Everybody in the ACC has played at least two games now, and eight teams remain undefeated—five of those undefeated teams are in the Atlantic Division. While it’s still to early for a lot of sweeping judgments, we’ve had some clarifying results for sure.
What have we learned so far? Clemson still looks like the team to beat, and was much better against Georgia Tech this year than last. The Tigers’ defense is as good as anticipated. Florida State looks like perhaps the most improved team in the league, and Syracuse has had itself a surprisingly strong start.
Here’s how the league stacks up by SP+ heading into Week 3, and how the picture has changed since the preseason:
ACC in SP+
Team | Wk 3 SP+ Rank | Preseason SP+ Rank | Change |
---|---|---|---|
Team | Wk 3 SP+ Rank | Preseason SP+ Rank | Change |
Clemson | 7 | 5 | -2 |
NC State | 23 | 18 | -5 |
Miami | 24 | 29 | 5 |
FSU | 35 | 42 | 7 |
Pitt | 33 | 23 | -10 |
Wake Forest | 37 | 47 | 10 |
UNC | 44 | 38 | -6 |
Syracuse | 54 | 64 | 10 |
Louisville | 55 | 39 | -16 |
Virginia Tech | 65 | 61 | -4 |
Virginia | 75 | 65 | -10 |
BC | 78 | 70 | -8 |
Georgia Tech | 92 | 87 | -5 |
Duke | 103 | 119 | 16 |
Boston College appears to be the new frontrunner for worst team in the Atlantic after duffing a home game against Rutgers then getting handled by Virginia Tech. The Eagles’ remade offensive line has been a major liability. The same is true for Virginia, which managed just three points at Illinois on Saturday—a pretty big yikes.
Louisville stumbled out the gate at Cuse and then regrouped to win at UCF on Friday, but the offense has been less than inspiring. Sam Hartman returned for Wake in Week 2 and the Deacs look just as good on that side of the ball as we expected. UNC’s defense has been utterly absent at times but the Heels have been able to dodge bullets so far. Pitt’s defense has underwhelmed, and the Panthers are fortunate not to be 0-2. Miami has taken care of business against two cupcakes, while Duke is coming off a decent win at Northwestern.
My eyeballs are telling me there’s a clear top six, followed by a small middle group, and then the bottom five. We’ll see if it stays that way.
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