Football season has finally arrived. As we enter the 2018 season, Clemson and Florida State have accounted for the last seven ACC championships. Will that change this year? Probably not, but it will still be a very interesting year with questions to be answered that will shape the future of the conference.
Here are the ACC power rankings to start the season:
1. Clemson
The Tigers are hosting the most fascinating quarterback competition in the country, except for maybe Georgia. Will Dabo Swinney stick with senior Kelly Bryant or hand the reins to the super talented freshman, Trevor Lawrence? Lawrence gives the team a higher ceiling, but most agree Clemson is already the best in the country, so is it worth the risk of playing a true freshman who is an unknown quantity? Clemson is so good, it probably won’t matter until the College Football Playoff.
2. Miami
The Hurricanes hid a lot of weaknesses by forcing the third-most turnovers in the country last year. When they didn’t force turnovers and weren’t playing in teams in the Coastal Division, the ‘Canes found it tougher to win games. However, Mark Richt is a really good coach, and it’s only his third year in South Florida. The Hurricanes will only continue to get better.
3. NC State
The Pack was the second-best team in the ACC last year, but didn’t play in the Coastal, so it wasn’t recognized as such in terms of record. There’s no doubt the draft took a lot from Dave Doeren’s group, but the offense should be the best in the conference. Can the Wolfpack stick around in the upper echelon in the ACC? That’s the big question that needs to be answered this year.
4. Florida State
Is Willie Taggart the guy to get the Seminoles back in direct competition with Clemson as the class of the ACC and perennial playoff contender? The problem is Taggart hasn’t been at a job for more than four years, so he doesn’t have a track record of building programs. Even if he turns out to be that guy, it likely won’t happen in year one. Sophomore running back Cam Akers is a future, if not current, star.
5. Virginia Tech
Head coach Justin Fuente and Virginia Tech had a surprisingly tumultuous offseason, but they can easily put that behind them when they bring the Hokies to Tallahassee in week one. Some other rosters are better than Virginia Tech, but this group is stronger because of a known quantity in quarterback Josh Jackson, and an easier schedule by playing in the Coastal Division.
6. Boston College
The Eagles are the extremely popular dark horse pick, but they have an unknown at quarterback, although sophomore Anthony Brown showed flashes before an injury ended his first year. Fellow sophomore running back A.J. Dillon is likely the best player in the ACC. The Eagles are good, especially if Brown improves, but the second half of the schedule is an absolute gauntlet.
7. Georgia Tech
The Yellow Jackets were promising last year but ended up having a letdown, mostly because they had a very tough nonconference schedule and had a game cancelled. Having Clemson as the crossover game is definitely not fun, but they’ll throw fits at the Tigers, especially before Clemson resolves its quarterback issue. Head coach Paul Johnson hasn’t led the Jackets to the ACC Championship game since 2014, and it’s only getting tougher as Miami gets better.
8. Wake Forest
The Deacons had an underappreciated year last year, but quarterback John Wolford is gone. Just like the Eagles, Wake Forest has questions at quarterback, although the Deacs don’t have a returning player who has played well. Kendall Hinton was the presumed answer, but he got suspended for the first three games. Dave Clawson is an up-and-coming star in the coaching world, and the Demon Deacons won’t be able to hold on to him for too much longer.
9. Louisville
Nobody has bigger shoes to fill than Jawon Pass, who is replacing Lamar Jackson as Louisville’s quarterback. The Cardinals weren’t very good last year, but Jackson was incredible. Head coach Bobby Petrino is 34-18 at Louisville, so odds are he figures out a way to get his team to a bowl game. For that to happen, the rest of the team will have to be much better.
Teams five through nine are really tightly bunched and could finish in any order. After that, there’s a noticeable drop off. Duke has the advantage because it can have the most faith in quarterback Daniel Jones, who’s in his third year as a starter. The schedule is a little tougher than usual, but head coach David Cutcliffe has gotten the Devils to bowl games in five of the last six years.
Orange quarterback Eric Dungey is the most underrated player in the ACC. He lost his two best receivers and struggles with injuries, but if he stays healthy, Syracuse will make a bowl. That’s a big if, though, and if he doesn’t, it could be a long year in upstate New York.
12. North Carolina
The Tar Heels weren’t as bad last year as their record indicated, but they still probably weren’t a bowl team. They could certainly make a bowl because there’s so many winnable games in the Coastal. Head coach Larry Fedora’s group will be in a lot of close games, but there shouldn’t be much faith in quarterback Nathan Elliott.
Pat Narduzzi seemed like a really good hire at the time, but the Panthers haven’t gotten much better. Credit to him for challenging his team in the nonconference slate, because that’s not something many teams are willing to do. The Panthers have a slim margin for error when it comes to making a bowl.
Head coach Bronco Mendenhall said his team has 27 ACC-caliber players, and that’s not exactly what you want to hear from your coach, especially one in his third year. He’s 8-17 so far, although he did make a bowl game last year. It will be an uphill battle to reach postseason play again.
