With the regular season coming to a close, there's only one game left before bowl season begins for the ACC teams in earnest. Not coincidentally, the two teams who are No. 1 and No. 2 in this week's rankings are the two teams that will meet for the ACC title on Saturday night in Charlotte. But the ACC had a very good weekend by going 4-0 against the SEC. But not every ACC team faced an SEC team, and some face more questions than answers as they await their bowl game assignment (or lack thereof).
1. No. 2 Florida State (12-0, 8-0 ACC) (1st in Atlantic)
Last week: 1 (W 24-19 over Florida)
Season synopsis: TBD, as the Atlantic Division champs and still only undefeated Power 5 team await their final challenge before the College Football Playoffs in a red-hot Georgia Tech team. As for the regular season, Florida State has had its share of struggles in the first half, and sometimes even in both halves, but ultimately, they still have wins in all of those games. Everyone outside the program can whine about luck and lack of dominance, but ultimately, none of that matters as long as FSU keeps winning. If any other Power 5 team had played 11 other Power 5 teams, they'd be lauded instead of panned, even if they were winning closely. But being compared against last year's dominant team (which played a much worse schedule, by the way), plus all the legal issues that have swirled around this year's team, hasn't helped matters. Either way, they have a chance to keep doing what they've done all season -- shut up their so-called critics with their play on the field.
2. No. 12 Georgia Tech (10-2, 6-2 ACC) (1st in Coastal)
Last week: 2 (W 30-24 OT at No. 9 Georgia)
Season synopsis: TBD, really, although even if the Yellow Jackets lose to Florida State next week in Charlotte, it's hard to call this season anything other than a huge success. The losses earlier in ACC play to North Carolina and Duke (the latter at home) don't help, but since the North Carolina loss, Georgia Tech is 5-0 (with two wins over ranked teams, the latter coming AT No. 9 Georgia) and has pummeled its opponents, for the most part, by an average of 22.8 points. It hasn't allowed more than 28 points. What might have been without just one of those two losses earlier in the season? Too early to tell, but the Jackets are clicking on both sides of the ball and could give FSU a real run in Charlotte, if not win the game outright. Then they'd be a 10-2 team from a Power 5 league with three wins over ranked teams, so that could get interesting.
3. No. 19 Clemson (9-3, 6-2 ACC) (2nd in Atlantic)
Last week: T-3 (W 35-17 over South Carolina)
Season synopsis: Very good, sprinkled with a tinge of what might have been. If Deshaun Watson had been the starter from the jump, Clemson might be 10-2 with a win over Georgia and who knows? Maybe it would have been able to beat Florida State somehow if Watson had that much more experience. But those are all 'ifs', and Watson couldn't manage to stay healthy anyway -- he played last weekend's game against South Carolina with an ACL tear, and is going to play in the bowl game as well before getting surgery. Still, Clemson's offense was on another level with him in the game, and the defense has been downright spectacular all season long. Six of the 26 touchdowns it has allowed all season have come off of turnovers (as have 55 of the 211 points). All the Tigers can do now is wait to see where they land bowl-wise, but even when offensive coordinator Chad Morris leaves for SMU, the future is bright for this program if everything else stays intact. Including Watson's knee post-surgery.
4. No. 21 Louisville (9-3, 5-3 ACC) (3rd in Atlantic)
Last week: T-3 (W 44-40 over Kentucky)
Season synopsis: Excellent. The Cardinals acquitted themselves quite nicely by going 7-3 against the Power 5 (5-3 in the ACC, including close losses to Florida State and Clemson) and taking really only one bad loss all season -- that came at Virginia, a team that finished 5-7 but was playing well at the time, and in Louisville's first ACC road game, no less. Bobby Petrino has done as good a coaching job as he's ever done, and that's saying something, in his first year with this defensive-minded team (which took some getting used to). But Louisville has now used three quarterbacks this season (after the backup, Reggie Bonnafon, got hurt against Kentucky and the third-stringer came in to win the game) and juggled its parts around numerous times to find success. What a debut season for Louisville in the ACC, and credit to Petrino for adapting what he wants to do to what's on his roster.
