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Miami is as good an encapsulation of the ACC as anything else, what with losing at home to Georgia Tech while also beating both Virginia and Florida State. And the Hurricanes’ decisive win in Tallahassee last weekend done killed Willie Taggart, who was canned by FSU the next day.
Sometimes Miami is a confused mess, and sometimes its talent level shines through, and yeah I guess this really is the second best team in the conference this year. A team that still could end up going only 6-6.
ACC Standings by SP+ Rating
| Team | Wk 11 SP+ Rtg (Rank) | SP+ Rank Change | Offense Rank | Defense Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Wk 11 SP+ Rtg (Rank) | SP+ Rank Change | Offense Rank | Defense Rank |
| Clemson | 28.1 (5) | 0 | 7 | 5 |
| Miami | 11.3 (28) | 2 | 73 | 13 |
| Virginia | 6.7 (43) | -2 | 86 | 23 |
| Wake Forest | 6.4 (46) | 3 | 38 | 63 |
| Pitt | 4.2 (48) | 3 | 115 | 10 |
| UNC | 3.9 (49) | 1 | 48 | 66 |
| Florida State | 3.4 (51) | -4 | 58 | 57 |
| Louisville | 2.5 (53) | 8 | 36 | 88 |
| Boston College | 1.7 (60) | 8 | 25 | 100 |
| Duke | 1.1 (61) | 2 | 95 | 37 |
| Virginia Tech | -0.2 (64) | -7 | 82 | 55 |
| NC State | -0.4 (65) | -7 | 92 | 46 |
| Syracuse | -5.1 (92) | -13 | 99 | 69 |
| Georgia Tech | -7.7 (97) | 1 | 119 | 45 |
Help! Syracuse has fallen and it cannot get up! The Orange have been so putrid of late they’ve dropped 25 spots in two weeks and now are challenging Georgia Tech for the nod as ACC’s Worst Team. Georgia Tech looked untouchable for most of the season, so congrats are in order to Syracuse for making this a competition. That’s probably not going to help them feel better about 2019, I am guessing.
Pitt remains hilariously unbalanced between its offense and defense and could conceivably win out to finish with nine wins because the defense is just that good.
NC State is as low as it has been in the league picture all year, which is not something that figures to change with Clemson on the horizon. It’s gross and it’s disappointing but, y’know, we ain’t Syracuse.