Week 1 featured much more college football than Week 0, with every ACC team playing this week. There were even two conference matchups this time around. Some teams played Football Championship Subdivision or non-Power 4 teams, while some played non-conference opponents as well. It was a wide range of outcomes for ACC teams, meaning the rankings will change a bit as we enter Week 2.
ACC Rankings after Week 1
No. 17: Boston College Eagles
Result: Lost 34-15 at Cincinnati Bearcats
With Bill O’Brien on the hot seat, this was a game the Boston College Eagles needed to win. Cincinnati is ok, but flawed, and Scott Satterfield has also been mentioned as a hot-seat candidate too. Unfortunately, the Eagles looked flat throughout the game.
The final score really doesn’t tell how one-sided this game was. Cincinnati secured a 24-0 lead midway through the third quarter, and by 1:53 in the fourth, the Bearcats had a 34-8 lead. Quarterback Mason McKenzie had an alright day in his first start, with 301 total yards (223 through the air and 78 through the ground) and a touchdown. However, outside of him, the running backs only picked up 87 yards on the ground.
McKenzie also threw an interception, and Boston College also had a fumble and a missed field goal. The Eagles were just 1/4 on fourth down when they tried to convert, so that is why, despite Boston College out-gaining Cincinnati 388-339, they lost this way. Next week is the Red Bandana game against Rutgers, who just suffered an embarrassing 37-21 loss to the UMass Minutemen. The Eagles desperately need to win this game.
No. 16: Stanford Cardinal
Result: Lost 45-6 vs. Miami Hurricanes
Some were thinking the Stanford Cardinal would give the Hurricanes a scare, with Mario Cristobal’s penchant for giving away at least one game he’s heavily favored in every year and Stanford’s offense looking great in a 37-27 win against Hawaii.
Alas, the Miami Hurricanes proved they should be taken way more seriously for ACC contention than the Stanford Cardinal. Despite the score, there were some positives to take away from the game. Davis Warren looks like a solid quarterback, being able to move the ball forward and throw into tight windows. The offensive line only allowed one sack, even without top left tackle Niki Prongos.
However, Micah Ford ran for just 27 yards on 11 carries. When he’s stuffed, that doesn’t bode well for Stanford’s offense. On the other side of the ball, Miami quarterback Darian Mensah picked apart their secondary. Mensah had more touchdowns (five) than incompletions (three), and top target Malachi Toney had 234 yards and three touchdowns on just 12 receptions.
Again, I believe a time will come when Stanford is viewed more highly in the ACC than this bottom tier, but the game against the Hurricanes just wasn’t the time to do it.
No. 15: North Carolina Tar Heels
Result: Bye
The Tar Heels rested after their 15-10 win over the TCU Horned Frogs in the Aer Lingus Classic. There isn’t much for me to say that I didn’t already say in my prior rankings. Bobby Petrino coached a solid game plan, but North Carolina still needed a few bounces to go their way against TCU.
It’s a laudable win, but it doesn’t tell me much about their outlook. I don’t know how good TCU is going to be, since they replaced Josh Hoover with Jaden Craig and had their star safety get dismissed from the team. A 2-0 start would be great for them.
No. 14: Syracuse Orange
Result: Won 66-3 vs. New Hampshire Wildcats
This win showed how much better a team they are with Steve Angeli at the helm. It was against an FCS opponent in New Hampshire, but still, it was a very impressive win. The Orange were rolling, with touchdowns on their next six drives after their first drive ended in a punt.
Speaking of Angeli, he went 20 for 29 for 263 yards and three touchdowns, although he took three sacks. Freshman running back Shavane Anderson Jr. had 102 yards and three touchdowns on 10 carries, and sophomore Tylik Hill had 90 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries behind him.
Defensively, the Orange racked up five sacks, an interception, a safety, and a fumble. Their home game against the Cal Golden Bears will go a long way in determining if they are indeed back to their 2024 form, but it’s a good sign for Fran Brown and co.
No. 13: Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Result: Won 38-16 vs. Akron Zips
The Demon Deacons had a tougher opponent than the Orange, and their win looks a little more unimpressive, with Akron covering the 27.5-point spread. However, the actual score is deceiving. Wake Forest was up 38-3 when Akron put up two garbage-time touchdowns late in the fourth to end the game.
In reality, the Demon Deacons dominated the game too. Quarterback Gio Lopez also looked great, with 350 yards and three touchdowns on 32 dropbacks, while running back Ty Clark had 105 yards on seven carries. The defense also had two sacks and a fumble, although they did give up 149 yards on 36 carries.
Wake Forest travels to Purdue, a team that should be near the bottom of the Big Ten. I expect Wake Forest to win that one, even if they’re traveling for it.
