CATS

The ACC in SP+, Week 4: Chaos! Anarchy! Dogs and cats living together! Mass hysteria!

Another week in the books, and more evidence that Clemson’s problems on the offensive side of the ball are not going anywhere. The Tigers look plenty susceptible to more upset losses down the road, which is to say that the ACC is as wide open as it has been in quite a while.

While the Tigers go through their existential crisis, somebody else has an opportunity to steal their crown for at least one season. Updated SP+ below.

ACC Standings by SP+

Team Wk 4 SP+ (Rk) Rank Change Offense Rank Defense Rank
Team Wk 4 SP+ (Rk) Rank Change Offense Rank Defense Rank
Clemson 20.8 (7) -2 34 2
UNC 14.8 (18) -7 6 62
Pitt 14.0 (21) 17 23 29
Miami 10.6 (31) -6 35 35
BC 10.2 (34) 16 13 75
Virginia Tech 8.7 (41) -4 37 45
NC State 8.6 (42) -6 74 15
Wake Forest 6.6 (54) 13 38 60
Virginia 5.2 (58) -3 27 81
Georgia Tech 3.1 (62) 10 77 42
Louisville 2.1 (69) -12 29 99
Syracuse 2.1 (70) 10 85 43
FSU 1.1 (73) -4 61 83
Duke -0.4 (78) 11 62 89

The conference actually made it through a weekend without any non-conference hiccups; let’s have a round of applause for everyone! Syracuse carried the torch with a 24-21 win over Liberty, and quietly now the Orange have not been too bad. At 3-1 overall, they’ve at least got a shot at getting back to bowl eligibility, which would be big for Dino Babers.

Elsewhere, Duke beat Kansas by 19, Boston College topped Missouri in overtime, Pitt and Miami clobbered cupcakes, and Virginia Tech survived a poor performance against Richmond.

But the big stories were in league play, where NC State upended Clemson and Georgia Tech put a 23-point hurtin’ on North Carolina. (Thanks, Georgia Tech!) Wake Forest was impressive in beating UVA by 20, while Louisville kept FSU winless and miserable.

SP+ has yet to come around on the Deacs, who feel like as big a threat to win the Atlantic as NC State or Boston College. We’ll learn more this weekend when Wake plays Louisville and BC visits Clemson. I suspect the Eagles will not enjoy playing an angry Clemson team.

One last note: this is the first time I can remember seeing every ACC team in the top 80. If the league is crazier than usual this season, it’s not just because Clemson is backing up, but also because the bottom of the league has gotten better. Let zaniness reign!

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