Clemson drops in AP Top 25 after close call with Georgia Tech

CLEMSON — Following an ugly win against Georgia Tech at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Clemson fell to No. 9 in the AP Top 25.

The Tigers are now 2-1 on the season and have won their first ACC game, but it was again another ugly performance by the Tigers this year. Through three games, sophomore quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei is struggling averaging under six yards per attempt. However, the Tigers are playing some dominant defense as Clemson ranks No. 2 nationally in scoring defense (7.0) through three games.

Clemson remains the top-ranked team in the ACC, but the league is having a rough start to the season. Ranked Virginia Tech lost to unranked West Virginia, Michigan State beat Miami by three touchdowns, and Pittsburgh was upset by Western Michigan. However, Louisville picked up a huge win by upsetting UCF on Friday night.

North Carolina is the next highest-ranked ACC team coming in at No. 21 following a home win over Virginia.

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Clemson currently has no ranked teams remaining on the schedule. The Tigers still likely control their own destiny, but Dabo Swinney’s program is not collecting any style points at the moment.

On Saturday, Clemson travels to Carter-Finley Stadium to face NC State in the Tigers’ first road game of the season. The Textile Bowl will kick off at 3:30 p.m. with ESPN on the call. The Wolfpack are 2-1 on the season with a two-touchdown loss to Mississippi State.

Here is how the entire AP Top 25 looks this week:

1.) Alabama

2.) Georgia

3.) Oregon

4.) Oklahoma

5.) Iowa

6.) Penn State

7.) Texas A&M

8.) Cincinnati

9.) Clemson

10.) Ohio State

11.) Florida

12.) Notre Dame

13.) Ole Miss

14.) Iowa State

15.) BYU

16.) Arkansas

17.) Coastal Carolina

18.) Wisconsin

19.) Michigan

20.) Michigan State

21.) North Carolina

22.) Fresno State

23.) Auburn

24.) UCLA

25.) Kansas State

Receiving votes: TCU, Liberty, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma State, Maryland, Arizona State, Texas, USC, San Diego State, West Virginia, LSU, Kentucky, Boston College, Wake Forest, Texas Tech, Stanford, Memphis, Louisville, Wyoming