No. 12: Florida State Seminoles
Result: Lost 27-24 vs. SMU Mustangs
Perhaps it’s unfair to put the Seminoles this low, considering they were able to hang with SMU, who I think should compete for the ACC championship, in a weird game featuring a power outage and no helmet communication between coaches and players.
Still, the final score was deceiving. The Seminoles benefited from a few SMU mistakes, including a missed field goal, a fumble at FSU’s 35, and a red-zone interception. The Mustangs were in control of the game nearly the entire way, with their 585 total yards dwarfing FSU’s 324.
At the very least, they appear to have an All-American candidate running back in Ousmane Kromah, who ran for 116 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries, and Samuel Singleton deserves credit too for his contributions. However, the passing game was very disappointing, with Ashton Daniels only mustering up 125 yards and a touchdown on 23 dropbacks.
On the other side, Kevin Jennings shelled the Seminoles’ secondary, throwing for 430 yards and three touchdowns on 36 attempts, but his two interceptions kept FSU in the game. Still, he had two touchdowns of over 50 yards, and FSU’s secondary just couldn’t match up. Caleb Lavalle had a great game, but that was about it defensively. FSU has a bye week before they face Alabama on the road. Oof.
No. 11: Clemson Tigers
Result: Lost 51-10 @ LSU Tigers
The Tigers are the biggest fallers on this list, and they once again look like the paper tigers of the ACC. Sure, it was against an LSU Tigers team that could compete for a national championship (if they don’t get in their own way). However, there wasn’t anything inspiring about the Tigers in that game.
Chris Vizzina had just 83 passing yards and a pick-six. He was benched for Tait Reynolds, who had just 22 yards and took three sacks. The running game had just 40 yards on 26 carries. The defense gave up 644 yards and 38 first downs in total. LSU was 11 for 16 on third down, while Clemson was 1 for 13 on third down. Clemson’s 145 yards were the fewest in a game since Dabo Swinney took over.
Safe to say, literally nothing went right for the Clemson Tigers. They once again look like an underwhelming also-ran in the ACC.
No. 10: Duke Blue Devils
Result: Won vs. Tulane Green Wave 17-3
The Duke Blue Devils also underwhelmed in their game against the Tulane Green Wave. Sure, Tulane is tougher than, say, Akron or an FCS opponent, but this team isn’t the Group of 5 juggernaut they were under Jon Sumrall last season.
The Blue Devils were strong on the ground, at least. Nathan Sheppard had quite possibly his best day ever, with 227 yards and touchdowns on 35 carries. Unfortunately, he looked like the only dynamic player on offense, as Walker Eget had just 131 passing yards and no touchdowns on 26 dropbacks.
Overall, this game was messy. Duke had three turnovers on downs, a fumble, and a missed field goal. Tulane could’ve kept up with them more if they didn’t have 15 penalties. An away game against Illinois might not treat the Blue Devils kindly.
No. 9: NC State Wolfpack
Result: Bye
Once again, there’s nothing much to say about N.C. State. They don’t look like the sleeper I thought they would be entering the season after a rough 34-8 loss to the Virginia Cavaliers. I ranked them No. 10 in my last ranking, but they rise a bit due to Clemson’s loss.
No. 8: Cal Golden Bears
Result: Lost 45-24 vs. UCLA Bruins
The California Golden Bears were disappointing this week. I was expecting them to show their might against a UCLA team expected to be in the bottom tier of the Big Ten, and that just didn’t happen. The game was closer than the final score suggested, with the two teams tied at 24 late in the third quarter, but UCLA scored 21 straight to win it 45-24.
I was let down by Cal’s play-calling and quarterback play against UCLA, especially on third down. Over the offseason, they switched from Bryan Harsin to Ike Hilliard, and this game was a learning experience for both him and Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele. The third-down strategy seemed to be praying that Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele would make an awesome play each time, and while he made some great throws, Sagapolutele had two interceptions and a fumble.
What was even more concerning was the run defense. I expected it to be a lot stronger, but overall, they let up 277 yards and six touchdowns in 32 running attempts on the ground. Anthony Woods had 118 yards and two touchdowns on eight attempts, while lead transfer Wayne Knight had 71 yards and three touchdowns on eight attempts.
It was a rough showing for Cal, and they have a lot to prove going against Syracuse at home.
No. 7: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Result: Lost 14-13 vs. Colorado Buffaloes
Georgia Tech could’ve won this game in so many ways. Aiden Birr missed a field goal in the first quarter, and Georgia Tech had several drives that went in Colorado’s side of the field that didn’t result in anything. Their offense couldn’t muster up a single touchdown against a team many thought would be at the bottom of the Big 12 in the preseason, and their run defense was exposed in this loss.
