ACC Football Power Rankings: 2024 Week 8

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – There has been a lot of chaos in the Atlantic Coast Conference through the first month and a half of the season, but the ACC is actually coming off its bleakest, most boring week yet.

First of all, six of the 17 members had a bye week. Of the six games involving the other 11 ACC teams, not only did the favorite win in every match, but in four of the games the favorite covered the lead. It was a blip in the crazy first half of the 2024 season

So after seven weeks of football, what is the current state of the conference? Check out our Week 8 ACC power rankings below:

We’ll find out very quickly whether Miami was able to do some soul searching during the bye week. Although they are undefeated, they could easily be 0-2 in conference play right now. We’ll see which Canes team plays in Louisville this weekend.

On one hand, Clemson had a bit of a slow start to this game. On the other hand, they were finally able to do what they couldn’t do the week before at FSU: drive to the finish line. I would like it to work against slightly tougher teams, but maybe the Tigers’ offense is actually okay.

This game was special for Pat Narduzzi: ugly to win. Pitt could be 6-0 for the first time in 42 years thanks to their offense, but it was their defense that got them the win in this game. At this rate, the Panthers could be a spoiler in the ACC title race, but then again, their schedule hasn’t been particularly daunting.

SMU is arguably the hottest team in the ACC right now. Sure, they stumbled from the start, but after deciding to go with Kevin Jennings permanently, the Mustangs look like a completely different team. We’ll see if they can keep up in the second half of the season.

Louisville finally found a way to tie a game in the fourth quarter. Yes, the Cardinals didn’t exactly play the most aesthetically pleasing football (again), but they made plays when they needed to. However, they will need to play much better if they have any chance of beating Miami.

Georgia Tech’s resilience was demonstrated again with a last-second win. The defense is still a little shaky, but there’s no denying that the Yellow Jackets are always in the game thanks to this strong offense. They will need it against a brutal second half of the schedule.

While this game certainly got a little more interesting toward the end, Syracuse made a statement with this road win. The Orange continue to be led by Kyle McCord and that productive offense, and their defense has performed significantly improved. But can they maintain continuity between both sides moving forward?

Bye week came at a great time for Boston College. Their defense has done a solid job up to this point, but their offense doesn’t look as productive as it did early on – even with QB Thomas Castellanos returning from injury. But if anyone can steer the ship right, it’s Bill O’Brien.

Virginia Tech got some much-needed momentum and positive energy heading into its bye week. Their defense had a much-needed game against Stanford, and QB Kyron Drones and the rest of this offense continue to trend upward. An ACC title may be off the table, but a good bowl certainly isn’t.

The fourth-quarter magic was a key factor in Virginia’s strong start to its third year under Tony Elliott, but it finally appears to have been exhausted. Virginia played well on both ends, but was unable to capitalize on the final stretch as it has done several times this season. Now comes the hard part of the schedule.

Another team with a well-timed bye week. Duke got off to a 5-0 start, albeit against less than stellar competition, and it showed when they finally played a team with heart. Now the schedule is quickly becoming very tough.

ACC play hasn’t been kind to Cal. After starting 3-0 this year, the Golden Bears have now suffered three straight losses, and their most recent loss was largely due to them getting in their own way – again. This team has potential if they stop shooting themselves in the foot.

At the end of the first quarter, Wake Forest experienced a system failure. Yes. There was a massive talent discrepancy between them and Clemson. But the Demon Deacons’ offense, defense and special teams were all lazy last weekend.

Well… Stanford had a brief lead over Notre Dame. But otherwise this game went exactly as many expected. The Cardinals defense had no answer for what the Irish threw at them, and their offense was completely overwhelmed.

This game was a recipe for disaster for NC State from the start. Their defense couldn’t get off the field during sustained attacks, and their fledgling offense couldn’t do much with the limited opportunities they were given – except when their backs were against the wall. There may be some tough questions to ask at the end of the year.

It was the same old song and dance for North Carolina this past weekend. The Tar Heels offense did more than enough to put them in a position to win, but their defense was riddled and failed when it was needed most. I would be surprised if Mack Brown doesn’t give up at his rate after this season.

As disjointed and pathetic as Florida State has looked this season, they are in last place until proven otherwise. They have a few chances to get back on the winning list, but overall they also have a difficult second half of the season ahead of them.

(Photo by Kyle McCord: Zachary Taft – Imagn Images)

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