BC Interruption's ACC Football Power Rankings: Week 3

Another week of exciting ACC action is in the books, and again we have some controversy in our power rankings. The bottom half of the conference continues to be in flux, with both Boston College and Maryland taking sizable jumps in the polls. Near the top voters started to buy into the U, with 2 voting for the Hurricanes to take the second slot. Let's look at how the polls came out, and of course leave your thoughts or your rankings in the comments.

1. Clemson Tigers

Last Week: 1
Highest Selection: 1
Lowest Selection: 1

Opponent: Bye

Prediction: Clemson took care of business last week against South Carolina State, but their season was almost changed when Tahj Boyd was injured on a goal line play. Everyone on BCI agrees so far that they are the best team in the conference, and they can rest on that 2-0 record for an extra week with a bye in Week 3.

2. Florida St. Seminoles

Last Week: 2
Highest Selection: 3
Lowest Selection: 2

Opponent: Nevada Wolf Pack

Prediction: Florida State 35, Nevada 10. A week off actual hurt the Seminoles in the BCI polls, which must have kept the recency of Miami's win over Florida fresh in their thoughts when two voters selected the Hurricanes at the second spot.

3. Miami Hurricanes

Last Week: 3
Highest Selection: 3
Lowest Selection: 2

Opponent: Bye

Prediction: Al Golden claims that the U is not back, but it certainly is close with a solid victory over Florida on Saturday. The Hurricane offense wasn't very crisp, but the defense kept a very suspect Florida offense in check, and did what they needed to do to pick up their second victory of the season. That win alone was good enough to close a bit of the gap between the Canes and Noles.

t4. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Last Week: 4
Highest: 4
Lowest: 6

Opponent: Duke Blue Devils

Prediction: Georgia Tech 32, Duke 14. Again the bye week hurt the Yellow Jackets in the eyes of the pollsters as they had an identical ranking to the Heels. This week Duke, without starting quarterback Anthony Boone, will have to battle what could be a stout Georgia Tech defense.

t4. North Carolina Tar Heels

Last Week: 4
Highest Selection: 5
Lowest Selection: 6

Opponent: Bye

Prediction: After being out muscled in the opener the Tar Heels dispatched Middle Tennessee 40-20 last weekend. With an open date this week, will Georgia Tech take over 4th again?

6. Virginia Tech Hokies

Last Week: 6
Highest Selection: 4
Lowest Selection: 6

Opponent: East Carolina Pirates

Prediction: Virginia Tech 28, East Carolina 3. After their offense struggled against Alabama, the Hokies got it clicking against WCU last weekend. This week they get Conference USA's ECU, a team that hasn't played anyone of relevance yet. Even against WCU Logan Thomas wasn't dominant, could this be the week that he finally cranks it up?

7. Boston College Eagles

Last Week: 9
Highest: 7
Lowest: 9

Opponent: USC Trojans

Prediction: USC 20, Boston College 17. The Eagles jumped up a whole slot in our power poll after dispatching Wake Forest with a convincing 24-10 victory on Friday night. Saturday afternoon they travel to LA, to face the Trojans who are complete disaster right now. Could BC win this game? I hope so, but I still have a touch of cynicism left, and I think that USC's defense will stifle the Eagles offense. But it will still be a moral victory for the Eagles. (I hate myself for picking the Trojans.

8. N.C. State Wolfpack

Last Week: 7
Highest: 7
Lowest: 12

Opponent: Bye

Prediction: N.C. State was a field goal away from losing to an FCS team on Saturday against Richmond. The voters clearly took that into account as they slipped two spots.

9. Maryland Terrapins

Last Week: 12
Highest: 7
Lowest: 14

Opponent: Connecticut Huskies

Prediction: Maryland 42, Connecticut 10. After starting in the season in the basement due to some good ole Terp haterade, Maryland has steadily earned the trust of our voters, climbing up rapidly. They would be even higher, if someone didn't have a vendetta against them and kept voting them last. They get old man Paul Pasqualoni and the trainwreck Huskies this week, and 3-0 shouldn't be a problem for Terps. B1G if true.

10.  Virginia Cavaliers

Last Week: 8
Highest: 8
Lowest: 12

Opponent: Bye

Prediction: After getting dismantled by Oregon last week (that first touchdown by Marcus Mariotta was absurd), the Hoos get a week to lick their wounds and get ready for an easy matchup against VMI in Week 4.

11. Duke Blue Devils

Last Week:10
Highest: 7
Lowest: 12

Opponent: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Prediction: Georgia Tech, 32 Duke 14. Losing your starting quarterback is painful, but Brandon Connette did an admirable job against Memphis. Duke won by two touchdowns, but it was against Memphis, and GT is no Memphis.

12. Pittsburgh Panthers

Last Week: 13
Highest: 8
Lowest: 13

Opponent: New Mexico Lobos

Prediction: Pitt 13, New Mexico 10. God, this game is going to be rough to watch. I expect both offenses to struggle, and Pitt to pull away on a field goal. Just enough to keep them lingering near the basement of our power rankings.

13. Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Last Week: 11
Highest: 9
Lowest: 13

Opponent: ULM Warhawks

Prediction: Wake Forest 24, Louisiana-Monroe 7. Good lord Wake's option offense was atrocious. Dropped options, bad reads, it was just a mess and Boston College capitalized and dominated against it. I don't expect the Deacons to make huge strides in terms of offensive improvement against ULM, but they are certainly better than the War Hawks and will win.

14. Syracuse Orange

Last Week: 14
Highest: 12
Lowest: 14

Opponent: Wagner Seahawks

Prediction: Syracuse, 30 Wagner 10. Before Troy Nunes Is A Magician writes another column bashing our power rankings, I want to give Syracuse a bit of credit. By far they have played the toughest schedule in the conference through two weeks with games against Penn State and Northwestern. Should they be last? That is debatable. A good win this weekend against Wagner should help their cause.