New Home, Same Great Content: The Weekly ACC Power Poll

This is the first weekly ACC Power Poll that ranks all the conference football teams regardless of division. I have been doing this for years, so why stop now, right?

The first week is always the hardest and the ACC is top-heavy with a few really good teams, then closely bunched for the most part in terms of talent and coaching.

But here goes, our first week’s preseason rankings. It will be interesting to see how ACC teams fare in some of the opening weekend games:

The Rankings(Rank, School, Record, Comment)

1. Clemson, 0-0. The Tigers, bolstered by perhaps the best defensive line this side of the NFL, have won 40 games the past three seasons and show no signs of slowing down. They open against Furman’s option offense, but that shouldn’t be much of a problem for Dabo’s boys.

2. Florida State, 0-0. I know, I know, the Seminoles were lucky to make it to a bowl last season. But that was last season. There’s a new sheriff in town and Willie Taggart’s “Gulf Coast” offense with Deondre Francois behind the wheel could be lethal for opposing defenses, i.e. Virginia Tech on Monday night.

3. Miami, 0-0. We’re a little shaky on this even though it is supposed to be Mark Richt’s best bunch of Hurricanes. A lot of experts believe Miami will go down in a tough test against LSU on the road on Sunday. Huge opener for both teams.

4. N.C. State, 0-0. The Wolfpack has a long streak of wins over FCS opponents and should keep that intact against powerhouse James Madison on Saturday. The difference? JMU lost seven starters on defense, meaning State QB Ryan Finley’s big arm should be able to pass the ball downfield. Will be interesting to see how new DC Ted Roof’s Wolfpack defense will do after losing its entire D-line to the NFL Draft.

5. Boston College, 0-0. Eagles are my darkhorse pick in the ACC. In fact, if they were in the Coastal rather than the loaded Atlantic, I think they might contend for that division title. BC is back to its physical brand of ball and Steve Addazio believes his team is ready to take the next step. The next step is beating really good teams.

6. Virginia Tech, 0-0. As good as the Hokies have been, there are big question marks heading into the season about Bud Foster’s defense, which was depleted by early departures for the draft, injuries, and suspensions. We’ll learn a lot more on Monday night when Tech takes on FSU in a battle of top 20 league rivals. No. 20 VT is a 7.5-point underdog at No. 19 FSU.

7. Louisville, 0-0. You have to give Bobby Petrino credit that he hasn’t shied away from having to face defending national champion Alabama in the opener (Saturday night in Orlando). The Tide is a 24.5-point favorite, which sounds about right. Man, where is Lamar Jackson when you need him? Louisville’s replacement for Jackson at QB? His name is Jawon Pass. They’re hoping his middle name is “Touchdown.”

8. Georgia Tech, 0-0. There’s a little bit of pressure on Paul Johnson down on The Flats after last season’s 5-6 record when Tech blew double-digit leads in four of its six losses. With most of the offense back, the Jackets could contend for the division, but faces a tough overall schedule that includes Central Florida, Georgia, Clemson, Miami and Virginia Tech.

9. Virginia, 0-0. A lot of people are going to disagree with me after the Cavaliers imploded in their bowl game. However, even though there are depth issues at spot, there’s a lot of experience returning to this football team. If transfer QB Bryce Perkins is as good as I think he is, he could be the difference in some games the Wahoos will not be picked to win.

10. Duke, 0-0. Blue Devils fans are counting on the NFL arm of Daniel Jones to put Duke into contention for the Coastal title. Jones has improved and will have to be on his game if the Devils can get by two potentially stern tests early, opening up at home tonight against an Army team that won 10 games last season, then at Northwestern next week. Duke easily handled Army’s option last year. Northwestern looked impressive in its opener last night against Big 10 foe Purdue.

11. Wake Forest, 1-0. Break up the Deacs! Behind freshman QB Sam Hartman’s incredible debut last night in a 23-17 overtime win at Tulane, the Deacs looked promising in the passing game. Hartman to redshirt freshman receiver Sage Surratt look like a lethal combo. Still, we’re wondering if Wake can duplicate its 8-win season from a year ago.

12. Pittsburgh, 0-0. The Panthers shouldn’t have any trouble getting past Albany in Saturday’s opener, but then watch out because state rival Penn State comes to town. Coach Pat Narduzi is hoping to gauge where his team stands after the weekend. He’s looking for consistency, and wondering if some of his “new toys” wide receivers are as good as he thinks they are.

13. Syracuse, 0-0. Dino Babers has his best O-Line in three years and a dynamic quarterback in Eric Dungey, but is there enough firepower at the other skilled positions to win in the ACC? The Orange have suffered through four consecutive losing seasons and face a tough road opener at Western Michigan, which has a coaching staff filled with guys who were fired by Syracuse before Babers was hired to take their place. Hmmm.

14. North Carolina, 0-0. After missing out on bowl trips two of the last three years, Larry Fedora can’t afford another bad season in Chapel Hill. The offseason shoe scandal that resulted in suspensions of some of his players didn’t help. It did help Nathan Elliott with the starting QB job though, and Elliott, who started the last five games last season, is more comfortable in the job. The Tar Heels will get a stiff challenge in the opener at improved California on Saturday.