There were five teams on bye this week so there wasn’t much shakeup in the ACC ranks. However, the upset of NC State over Pitt should muddle the waters in the middle of the pack. Next week has several key games that should make the ACC race clearer.

@Wake Forest 66 Campbell 14

Wake Forest never struggled in its non-conference matchup this year as they were up by three touchdowns by the end of the first half. Campbell did have drives where they moved the ball well as they controlled time of possession 35 to 25 minutes but committed four turnovers. They also failed to take an early lead with a missed field goal on the opening drive. Wake’s rushing attack put this game away with a 299-yard effort that was good for 6.6 yards per rush.

North Carolina St 30 @Pittsburgh 29

Pittsburgh jumped out to an early lead with a quick 75-yard touchdown pass from Pickett to start the game. However, Pitt’s offense stalled until later in the game and NC State scored on their first three possessions of the game. After both teams traded punts in the third quarter it became a back and forth affair with the Wolfpack edging out a one-point victory when Devin Leary threw a nice pass to Emeka Emezie for a touchdown with 23 seconds left on the clock.

North Carolina 26 @Boston College 22

After a sloppy game against Syracuse in week one UNC would play their second game of the season due to a bye and cancellation, and the results were once again sloppy. The Tar Heels got off to a nice lead but let Boston College creep back into the game by allowing two field goals and throwing a pick that set BC up in the red zone that they would convert for a touchdown. BC did score late to give themselves a chance to tie the game with a two-point conversion but Jurkovec had to scramble and tossed a pick that Trey Morrison returned 99 yards preserving the UNC win.

Virginia Tech 38 @Duke 31

The Hokies were understaffed again with 21 players out but still managed to harass Duke’s offense by getting pressure on Chase Brice and bringing runners down behind the line. Duke would have been held scoreless the first half had VT not fumbled a punt back into their own end zone. Duke had a chance to take the lead late but couldn’t move the ball consistently even with a VT turnover. VT’s Khalil Herbert sealed the win with a 60-yard touchdown that brought his total to 208 yards rushing on the day.

@FSU 41 Jacksonville St 24

Down 14-0 at the start of the second quarter, it appeared FSU was in danger of losing to an FCS opponent and capping the fall of the once-proud program. The Seminoles brought in QB Jordan Travis off the bench and a new life was given to a struggling offense. FSU would score five straight touchdowns to lead a comeback and rout of Jacksonville St who struggled to establish a run game with only 63 yards.

@Clemson 41 Virginia 23

Both offenses were off to a slow start in the first quarter with Clemson only leading by 10 but Trevor Lawrence got hot at the end of the first to lead three straight touchdown drives. Virginia managed 417 yards on the day but only got within 10 and Clemson quickly answered with another touchdown when Virginia tried to close the gap. Etienne was the major factor for the Tigers with 73 yards rushing and 114 receiving.

Power Rankings

1. Clemson (LW1) - Clemson has taken care of business so far but will welcome Miami next week that should be one of the top match-ups in the ACC this season. Clemson has won big the last two times these teams have met and haven’t allowed a touchdown in either.
2. Notre Dame (LW2) - Notre Dame took the week off and should remain unbeaten after this week when the get FSU at home. Notre Dame’s offense should roll in this game.
3. Miami (LW3) - Miami got the best week to take a bye before heading to Clemson. It will be the toughest test D’Eriq King and the Canes will see this season. Can Miami’s defense also slow down Trevor Lawrence who has been near perfect with over 80% passes completed?
4. Virginia Tech (LW6) - The Hokies have only played two games but they have looked solid despite missing over 20 players each week. They head to Chapel Hill to take on UNC this coming week and should be a good match-up between two teams vying for a shot at the ACC championship game.
5. North Carolina (LW5) - Carolina struggled a bit with BC but managed to hold on for the win by picking off a two-point conversion. They will need to clean up some mistakes against a VT team who should get a bulk of their players back from COVID next week.
6. Pittsburgh (LW4) - After several good defensive showings, Pitt fell to NC State allowing Devin Leary to throw for 336 yards and 4 touchdowns. They will travel to Boston College to take on the Eagles who gave UNC a game.
7. Virginia (LW7) - Virginia never threatened Clemson this week but they didn’t roller over either. The offense had some success and may not have dropped off as much without Bryce Petty gone from QB. NC State should be a winnable game next week.
8. North Carolina State (LW12) - The Wolfpack pulled an upset on the road against Pittsburgh with a great performance from QB Devin Leary. If they can improve defense then they should have a good match-up when they head to Virginia.
9. Boston College (LW8) - Boston College tried to steal a win from UNC but wasn’t quite consistent enough to pull the upset. Jurkovec has been respectable in his first year despite a struggling run game. Pitt visits next after dropping their first game to NC State.
10. Syracuse (LW9) - The Cuse had a bye after their first win of the season against Tech two weeks ago. They get a struggling Duke team to try to get their record back to .500.
11. Louisville (LW10) - Louisville was on a bye and has struggled since their first game of the season. They will need to get a win against a struggling Georgia Tech when the visit Atlanta on Friday night but may not have their QB ready after being injured against Pitt.
12. Georgia Tech (LW11) - The Yellow Jackets took a week off to fix some issues with their young team after falling on the road to Syracuse. Louisville’s defense hasn’t been good and could provide a spark to an offense plagued by turnovers.
13. Wake Forest (LW13) - The Demon Deacons got a blow out win over Campbell for their first win of the year and will take next week off before taking on UVA.
14. Florida State (LW15) - FSU didn’t look good to start against Jacksonville St but Jordan Travis came off the bench to lead the Seminoles to their first win. They head to South Bend next week and will hope they have found a new playmaker for the Irish to contend with.
15. Duke (LW14) - Duke now holds the distinction of being the only winless ACC team. The offense hasn’t looked right at any point and will need a win against Syracuse next week before becoming buried in the ACC race.