5. Boston College (7-5, 4-4 ACC) (4th in Atlantic)
Last week: 5 (W 28-7 over Syracuse)
Season synopsis: Great coaching job by Steve Addazio yet again. He molded the offense around Tyler Murphy's legs, and it worked to perfection more often than not. The Eagles were in almost every game they played, and they got an impressive win along the way, too (USC). They lost two games to Clemson and FSU by a combined total of seven points, but that Pitt loss at home is the only real missed opportunity. The Eagles had better hope they can hang on to Addazio for the foreseeable future, because he's one of the better coaches in the league.
6. Duke (9-3, 5-3 ACC) (2nd in Coastal)
Last week: 6 (W 41-21 over Wake Forest)
Season synopsis: Could have been better, really. Perspective, of course, is necessary -- Duke has back-to-back nine-win seasons for the first time in program history, and could get to 10 wins in consecutive seasons -- but the Blue Devils could, and arguably should, have won the Coastal for the second straight year. They had the head-to-head with Georgia Tech, and all they had to do was win two of three against Virginia Tech (6-6), North Carolina (6-6) and Wake Forest (3-9). They went 1-2 against that slate, even though all three were at home. While Duke had a very nice season record-wise, the Blue Devils finished with just two wins over FBS teams that finished .500 or better, and won two-thirds of their games against below-.500 teams. Duke's FBS-only strength of schedule was .425, the worst of any ACC team by far. It was all right there for Duke, but the Blue Devils couldn't get it done. Still not a failure of a season by any means, but a missed opportunity at the very least.
7. NC State (7-5, 3-5 ACC) (5th in Atlantic)
Last week: 11 (W 35-7 at North Carolina)
Season synopsis: Pretty darned good, all things considered, and it doesn't hurt at all to end it with a blowout win over a rival on the road, either. An odd year, too -- NC State went 1-5 against Power 5 teams that finished .500 or better (and the one win came in the season finale against North Carolina), but combined record of the teams NC State lost to was 47-13, and four of the teams that beat NC State are ranked. But two of those four ranked teams blew out the Wolfpack, and it took NC State halfway through ACC season to get its first ACC win, largely because of scheduling. Still, second-year head coach Dave Doeren has his young team going to a bowl game, and the extra practices should do them a world of good. And the recruiting is going incredibly well, and should continue along that path with all the positive momentum.
8. Pittsburgh (6-6, 4-4 ACC) (4th in Coastal)
Last week: 10 (W 35-23 at Miami)
Season synopsis: A missed opportunity, but saved by a solid ending. Pitt had the best possible schedule to win the Coastal this year, getting Boston College and Syracuse as crossover Atlantic opponents and hosting Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech and Duke. But they dropped two of those three Coastal home games and lost six of seven at one point this season, including a home game to an Akron team that finished 5-7 before ACC play got into full swing. Still, the Panthers beat Syracuse and Miami to finish the season strong and will get to a bowl game, and ultimately that's all that matters.
9. Virginia Tech (6-6, 3-5 ACC) (6th in Coastal)
Last week: 12 (W 24-20 over Virginia)
Season synopsis: ???????? No, seriously. You tell me. Virginia Tech's four Power 5 wins this season came against teams with a combined record of 31-17, and two of the teams were ranked when Virginia Tech beat them (Ohio State and Duke). Three finished .500 or better. The combined record of the Power 5 teams that Virginia Tech lost to, though, is 29-26, and just two of the five teams that beat the Hokies finished above .500. Oh, and WAKE FOREST. That's right, Virginia Tech opened the season by winning at a top-five Ohio State team and closed its road schedule by losing at Wake Forest. But, you know what? The Hokies beat Virginia and kept its bowl streak alive, so that's all that matters. Well, that, and whether or not the Hokies can figure out a way to fix its bad offense -- particularly if Frank Beamer is going to stay until he's ready to leave.
