Welcome to The Athletic’s ACC power rankings. Each week, Manny Navarro and Grace Raynor take turns drafting teams based on how they performed the previous week (and all season). Manny has the first pick this week, Grace will take it next week.
1. Florida State (previously No. 1): It’s wild to think Florida State might play its toughest remaining opponent this week when Duke visits Tallahassee. Sure, rivals Miami and Florida are still on the schedule. But as far as ranked opponents — at the moment — the Blue Devils are it. — Navarro
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2. North Carolina (2): The Tar Heels have three very manageable opponents in the next three weeks in Virginia, Georgia Tech and Campbell. Back-to-back dates with Duke and Clemson in November will show us what this team is made of down the stretch, but for now, the Heels are very clearly one of the two best teams in the league. — Raynor
3. Duke (4): I’m still in awe of the job Mike Elko has done turning Duke’s defense into one of the best in the country and squeezing everything he can out of every ounce of talent on his roster. 247Sports’ Team Talent Composite doesn’t tell the complete story, but you do realize Elko is a combined 14-5 since taking the job and he only has two blue-chip recruits on this year’s roster, right? Think about that when Duke tries to improve to 1-21 all-time against FSU this weekend. — Navarro
4. Clemson (5): It hasn’t been pretty, but the Tigers have won four of their last five games and are still one of the most talented teams in the league. How about Dabo Swinney with the quote of the week on his call-in show when asked about Miami’s not-taking-a-knee fiasco against Georgia Tech? It’s not like the Clemson coach to be so blunt about upcoming opponents, but I’m here for spicy Dabo. — Raynor
Dabo Swinney answering a Q about how Clemson tracks analytics on the sidelines and would avoid a kneel-down fiasco like Miami and Mario Cristobal had two weeks ago: "Hopefully in that situation someone would just punch me." Says Clemson works clock management in practice weekly
— Chapel Fowler (@chapelfowler) October 17, 2023
5. Louisville (3): So, right when I was fully bought into the Cardinals as a legitimate threat to win the league title, they go out and lose a head-scratcher at Pittsburgh by 17 points. We also don’t know the injury status of three key players in running back Jawhar Jordan, offensive lineman Renato Brown and cornerback Jarvis Brownlee. It’s a great time for a bye week for Jeff Brohm. — Navarro
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6. Miami (6): It’s been a rough two weeks for the Hurricanes, who are still the butt of all game-management jokes. Those will go away quickly, though, if Mario Cristobal can score a win against Clemson at home on Saturday night. It’s not necessarily a must-win game, as Manny wrote this week, but the Hurricanes need to show us they aren’t on the verge of a meltdown. — Raynor
7. Syracuse (7): I don’t think anybody is surprised the Orange lost to Clemson, North Carolina and Florida State in consecutive weeks in convincing fashion. But they’ll be judged a little more harshly when they come off a bye next week and visit Lane Stadium. ESPN’s Power Index gives them a 96 percent shot at winning at least six games and becoming bowl-eligible for the second year in a row. As it stands, I think they could beat all five of their remaining opponents — and lose to all five. — Navarro
8. Georgia Tech (9): It’s a bummer the Yellow Jackets were off last week — Brent Key could have used the momentum from the Miami game to keep his team rolling. Georgia Tech is favored over Boston College at home this week, but the Yellow Jackets lost to Bowling Green the last time they were at Bobby Dodd Stadium. Who really knows? — Raynor
9. NC State (8): A week after looking like the offense had figured things out in a 48-41 win against Marshall, Dave Doeren’s team managed just a field goal in a 21-point loss to a Riley Leonard-less Duke squad. There’s a lot for the Wolfpack to figure out before Clemson comes to town in a few weeks. — Navarro
10. Virginia Tech (12): Quarterback Kyron Drones had his breakthrough moment against Wake Forest, throwing for 321 yards and two touchdowns. Drones had been average before Saturday but he made Virginia Tech a whole lot more interesting as it heads into the idle week. — Raynor
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11. Pittsburgh (14): Just when we thought Pat Narduzzi’s team was in serious trouble, the Panthers roared against Louisville in the second half. ESPN, though, gives Pitt only a 10 percent shot at winning six games and becoming bowl-eligible. Winning at Wake Forest this week would definitely improve those odds. — Navarro
FIGHT, PITT, FIGHT 🗣️ @VeilleuxQB11 #PittHC23 pic.twitter.com/wtLJcOyLOo
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) October 15, 2023
12. Boston College (11): With the exception of a disastrous season-opener against Northern Illinois, Boston College’s losses are actually pretty respectable. There’s no shame in losing to Florida State, and Louisville was the darling of the ACC before the Cardinals folded against Pitt. Don’t be shocked if Boston College beats Georgia Tech this week. — Raynor
13. Wake Forest (10): It’s tough to stomach how far Wake and Pitt have fallen since meeting in the ACC title game two years ago. The offenses for both teams have been bad, but the Demon Deacons have been especially bad at protecting their quarterback. Sacking the quarterback is a Pitt strength. Consider that a key to Saturday’s game. — Navarro
14. Virginia (13): The Cavs dropped a spot … without playing a game. Not their fault. Pitt vaulted from 14th to 11th after beating Louisville, and that bumped Virginia down one spot. Tony Elliott’s squad might be 1-5, but weird things happen when the Tar Heels and Cavaliers get together. — Raynor
Bonus question
Which five ACC teams will have the most conference wins over the next five seasons, from 2024 through 2028?
Raynor: At the risk of sounding too much like our colleague Ari Wasserman, the teams that recruit the best will win the most games. The ACC’s top five classes in the 2024 cycle currently are Florida State, Miami, Clemson, Stanford (weird, right?!) and North Carolina. With the exception of maybe Miami — we’ll see if Cristobal can improve as an in-game coach — I think that sounds spot-on for the league. Don’t count out Duke, though. The Blue Devils have a great thing going with Elko — if they can hang onto him.
Navarro: This is tough considering all the what-if scenarios. But assuming Florida State and Clemson aren’t leaving the conference, they have to be at the top of the list. After that, I’d lean toward Miami because of the talent Cristobal is accumulating. North Carolina has turned a corner this season, but Mack Brown is 72 and Drake Maye will be in the NFL soon. So, I’ll tentatively go with the Tar Heels as my fourth team. Like Grace, I’m also unsure how long Duke holds onto Elko. But if he sticks around, I’d say the Blue Devils are No. 5 for me. If Brown retires or Elko leaves for another school, I’d say Louisville sneaks into their spot. Jeff Brohm can coach and the Cardinals have a strong NIL initiative. Stanford would slot in after them for me.
(Photo of Christian Veilleux: Justin Berl / Getty Images)