPN College Football Playoff Top 25 special on Tuesday night. “I’m on the hand thinking the best team in the ACC is Georgia Tech. I get it, it may not look pretty, but I love what Brent Key and what Haynes King does on the field, how he plays. He’s gotten better as a passer.”

Georgia Tech’s bona fides are pretty apparent. The team is 8-1 overall, with only the lone loss on the road at NC State. It has beaten Clemson at home, while notching quality wins at Wake Forest and Duke.

There’s more, McFarland said. He expanded.

“And we can look at talent or we can look at actually how these teams play on the field,” McFarland said. “I think Georgia Tech has played better on the field. I just love their physicality. I said in the first show we did, when we did it from home. This was a year not necessarily about the explosive plays. What can you count on when you get in these matchups?

“Georgia Tech and Haynes King, they can count on their physicality. You have to have something to hang your hat on. I don’t know what Miami hangs their hat on other than talent. They were talented last year. They’re talented this year and we’re still waiting on them to put it together.”

Georgia Tech also has the luxury of a schedule that will allow it to make some noise down the stretch. After a road trip to hapless Boston College, home dates with Pittsburgh and with Georgia will follow.

Win those and Georgia Tech’s claim as best team in the ACC will be hard to overlook. Analyst Joey Galloway also viewed the Yellow Jackets as the strongest league contender right now.

“I agree with you, and I was going to say the same thing,” Galloway said. “I feel like we’ve moved past Georgia Tech as if they’re not the best team in the ACC. Because they lost their last time. Last time we saw them they lost a game. But before that I would not say it’s not been good, you know what I mean? It is a good football team.

“The feeling that Haynes King has to carry them and can he stay healthy? That is the question we have with Georgia Tech. But if he can, I’m with you. I’m still on the Georgia Tech bandwagon because Miami hasn’t looked great in the last month.”

As if to throw a little more chaos into the ACC mix, ESPN host Rece Davis chimed in. And it wasn’t necessarily about Georgia Tech, but the ACC as a whole.

“Here’s the other thing, Heather,” Davis said, turning to analyst Heather Dinich. “You might wind up with two teams in the field.”

Dinich laughed, not quite ready to engage with a full chaos scenario. She did, however, throw out one more point to consider with Georgia Tech.

“Anything can happen,” Dinich said. “Georgia Tech can beat Georgia and we can still have a different conversation about it. But in the committee meeting, there is an officiating call that they are well aware of that helped them win that (Wake Forest) game.”