The ACC, except for Clemson, decided to leave the defenses at home this week with five teams scoring over forty points and only Miami scoring less than twenty. Three teams had two backs break 100 yards as well. Clemson, UNC, and Notre Dame remain undefeated in conference play while Wake, Louisville, and FSU have yet to notch a win.

@Georgia Tech 46 Louisville 27

The Yellow Jackets fell behind by fourteen late in the second quarter but responded quickly with a trick play to pull within seven going into halftime. Louisville would cough up the multiple times in the second half and Tech would capitalize with a great performance from Jeff Sims and Jahmyr Gibbs. Read the full recap here.

@North Carolina 56 Virginia Tech 45

The Tar Heels put on an offensive show with 656 total yards. Michael Carter led the charge with 214 yards rushing and Jevonte Williams assisted with another 169 rushing. Virginia Tech racked up the points but they came after letting UNC gain a lead. The Hokies would get within one possession but the defense allowed UNC two touchdowns on back-to-back drives in the fourth.

Duke 38 @Syracuse 24

Duke claimed its first win of the season by limiting Syracuse to only 28 yards on the ground while producing 363 themselves. Chase Brice also had his best day of the season with 270 yards passing and two touchdowns. Syracuse struggled to gain any yardage on multiple drives and lost Tommy Devito to an injury in the fourth quarter that may sideline him for the remainder of the year.

North Carolina State 38 @Virginia 21

The Wolf Pack has started to put together a good record after their loss to VT a few weeks ago but this game seemed to be more of what Virginia failed to do. Virginia was statistically better in most categories but had four turnovers including a pick 6 that would put the game out of reach.

@Boston College 31 Pittsburgh 30

This game stayed close all the way to the end but Pitt had some blown opportunities that cost them their second loss of the season. Phil Jurkovic had a great day passing with 358 yards and three touchdowns to keep the Eagles ahead of a Pitt who missed three kicks. The killing blow coming on a missed extra point in overtime.

@Notre Dame 42 Florida State 26

Despite the high score almost all the fireworks in this game came in the first half as neither team would score after their first possession in the third quarter. FSU has looked improved with Jordan Travis under center as they held a brief lead toward the end of the first quarter but the Seminole defense allowed 353 yards rushing and threw a pick in the red zone late in the game.

@Clemson 42 Miami 17

Miami had been flying high on offense until they met Clemson this week. D’Eriq King was the only offense for Miami accounting for 205 of the 210 total yards. Trevor Lawrence took some hits losing a fumble on a scramble and getting speared by a Miami defender later in the game but still completed 29 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns. Etienne also had some big runs including one where he squeezed through a small hole on the line and outran the Miami secondary down the sideline. Clemson did having kicking woes with three blocked field goals, one which Miami returned for a touchdown.

Power Rankings

1. Clemson (LW1) - Clemson asserted itself once again as a class above the rest as a rising Miami team was quickly knocked back down with little trouble. There are few teams in the nation that can line up against the Tigers’ firepower. Georgia Tech will hope to play a perfect game to have any chance.
2. Notre Dame (LW2) - The Irish struggled early with a bad FSU team but put the game away by the start of the third quarter. They should have another easy win against a Louisville squad that is giving up points in bunches.
3. North Carolina (LW5) - North Carolina is starting to look like the team they were hyped to be in the preseason with one of the best rushing attacks in the conference. With FSU up next UNC could position itself well in the ACC race.
4. Virginia Tech (LW4) - Despite the loss to Carolina the Hokies have been able to put up and points with a good portion of their team missing in previous weeks. Boston College has the defense to test them again next week.
5. Miami (LW3) - Miami isn’t getting knocked so much for losing to Clemson but not having any other player step up besides King. If other teams can figure out how to stop King the offense may stutter. Pittsburgh has some guys on defense who could make life hard up next.
6. Boston College (LW9) - Boston College has been improving on offense each week and the defense has been pretty stout at times. If they can upset VT this week it will be a big step in the right direction.
7. North Carolina State (LW8) - NC State is surprisingly 3-1 but have had some sloppy play at times. Duke is a very winnable game coming up but they can’t keep relying on other teams turning it over.
8. Pittsburgh (LW6) - Pitt has slid after two straight losses with Kenny Pickett becoming more inconsistent. If the offense can come together than it could be a long day against Miami and see Pitt slip to the bottom of the ACC rankings.
9. Virginia (LW7) - Virginia shot themselves in the foot against NC State with four turnovers. They will travel to Wake Forest next who has struggled so far but Wake has had a bye to prepare.
10. Georgia Tech (LW12) - The Yellow Jacket offense has looked explosive when keeping a hold on the ball but the defense needs tighten down on 3rd and long to have any chance against Clemson who is due up.
11. Duke (LW15) - The Blue Devils finally got a decent game out of their transfer QB and a similar performance could see another win next week against NC State.
12. Syracuse (LW10) - Tommy Devito may be lost for the season which could see an offense suffer even more than it already has. Liberty will be a non-conference match-up this week and they are currently undefeated.
13. Florida State (LW14) - Jordan Travis has provided a spark to the maligned Seminoles but it wasn’t enough to stay with the Irish in the end. It may not be enough to keep up with UNC this coming week either but they could snag a few wins with him later in the season.
14. Wake Forest (LW13) - Wake got a bye to work out some kinks as they have yet to win an ACC game this season. Virginia showed some weaknesses of their own that the Demon Deacons can exploit.
15. Louisville (LW11) - Louisville has opened the flood gates for opposing offenses this season and Cunningham has been spotty with passing accuracy despite making plays with his feet. It may be another rough week as they head to South Bend to take on Notre Dame.