ACC power rankings: Miami up as Florida State falls - again - after Week 1

The ACC began the 2024 college football season looking to fortify its bona fides on the gridiron one year after its undefeated champion was left out of the College Football Playoff and as its two best programs over the past 20 years are actively suing the conference.

That quest is off to a less-than-ideal start.

Florida State, the league’s lone team in the top 10 of the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll, already has two losses. Clemson, the No. 2 team in the conference preseason poll, was drubbed by Georgia in Week 1. Virginia Tech, a popular sleeper pick, fell to perennial SEC doormat Vanderbilt.

REQUIRED READING: College football Week 1 winners and losers: Georgia dominates Clemson and Florida flops

The first full week of the season wasn’t a total loss for the ACC, though. Here are power rankings of the ACC's football teams after Week 1 of the 2024 season:

ACC football power rankings after Week 1 of the 2024 season

1. Miami (1-0)

• Last week: 3

• This week: vs. Florida A&M

It’s quite possible Florida’s just a bad team overseen by a lame-duck coach, but after a 24-point win against the Gators in The Swamp, the offseason hype around the Hurricanes, and especially quarterback Cam Ward, looks justified.

REQUIRED READING: QB Cam Ward takes shot at Florida fans after Miami dominates Gators

2. Clemson (0-1)

• Last week: 1

• This week: vs. Appalachian State

The good news? Georgia has made a lot of teams look incompetent over the years and will do the same in 2024. The bad news? Even against an elite defense, the Tigers still looked lost offensively in their 34-3 loss.

3. Louisville (1-0)

• Last week: 4

• This week: vs. Jacksonville State

The Cardinals put up 571 yards against Austin Peay in a 62-0 win that was a touchdown and an extra point away from an even nicer result. Freshman running back Isaac Brown went for 123 yards on only five carries.

4. NC State (1-0)

• Last week: 5

• This week: vs. No. 15 Tennessee (Charlotte, N.C.)

The Wolfpack actually trailed FCS Western Carolina by four early in the fourth quarter before scoring 21 unanswered. A much tougher test awaits this week with Nico Iamaleava and the Vols.

REQUIRED READING: College Football Misery Index: Florida football program's problems go beyond Billy Napier

5. Georgia Tech (2-0)

• Last week: 6

• This week: at Syracuse

The Yellow Jackets showed no signs of jetlag after their win against Florida State in Ireland, beating Georgia State by 23 in the first-ever meeting between two schools separated by only about two miles.

6. Boston College (1-0)

• Last week: 12

• This week: vs. Duquesne

The Eagles started off Bill O'Brien's tenure as emphatically as they could have, dominating Florida State. In the win, quarterback Thomas Castellanos, playing behind a stout offensive line, showed why he's one of the most exciting players in the country.

7. Florida State (0-2)

• Last week: 2

• This week: vs. Memphis

It's quite possible that Florida State is a talented team that still has plenty of time to turn its season around after losing to two teams wildly undervalued in the ACC preseason poll. It's perhaps just as likely, though, that they inadequately restocked a roster that lost 10 players to the NFL and are in for a long, long season.

8. North Carolina (1-0)

• Last week: 8

• This week: vs. Charlotte

A missed field goal as time expired allowed the Tar Heels to escape with a win at Minnesota, but they lost something bigger in the process: quarterback Max Johnson, to a season-ending broken leg.

9. SMU (2-0)

• Last week: 9

• This week: vs. BYU

The Mustangs racked up 595 yards of total offense against Houston Christian and alleviated some of the doubts from their unexpectedly close win the previous week at Nevada.

10. Duke (1-0)

• Last week: 10

• This week: at Northwestern

The Blue Devils looked the part of a team led by an excellent defensive coach like Manny Diaz, giving up just 140 total yards in a win against Elon.

11. Pitt (1-0)

• Last week: 11

• This week: at Cincinnati

The combination of new offensive coordinator Kade Bell and new quarterback Eli Holstein was dynamic against Kent State, giving the Panthers their most points against an FBS foe since 2016.

12. Virginia Tech (0-1)

• Last week: 7

• This week: vs. Marshall

It’s quite possible that Vanderbilt, with impactful newcomers like quarterback Diego Pavia, is much improved. For now, though, the Hokies just suffered a loss to a program with nine total wins the previous four seasons.

REQUIRED READING: Four Downs and a Bracket: Clemson not as far from College Football Playoff as you think

13. Syracuse (1-0)

• Last week: 13

• This week: vs. Georgia Tech

Kyle McCord, the Orange’s big offseason acquisition, had an emphatic debut, throwing for a career-high 354 yards and four touchdowns in a win against Ohio.

14. Cal (1-0)

• Last week: 14

• This week: at Auburn

Though star running back Jadyn Ott was limited to 49 rushing yards on 14 carries, the Golden Bears rebounded from a slow start by scoring 24 unanswered to beat UC Davis.

15. Virginia (1-0)

• Last week: 16

• This week: at Wake Forest

After back-to-back three-win seasons, the Cavaliers offered hope for better days in 2024 by thumping a Richmond team that was No. 11 in the FCS preseason poll.

16. Wake Forest (1-0)

• Last week: 15

• This week: vs. Virginia

The Demon Deacons struggled early with FCS North Carolina A&T, but outscored their opponent 28-3 in the second half for a comfortable 45-13 win.

17. Stanford (0-1)

• Last week: 17

• This week: vs. Cal Poly

The Cardinal still looks like a work in progress in its second year under coach Troy Taylor, managing just 286 total yards and 3.9 yards per play in a 24-17 home loss to TCU.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: ACC power rankings: Florida State falls again after Week 1