ACC football Week 4 power rankings: Can Cal keep rolling? Can Louisville survive first test?
Welcome to The Athletic's ACC power rankings. Each week, Manny Navarro and Grace Raynor take turns drafting teams based on how they performed the previous week (and all season). Grace has the first pick this week, Manny will take it next week.
The Hurricanes continue to roll and have now outscored opponents 159-26 through three weeks. Cam Ward is the best quarterback in the league and Miami is already playing like a College Football Playoff team. — Raynor
After dispatching Austin Peay and Jacksonville State , Jeff Brohm's team will get tested for the first time this week when Georgia Tech visits Derby City. The Cardinals won last year's shootout 39-35 in Atlanta and have scored at least 30 points eight times in nine home games under Brohm. I want to see if Louisville can become the first team to record a sack against the Jackets offensive line. — Navarro
The Tigers looked like a different team against Appalachian State in Week 2 than they did against Georgia in Week 1. Playing NC State at home should be an accurate litmus test this week as Clemson's 2024 identity continues to take shape. — Raynor
The Orange host Stanford on Friday. They are 7-4 in Friday night games but are just 8-9 coming off a bye week since 2009. Quarterback Kyle McCord has been sensational through Syracuse's 2-0 start, and so has wide receiver Trebor Pena , who is tied for the ACC lead with five touchdowns. I've got a feeling, though, we won't know just how good the Orange really are until they visit UNLV on Oct. 4. — Navarro
Could Cal be the dark horse of the ACC? The Golden Bears are off to quite the start as one of the league's three newcomers, beating Auburn on the road in Week 2 and San Diego State at home by 21 points a week ago. At this point, I'd pick quarterback Fernando Mendoza and the Bears over Florida State this week. — Raynor
The Yellow Jackets are 3-1 for the first time since 2017 and a win Saturday at Louisville would give them their best start since 2014. Georgia Tech is 5-0 against ranked ACC opponents under Brent Key, with four of the five wins coming on the road. That's pretty bleeping impressive. — Navarro
The Eagles had a tall order at Missouri last week but kept it close in a 27-21 loss. Quarterback Thomas Castellanos will need to bounce back after throwing two interceptions against the Tigers, but this wasn't a bad loss. The Eagles still have everything in front of them in terms of the ACC race. — Raynor
Pat Narduzzi's team rallied to win the Backyard Brawl last Saturday and from 21 points down to beat Cincinnati a week before that. The Panthers can start 4-0 for the first time since 2000 with a win over Youngstown State this weekend. The reason? Redshirt freshman transfer quarterback Eli Holstein , who ranks fourth nationally in touchdown passes (nine), fifth in total offense (345.0 per game) and ninth in passing yards per game (313.0). — Navarro
UNC is 3-0 but doesn't have much stability at quarterback following Max Johnson 's injury. Conner Harrell started against Charlotte in Week 2 and NC Central in Week 3, but by the end of the first quarter against NC Central, the game essentially belonged to Jacolby Criswell . What's the plan this week? And how sustainable is the two-quarterback system while the Tar Heels look for answers? Or will both play? — Raynor
Brent Pry's squad has rebounded from its season-opening overtime loss at Vanderbilt with wins over Marshall (by 17) and Old Dominion (by 20), but the Hokies still have a leaky run defense (190.3 yards per game, 114th nationally). That's a bit worrisome going into Saturday's showdown with Rutgers , which ranks fourth nationally in rushing and has a beast in the backfield in Kyle Monangai (8.1 yards per carry). — Navarro
It's never promising when a team benches its starting quarterback this early into the season, but that's the situation SMU finds itself in now that the Mustangs have replaced Preston Stone with Kevin Jennings . Can Jennings give the offense a spark this week against rival TCU ? — Raynor
Freshman quarterback CJ Bailey will get the start in place of injured veteran Grayson McCall at Clemson after leading last week's comeback win over Louisiana Tech . The Wolfpack are 20.5-point underdogs. If Bailey keeps NC State in the game, it'll be a huge reason for hope. — Navarro
The Blue Devils haven't lost yet, but the only team in the league with a worse rushing offense at the moment is Florida State. Quarterback Maalik Murphy has already thrown three interceptions to eight touchdowns and Duke is averaging just 5.0 yards per play. There's plenty of room for improvement for Manny Diaz's squad. — Raynor
Tony Elliott's squad blew a 13-7 first-half lead to Maryland last week when the offense went in the tank, and the Cavaliers now head to Coastal Carolina in a game that's important not only for their season but for the ACC's reputation. Protecting the football better has to be priority No. 1 for the Cavs. They've turned it over an ACC-leading seven times in their first three games. — Navarro
The 0-3 Seminoles are a disaster. — Raynor
After getting crushed 40-6 by Ole Miss, the Demon Deacons made headlines this week by canceling next year's game with the Rebels and swapping it out for a home-and-home series with Oregon State . It was kind of a weak move by Dave Clawson's program, which is beginning to show signs it could be a while before it's competing for league titles again. — Navarro
Stanford needs a splashy win before we can move the Cardinal up in the rankings. — Raynor
Bonus question
Which current ACC coordinator — if any — is most likely to be a Power 4 head coach next year?
Navarro: I would've said Florida State offensive coordinator Alex Atkins before the start of the season, but the Seminoles, to quote Grace above, have been a "disaster." To be fair, Atkins hasn't been around for the three losses — he's serving a three-game suspension for recruiting violations — but he's still a big part of the offense and he's remained involved in game preparation during the week. I think there's a chance Louisville defensive coordinator Ron English could get a chance to be a head coach again with a great season. English coached at Eastern Michigan from 2009-13.
Raynor: I also would have said Atkins, but, well ... Instead I'll go with NC State defensive coordinator Tony Gibson. Over the last three years, the Wolfpack have had two top-20 defenses (2021, 2022) and a top-30 defense (2023). Gibson, who was previously the DC at West Virginia, also has a reputation for being a strong recruiter.
(Photo of Fernando Mendoza: Michael Chang / )