10. North Carolina (6-6, 4-4 ACC) (3rd in Coastal)
Last week: T-7 (L 35-7 to NC State)
Season synopsis: Head-scratching. The Tar Heels, as per their M.O. under head coach Larry Fedora, started out poorly, struggling some with FCS Liberty and eking out a win over San Diego State before getting blown out at East Carolina, the first of a four-game losing streak. But a competitive loss at Notre Dame led to a renaissance of sorts as the Tar Heels went 4-2 own the stretch, but the two were both blowout losses by a combined score of 82-27. The Virginia Tech and NC State games at home, particularly, stand out as games that North Carolina could have had or at least been more competitive in, but they weren't. Had UNC beaten the Hokies, they would've been playing for the Coastal Division last weekend. But they weren't, and it wouldn't have mattered anyway as they ended on a bitter note by getting blown out by the Wolfpack. Fedora and UNC could really use the positive momentum a bowl win would bring, not to mention a better start to next season.
11. Virginia (5-7, 3-5 ACC) (7th in Coastal)
Last week: 9 (L 24-20 at Virginia Tech)
Season synopsis: Progress...maybe? Virginia announced last week that it would retain head coach Mike London for at least one more year, and it's clear that some of his recruiting classes are starting to pan out. The Cavaliers played a ridiculous schedule (their FBS opponents' record was a combined 60-24), but bowl eligibility was right there for the taking in the regular season finale at a reeling Virginia Tech team, but they couldn't finish. That's the story of this season, as Virginia went 2-5 in one-score games or less. That's the difference, and games like the North Carolina game, the Duke game or even the Virginia Tech game were there for the taking, but for a bunch of puzzling late-game decisions and circumstances that turned wins into losses. Maybe London and company can continue to grow together, but that remains to be seen.
12. Miami (6-6, 3-5 ACC) (5th in Coastal)
Last week: T-7 (L 35-23 to Pittsburgh)
Season synopsis: Very disappointing ending, to say the least. Miami had Florida State at home, but the Seminoles did their standard second-half thing of coming back and dominating their opponent to win after facing a large deficit. At that point in the season, Miami was 6-3 and all of their losses had come to teams that are ranked. The FSU game was the first of three straight losses, the final two coming to a 5-7 Virginia team and a 6-6 Pitt team. The lackluster finish in spite of the positive momentum and the talent on this roster is troubling to say the least, and Al Golden's future in Coral Gables remains very much in doubt for a variety of reasons -- perhaps chief among them that he would want to get out while he still can, seeing as he can't please that fanbase.
13. Wake Forest (3-9, 1-7 ACC) (7th in Atlantic)
Last week: 13 (L 41-21 at Duke)
Season synopsis: Plucky? That seems like an odd word choice for a team that finished 3-9, but the talent on this roster should have probably dictated even fewer wins than that. Freshman quarterback John Wolford got sacked FORTY-FIVE TIMES this season and hit even more than that, but he continued to show guts in the pocket as he ran for his life and tried to make plays. The Wake defense was very good, too, and it continued to play hard in spite of all the losses. The only real disappointment was a blowout loss to Syracuse; every other result was more or less expected and the overtime win over Virginia Tech was a very pleasant surprise. Dave Clawson is known for his program-building, and it's not going to happen overnight, as his first year showed. But he's going to build something very good in Winston-Salem in the coming years.
14. Syracuse (3-9, 1-7 ACC) (6th in Atlantic)
Last week: 14 (L 28-7 at Boston College)
Season synopsis: A small, but steadily blazing, office trash can fire? At one point this season, it was a full-on raging dumpster fire, as Scott Shafer demoted his offensive coordinator midway through the season and spent one postgame press conference talking about ISIS and dead pigs with air in them. But the Orange, it must be noted, played a ridiculous schedule where EVERY single team they played but one finished .500 or better, and TEN of the 12 finished above .500 (including FCS Villanova, one of the best teams at that level). The Orange never really had much of a chance, and when the injuries piled up, that became especially true. This year should basically be thrown out in terms of any potential judgments rendered on Shafer because of all the injuries (at one point, Syracuse was down to its fourth-string quarterback), but Syracuse didn't finish well, scoring a total of 47 points in its last five games COMBINED. For perspective, ACC teams scored 47 or more IN ONE GAME 18 times this year. So, a lot to do there, but plenty of potential for improvement.