However, I still rank them ahead of Cal because they were able to come through when they needed to, except for the last couple of plays. Colorado had two drives of over 15 plays in the second half, but Georgia Tech didn’t let them score on either drive. When Colorado scored their first touchdown, Rahkeem Smith ran the next kickoff 100 yards to the end zone. Even after Colorado scored the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter, Alberto Mendoza got them into field goal range. Unfortunately, Aidan Birr’s game-winning attempt was blocked.
There are glaring issues, such as the offensive line, but I still trust Georgia Tech more in a late-game setting. That might change against Tennessee, but we’ll see.
No. 6: Virginia Tech Hokies
Result: Won 73-3 vs. VMI Keydets
The VMI Keydets might be the worst team playing college football in Division 1 (FCS or otherwise). However, I feel inclined to believe more in James Franklin and his staff after this win. The spread was 54.5, meaning Virginia Tech was favored to win by more than 54 points, and they somehow pulled it off.
There really aren’t a ton of stats worth talking about, since it was against VMI, but there are still a few. Mainly, Virginia Tech let up -4 rushing yards and just 83 yards of total offense. They were up 73-0 before VMI kicked the field goal. How many times over the past couple of seasons can Virginia Tech say they’ve beaten any opponent this badly, or even that they could?
This team just needed Franklin to raise the floor. With a win as dominant as this, they’ve at least shown that they’ve raised the floor somewhat.
No. 5: Pitt Panthers
Result: Win 59-14 vs. Miami (OH) RedHawks
This might be higher than most people on this list, but I’ve been thinking the Panthers are a sneaky contender for the ACC title, and so far, they’ve proved me right in a 59-10 win over Miami (OH), a good MAC team.
Mason Heintschel was the biggest reason for their dominant win. He threw for 453 yards and seven touchdowns and helped carry a running game featuring lead RB Ja’Kyrian Turner having just 39 yards on 11 carries, although the entire Pitt running game was solid, with 166 yards on 31 carries.
The Pitt defense allowed just 28 yards on 21 attempts against one of the best Group of 5 offensive linemen. The Panthers might not get a true test in the ACC until they play Virginia Tech, but I believe in the Panthers until then.
No. 4: Virginia Cavaliers
Result: Bye
The Virginia Cavaliers showed they were serious contenders for the ACC championship with a win over NC State. They will go into the bye week refreshed and ready to go against Norfolk State, which shouldn’t be difficult.
No. 3: Louisville Cardinals
Result: Lost 41-38 at Ole Miss Rebels in Nashville
The Louisville Cardinals upset No. 2 Miami last season, and against No. 9 Ole Miss in Nashville, they were very close to knocking out another top-10 team in the nation. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t meant to be.
Still, Louisville played their hearts out. Lincoln Kienholz passed his first test as a starter with flying colors. He and Keyjuan Brown made the plays necessary to win against Ole Miss. Unfortunately, the Rebels have the ultimate trump card in Trinidad Chambliss, who made two clutch passes to get kicker Lucas Carniero in field goal range to win it, which he did from 48 yards out.
Even with the loss, Louisville showed that they aren’t just an ACC contender, but a College Football Playoff contender. I can’t wait until their game against SMU in a few weeks. Speaking of which…
No. 2: SMU Mustangs
Result: Won 27-24 at Florida State Seminoles
Don’t let the final score fool you: the Mustangs had their way with the Seminoles in this game. Sure, there were a few sloppy moments and turnovers, but in a weird game that featured a power outage and had no replay and no communication between players and coaches on the field, the Mustangs looked much more prepared.
What can you say about Kevin Jennings that hasn’t already been said? He had 430 yards and three touchdowns, and the Seminoles couldn’t match his wizardry. He had two interceptions, but again, if there was electricity in the field, I think he could’ve had a better performance. Kendrick Raphael also had 75 yards on 12 carries.
I hope the Mustangs can get their special teams together; last season’s special teams prevented them from making the ACC championship. This team once again looks like they could compete for the jugular against this other team.
No. 1: Miami Hurricanes
Result: 45-6 Win at Stanford Cardinal
This was a very obvious choice. The Hurricanes once again look like a national championship contender. I heard people saying that rust/rest theory would make them a little rough against Stanford, but that was definitely not the case.
As I mentioned. Darian Mensah had more touchdowns (five) than incompletions (three), and he had 401 yards on 30 attempts as well. Malachi Toney looked like the best receiver in football, with 234 yards and three touchdowns, while Cooper Bartake had 67 yard and a touchdown as well.
The one bugaboo with the Hurricanes was their pass rush. They earned just one sack, but when you force four three-and-outs and punts in all but two drives, you’ll be in pretty good shape. The Hurricanes should be in the top five of national rankings, and there are some that view them as No. 1 too.
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