:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67775541/usa_today_15032500.0.jpg)
NC State’s 4-3 record features a tinge of disappointment after the missed opportunity against Miami, but say this much for the Wolfpack: it has no bad losses! So we got that goin’ for us. Virginia Tech, UNC, and Miami each rate in the SP+ top 25 (and have for most, if not all, of the season).
ACC Standings by SP+
| Team | Wk 10 SP+ Rtg (Rank) | Offense Rank | Defense Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Wk 10 SP+ Rtg (Rank) | Offense Rank | Defense Rank |
| Clemson | 26.9 (3) | 3 | 7 |
| Notre Dame | 19.2 (8) | 19 | 12 |
| UNC | 17.2 (12) | 6 | 39 |
| Virginia Tech | 13.3 (20) | 10 | 46 |
| Miami | 12.1 (23) | 39 | 22 |
| Pitt | 6.5 (39) | 93 | 16 |
| Louisville | 6.1 (42) | 13 | 94 |
| BC | 2.5 (52) | 43 | 69 |
| Virginia | 2.3 (54) | 62 | 54 |
| Wake Forest | 0.4 (66) | 81 | 53 |
| NC State | -0.4 (71) | 53 | 82 |
| Georgia Tech | -0.7 (72) | 71 | 65 |
| FSU | -3.3 (85) | 79 | 77 |
| Duke | -3.7 (87) | 112 | 45 |
| Syracuse | -9.4 (110) | 115 | 79 |
This gives you some idea of how good State can be on a good day—good enough to beat a top-40ish team, yes; good enough to nearly knock off a top-25 team, sure. That they could manage the latter without Devin Leary is a pleasant—and ultimately painful!—development.
SP+ sees Florida State as roughly a Duke equivalent. I don’t know what’s stranger: that FSU is roughly equivalent to Duke in football, or that the same is true for basketball.
Anyway, I’m trying to stare at “FSU = Duke” for as long as it takes for me to start relaxing and worry less about the fact that the Seminoles still have above-average individual talent on that roster.