Florida State, UNC Battle For The Basement In ACC Power Poll

Rank, School, Overall record/ACC, Previous rank, Comment:

1. Clemson, 3-0/0-0 (1). Tigers have won an amazing 46 of their last 50 games. Shouldn’t have any trouble making it 47 out of 51 against Georgia Tech this weekend. Wondering if Clemson’s big hoss in the middle, Ferrell, who leads nation in sacks per game, and sixth in tackles, might just wreck Tech’s option.

1. Virginia Tech, 2-0/1-0 (2). The Hokies, who sat out last week’s action due to Hurricane Florence, will play their new best friend, Old Dominion this weekend. The two teams are scheduled to meet 13 times through 2031. ODU is 0-3 this season. Hokies might not break a sweat.

1. Boston College, 3-0/1-0 (3). My darkhorse pick to win the ACC is off and running. This is the first time the Eagles have started 3-0 since Mattie Ice led them to an 8-0 streak in 2007. Look for RB A.J. Dillon to have a field day against Purdue in the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

1. Miami, 2-1/0-0 (5). It has been 17 years since Butch Davis coached the Hurricanes before moving on to the Cleveland Browns. On Saturday, Davis returns to coach against Miami. He’s now head coach at crosstown rival Florida International. No, that’s not an airport, but the Panthers may feel like a runway for Miami’s running backs come Saturday.

1. N.C. State, 2-0/0-0 (4). Speaking coaches facing their old schools, Marshall _the ‘other’ West Virginia school _ will host the Wolfpack this weekend. Former State assistant, Doc Holliday, who coached for Chucky Chest back the day in Raleigh, now heads up the Thundering Herd. The Wolfpack, one of the top 10 passing teams in the nation, should prevail.

1. Wake Forest, 2-1/0-1 (6). After losing at home to Boston College last Thursday, the Deacons get a shot at Notre Dame in Winston. This is the second straight year the Deacs have faced the Irish, and the fifth time in the last eight years. Same old result. It’s Catholics vs. Baptists, and so far the Catholics are undefeated in this series.

1. Syracuse, 3-0/1-0 (10). Big jump by the Orange in this week’s poll. After thumping punchless Florida State last weekend, Syracuse is off to a 3-0 start for only the eighth time in program history. The Orange should be 4-0 after Saturday, the first time that would have happened since 1991. Syracuse is 12th nationally in scoring, a 49-point clip per game.

1. Virginia, 2-1/0-0. (9). It’s the Bourbon Bowl. Louisville makes the bourbon and Virginians drink it. Wahoos have lost the last three to the Cardinals, and Lamar Jackson was generally the difference. Jackson is now gone.

1. Duke, 3-0/0-0. (11). How many times have we said David Cutcliffe just might be the best coach in America? Missing his star QB, Cutcliffe takes the Devils to Waco and beats Baylor with one hand tied behind his back. Hell, he can probably wear a blindfold this week and beat N.C. Central in the Bull City Classic, a 4.5-mile drive between campuses (and you thought Carolina was close). Duke won last year, 60-7.

1. Pitt, 2-1/1-0. (13). The Panthers bounced back well from their loss to Penn State and had a shockingly easy time disposing of Georgia Tech last weekend. Somebody forgot to tell the Yellow Jackets that they weren’t playing the Steelers. It just looked that way.

1. Louisville, 2-1/0-0 (8). Bobby Petrino has his hands full trying to find a way to get his Cardinals going on offense. Our guess is he’ll convince new starting QB Malik Cunningham to do his best impersonation of Lamar Jackson. So far, he’s looked more like Samuel L. Jackson.

1. Georgia Tech, 1-2/0-1 (7). Wow, Paul Johnson’s Wramblin’ Wreck is just that. Tech already has two ACC losses and we’ve hardly gotten started. Ouch! Jackets lead the nation in rushing, but what good does that do if you can’t stop anybody?

1. Florida State, 1-2/0-2 (12). What a hot mess in Tallahassee. Some are blaming Willie, others are pointing at Jimbo. They brought back Saint Bobby for the opener against Virginia Tech. Maybe they should have asked him to forgive them, and to stay.

1. North Carolina, 0-2/0-0 (Bottom). The Tar Heels have won all five ACC meetings against Pittsburgh. That’s about to change. We’re checking on the rumor that Larry Fedora stuffed the ballot box on whether or not to cancel the game last week vs. Central Florida due to weather.