Ranking the ACC after Week 9 of College Football action

This was a wild week in the ACC. North Carolina went on the road to Blacksburg and pulled off a stunning upset over Virginia Tech.

Wake Forest nearly pulled off a stunning upset of their own over Miami, and Georgia Tech went on the road to SEC country to play Vanderbilt, and dropped 56 points on the Commodores.

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1) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (8-1, 5-1) - Last Week 1

The Yellow Jackets offense is starting to border on unstoppable. Vanderbilt shouldn't be confused with any of the SEC's best teams, but they do have credible defense, one that was ranked 34th in the country. Vandy only was giving up only 320 yards and 17 pts a game. Georgia Tech had a whopping 597 yards of total offense, 404 on the ground, and those 56 points we already mentioned. Jonathan Dwyer had 186 rushing.

Now about that defense that surrendered nearly 400 yards and 31 points, to a poor Vandy offense. Upcoming opponents Wake Forest and Duke have better quarterbacks and better offenses. The Jackets need to clean it up on that side of the ball.

2) Clemson Tigers (5-3, 3-2) - Last Week 3

The Tigers have now won 3 games in row, scoring 127 points. The earlier offensive troubles appear a thing of the past. Coastal Carolina didn't provide much opposition, but Clemson looked sharp in a non-conference tune up before the showdown with Florida State.

Clemson isn't as explosive as Georgia Tech on offense, but is there any team playing better on both sides of the ball at the moment in the ACC? Next week C.J. Spiller needs to have huge game if he wants to keep his remote Heisman chances alive.

3) Miami Hurricanes (6-2, 3-2) - Last Week 4

The Hurricanes were outplayed by Wake Forest for approximately 59 minutes Saturday, but they found a way to survive and escape Winston Salem with a 28-27 victory. The Canes seemed to be suffering a hangover from the previous week's loss to Clemson, and gave up 555 yards of offense to the Deacs. Jacory Harris threw two fourth quarter touchdowns to rally Miami for the win. The Canes must keep watching, waiting and hoping for a Georgia Tech loss, to get back in the Coastal race. Next week is Virginia for the Canes.

4) Boston College Eagles (6-3, 3-2) - Last Week 5

Team turmoil just keeps trucking along. There were Off-season injuries, and transfers. This week there a couple of more transfers. The Eagles had to play a dangerous Central Michigan team, and won easily 31-10. Running back Montel Harris has been the ACC's best-kept secret this season. He had another solid game finishing with 136 yards on the ground. Like Miami, BC needs to keep winning, and hoping. In their case, Boston College needs a Clemson loss to have a shot at the Atlantic division title. A Bye week is up for BC, where I'm sure they'll be rooting for Florida State next Saturday.

5) Virginia Tech Hokies (5-3, 3-2) - Last Week 2

What was that Thursday night? That was one of the most inexplicable losses of the ACC season, the Hokies losing to a previously winless in the ACC North Carolina team. Frank Beamer and Virginia Tech spent a lot of time complaining about Georgia Tech's blocking schemes, and just didn't look ready to play the resilient Heels. Beamer and Bud Foster might want to figure out why their once vaunted defense has given up over 450 rushing yards in their last 2 games. The Hokies have a soft finish to the schedule and 10-win season is still possible, but any chance of an ACC Championship is virtually gone.

6) Florida State Seminoles (4-4, 2-3) - Last Week 6

The Florida State offense is very good. It had 45 points and 555 total yards against the NC State Wolfpack. The Florida State defense is very bad. It gave up 42 points and 538 total yards. The Noles won and that's what counts. For Florida State it is what it is. They will have to outscore opponents, because the defense can't stop anyone. If they win at Clemson next week, they still have a shot at the Atlantic Division title, but will need Boston College to lose another ACC game.

7) Duke Blue Devils (5-3, 3-1) - Last Week 7

Duke went on the road and won at Virginia 28-17. They've won 3 games in row, and are 2 games away from getting bowl eligible. This is a good team that can throw the ball as well as team in the ACC. The Blue Devils have what could be a very entertaining matchup with the North Carolina Tar Heels next week. The winner of that can start thinking about where they want to spend the Holidays. If Duke wins, do they dare set their sights higher than just a bowl with Georgia Tech after the Heels? They will be 4-1 in the ACC with a victory over UNC.

8) North Carolina Tar Heels (5-3, 1-3) - Last Week 9

I didn't think North Carolina had any chance to beat Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. Boy was I wrong. The Tar Heels went right into the lion's den and came out with a 20-17 victory, where literally they were more physical than the Hokies. Quarterback T.J. Yates has been inconsistent at best this season played an efficient game and threw 2 touchdowns. They won't win the ACC barring a minor miracle, but the Tar Heels may have salvaged their season. The game with Duke should be a really good one.

9) Virginia Cavaliers (3-5, 2-2) - Last Week 9

The Cavs had a nice little 3 game winning streak that came to an end last week against Georgia Tech. Now that the Cavs have now lost to Duke to drop to 3-5, the fire Al Groh calls can start again. With Miami, Boston College, Clemson, and Virginia Tech left on the schedule, the Cavaliers will have a very difficult time getting that 6th win they need to get bowl eligible. It's time that for this program to move forward, a new coach is needed.

10) Wake Forest Demon Deacons (4-5, 2-3) - Last Week 10

The Deacs nearly defeated the Miami Hurricanes dropping a 28-27 decision. Wake really had no business losing the game. They were the better team for nearly the entire contest. In the end though it was just another close loss for the Deacs. They've now lost 4 games by 3 points or less. The status of quarterback Riley Skinner is unknown. He had a great game throwing for 349 yards, but left the game late with an apparent concussion. If he plays next week Wake Forest can take advantage of a Georgia Tech defense that has had trouble teams that run a lot of mis-direction plays. The Deacs are good enough to throw a scare in the Jackets. They'll need Skinner to do it.

11) North Carolina State Wolfpack (3-5, 0-4) - Last Week 11

Quarterback Russel Wilson threw 5 touchdowns and had 349 yards passing. The Wolfpack still lost because their defense is simply horrendous. That's five straight games that NC State has given up more than 30 points. They are the only winless team in the ACC, and they don't seem to be improving. Tom O' Brien would be one my 3 finalists for the worst coaching job this season in the ACC. Ralph Friedgen of Maryland and Al Groh of Virginia would be other 2.

12) Maryland Terrapins (2-6, 1-3) - Last Week 12

The Terps didn't lose this week. That's the good news. The loser of next week's game with NC State will put a stranglehold on the bottom position on this list.