ACC Power Rankings: Week 13

How do the ACC Power Rankings Look Heading Into Week 13?

Nov 16, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Clemson Tigers quarterback Cade Klubnik (2) runs on his way to scoring a game winning fifty-yard touchdown during the fourth quarter to defeat the Pittsburgh Panthers at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Only two weeks left in regular season play.

Week 12 did not bring a lot of change in the ACC race. SMU and Miami control their own destiny to get to the ACC title game, but Clemson is still waiting in the wings if the Hurricanes were to lose. The Tigers overcame a poor second half offensive performance vs Pittsburgh yesterday to finish conference play 7-1. Still, SMU and Miami control their own destiny with two weeks left.

The rest of the conference picture is still muddled. Louisville suffered a big upset loss to Stanford and Syracuse got a big road win at Cal to get them to seven wins in Fran Brown's first season. There are a lot of teams still fighting for bowl eligibility and that is something to watch over the final two weeks.

Here are the week 13 ACC Power Rankings.

17. Florida State (1-9, 1-7). Last week: 17

Florida State was off this weekend and will be back in action next Saturday vs Charleston Southern.

16. Wake Forest (4-6, 2-4). Last week: 15

Wake fought hard on the road vs North Carolina, but they came up short and now the Demon Deacons will need to win out to get to a bowl game. They travel to Miami next weekend and then finish the season vs Duke.

15. Stanford (3-7, 2-5). Last week: 16

Kudos to Stanford. The Cardinal were three-touchdown underdogs at home yesterday vs Louisville, but they used a fantastic fourth quarter to get a big win for head coach Troy Taylor. Stanford travels to Cal next week to face their arch rivals and try to help ruin their bowl plans.

14. Cal (5-5, 1-5). Last week: 12

Speaking of Cal. The Golden Bears were favorites at home vs Syraucse yesterday, but the usually strong defense could not stop Kyle McCord, LeQuint Allen, and Oronde Gadsden, all of whom had big days. Justin Wilcox is now 1-5 in the ACC and while they have all been close games, this team just cannot seem to finish. They have a chance to get bowl eligible next week vs Stanford.

13. NC State (5-5, 2-4). Last week: 14

NC State was off this Saturday and is back in action on Thursday at Georgia Tech.

12. Virginia Tech (5-5, 3-3). Last week: 13

Virginia Tech was off last week and will be back in action on Saturday at Duke.

11. Boston College (5-5, 2-4). Last week: 10

Boston College was oh so close to knocking SMU yesterday, but they could not protect the quarterback on the final third and fourth downs of the game. Quarterback Grayson James played a solid game yesterday, but it was not enough to knock off the Mustangs on the road. The Eagles have a chance to get bowl eligible next week vs North Carolina.

10. Virginia (5-5, 3-3). Last week: 9

Virginia is not going to drop far for getting blown out at Notre Dame. The Cavaliers could not stop turning the ball over yesterday in their loss to the Fighting Irish and now they join the host of 5-5 teams still hoping to make a bowl in the ACC. They host SMU next week.

9. North Carolina (6-4, 3-3). Last week: 11

While they are still a bit disappointing this year, credit to North Carolina for bouncing back from a mid season losing streak and getting bowl eligible. The Tar Heels have won three in a row after beating Wake Forest and have a chance to finish the season strong. They travel to Boston College next weekend.

8. Louisville (6-4, 4-3). Last week: 4

Coming off a bye week and going on the road and losing to a Stanford team that had been getting blown out week after week is a gut punch for Louisville. The Cardinals only losses until yesterday had been one score games to College Football Playoff Contenders, but now they are 6-4 and won't finish the year ranked. Can they bounce back next week vs Pitt?

7. Pittsburgh (7-3, 3-3). Last week: 6

Pitt had Clemson on the ropes yesterday, but fell short after letting Cade Klubnik run for a 50-yard touchdown to seal the game. Pitt's offensive line is really banged up right now (as is a lot of the team), but their defense played really well at times against the Tigers, especially in the second half. The Panthers go back on the road next week to face Louisville.

6. Georgia Tech (6-4, 4-3). Last week: 7

Georgia Tech was off this week and will be back in action on Thursday vs NC State.

5. Duke (7-3, 3-3). Last week: 5

Duke was off this week and will be back in action on Saturday vs Virginia Tech.

4. Syracuse (7-3, 4-3). Last week: 8

The Orange get a big move up thanks to an upset win over Cal yesterday, Louisville losing to Stanford, and other teams in front of them being on a bye week. A good first year for Fran Brown continued on Saturday and no surprise, it was mostly due to the offense. Syracuse hosts UConn next Saturday and then has a big chance to shake up the ACC race when they host Miami in the final weekend of the regular season.

3. Clemson (8-2, 7-1). Last week: 3

Clemson was far from perfect on Saturday, but they got the job done against Pittsburgh and now they sit and wait. Clemson needs Miami to lose one of their final two regular season games to get into the ACC Championship and they will be big fans of Wake Forest and Syracuse over the next two weeks. Clemson hosts the Citadel next Saturday.

2. Miami (9-1, 5-1). Last week: 2

Miami was off this weekend and will be back in action at home next Saturday vs Wake Forest.

1. SMU (9-1, 6-0). Last week: 1

It might have been a little closer than they would have wanted at the end, but SMU beat Boston College and remains unbeaten in ACC play. The Mustangs control their own destiny to get to the ACC Championship and the College Football Playoff and will travel to Virginia next Saturday.

Additional Links

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Georgia Tech Football: Three Biggest Storylines For Matchup With NC State