ACC Power Rankings updated after Week 9 of college football

The latest ACC Power Rankings are here following Week 9 of college football and a full slate of action, courtesy of the On3 Massey Ratings.

The On3 Massey Ratings – which were officially used during the BCS era and have generated high school sports team rankings since 1995 – rank sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule, and margin of victory.

Let’s dive into the ACC Power Rankings following Week 9 of the college football season.

1. Miami

The Hurricanes stayed at the top of the ACC rankings after this weekend. A dominating 36-14 win over Florida State looks good on paper, but Miami likely could’ve played better.

Sure, Damien Martinez ran wild and scored twice, going for 148 yards. But Cam Ward threw for just 208 yards and did not throw a touchdown. However, he caught one on a Philly Special play!

2. Clemson

Clemson had a week off but stayed in their No. 2 spot in the ACC. The Tigers are currently on a six-game winning streak and look like a legit contender.

Remember when we talked about Clemson being done after losing the opening game to Georgia? Dabo Swinney, whatever he’s done lately, has turned it around!

3. Pittsburgh (+1)

Pitt dominated Syracuse on Thursday night, including nabbing three pick sixes of Kyle McCord. The Panthers are still undefeated and are No. 18 in the latest AP Poll.

The ACC is going to get a treat this weekend when Pitt travels to SMU, more on them in a second. Pat Narduzzi has this team rolling right now.

4. SMU (-1)

SMU improved to 7-1 on the season with a 28-27 overtime victory over Duke so Mustang fans can breathe a sigh of relief. Rhett Lashlee’s crew has been awesome this season.

First year in the ACC? No problem. Top 20 team. Now, a ranked matchup when they host Pitt this coming weekend. A win here and we have to think about scenarios of SMU in the ACC Championship Game. Maybe?

5. Louisville

Louisville edged out Boston College on Friday night 31-27 and are now 5-3 on the season. This is still a top five ACC team to this point, but you can see the difference between No. 5 and the top four.

Tyler Shough threw for 332 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. But how about Isaac Brown helping out too? He had 85 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and Louisville outscored Boston College 24-7 in the second half.

6. Duke

We mentioned Duke before and it’s only the second loss of the year, unfortunately both in the ACC. Losing in overtime is brutal, especially when it could’ve been a ranked win.

What might have been for Duke? Manny Diaz’s crew could’ve been 7-1 and arguably ranked in the top 25. Maalik Murphy even threw for 295 yards and three touchdowns but the Blue Devils couldn’t take advantage of three Kevin Jennings interceptions.

7. Virginia Tech (+2)

Virginia Tech’s turned it around in recent weeks and are now 5-2. Despite a scoreless fourth quarter, Tech got an ACC win over Georgia Tech 21-6.

Kyron Drones threw for 128 yards and a touchdown while also scoring on the ground. It wasn’t the most explosive game, but the Hokies got it done in the end.

8. Georgia Tech (-1)

Speaking of Georgia Tech, they moved one spot down in the ACC with Virginia Tech moving up two spots. The Yellowjackets only scored six points, all coming in the first half on two field goals.

Aaron Philo nor Zach Pyron could get it going passing, both completing less than 50% of their passes and both had an interception. Jamal Haynes led the rushing attack with just 47 yards on the ground.

9. California (+3)

It was a great game for Cal, winning 44-7 over Oregon State. It was domination from the get-go, going up 31-0 at halftime.

The Golden Bears vaulted up three spots in the ACC with this win. Fernando Mendoza threw for 364 yards and two touchdowns. 

10. Syracuse (-2)

Brutal night for Syracuse and the Orange dropped two spots in the ACC rankings per the Massey Ratings. Kyle McCord had a rough outing, throwing for 321 yards and five interceptions.
Three of those went back the other way in a 41-13 loss to Pitt. Time to regroup with Virginia Tech coming up this weekend.

ACC Power Rankings after Week 9

11. Boston College (-1)
12. North Carolina (+1)
13. Virginia (-2)
14. NC State
15. Florida State
16. Wake Forest
17. Stanford

There wasn’t much movement here other than Boston College dropping out of the top 10 of the ACC with UNC and Virginia shifting in the latter half. Onto Week 10!