ACC Power Rankings


As we start the new year, it's a good time to look at how the teams are stacking up so far.  Conference play gets started in just a few days, and we have seen enough games to get a feel for who's good and who's not.  So here is how I see the ACC right now:


1. North Carolina (12-2)
North Carolina has as much talent as any team in the country.  You get the feeling that they haven't quite gotten into the groove that they want to be in, but they are still blowing away people.  Their one loss to Kentucky is completely understandable.  The one to UNLV somewhat less so, but the Heels have won seven in a row.


2. Duke (12-1)
Duke has played very well against a brutal non-conference schedule.  Their one loss was a bad performance against Ohio State, but other than that the Devils have really been on a roll.  They already have wins against Michigan, Michigan State, Kansas and Washington.


3. Virginia (12-1)
After Duke and Carolina, there is a significant drop to number three.  Virginia earns this spot with their play so far this year.  They only have one loss, which wasn't a very good one, against TCU.  And they haven't played the best schedule.  But they have solid wins against Michigan and at Oregon and are the most consistent team besides the top two.


4. Virginia Tech (11-3)
The Hokies are playing better than expected so far, and their three losses are all against good teams (including #1 Syracuse).  Oklahoma State isn't a great team, but there aren't many teams in the ACC that would win in Stillwater like the Hokies just did.


5. NC State (10-4)
The Wolfpack have definitely showed a lot of promise at times, but haven't been able to close the deal in home games against Syracuse and Indiana.  Their other two losses are against Vanderbilt and at Stanford, not bad at all.  They also have a very good neutral court win against Texas.  Look out for State, which has a very favorable schedule to start - they could be 5-0 in conference.


6. Florida State (8-5)
It's tough to figure out where to put the Seminoles.  They have definitely been disappointing, with very lethargic offense at times.  They only managed 10 points in the first half at home against Princeton, a game they lost in triple OT.  Beyond that, the losses aren't bad - Harvard, Michigan State, UConn, Florida.  But something is definitely off right now.


7. Miami (8-4)
Miami is definitely better off with Reggie Johnson in the lineup, giving them a threat down low.  They don't really have any bad losses so far - losing to Ole Miss, Purdue, Memphis and West Virginia.  Miami could be a top shelf team in the ACC by the end of things, but they are still a work in progress right now.


8. Maryland (9-3)
Like Miami, the Terps benefit from a big man coming to the team partway through the year.  Alex Len will definitely help Maryland.  But beyond him and Terrell Stoglin, there isn't much.  Losses are to Illinois, Alabama and Iona.  They have also struggled to put away lesser opponents like Radford and FIU.  Maryland will struggle this year.


9. Clemson (7-6)
For me, Clemson is the biggest disappointment so far this year.  They played very poorly in Hawaii, losing to UTEP and Hawaii and needing overtime to beat Southern Illinois.  The Tigers have also lost at home to South Carolina, Coastal Carolina and College of Charleston and on the road at Arizona.  After making the tournament last year, they are nowhere close right now.


10. Georgia Tech (7-6)
Georgia Tech is in rebuilding mode in the first year under Brian Gregory.  They had a very disappointing loss at Fordham in their last game.  The Jackets have also lost to St. Joe's, LSU, Northwestern, Tulane and Mercer.  They also have a couple good wins against Georgia and VCU.  Don't expect much from Georgia Tech this year.


11. Wake Forest (9-4)
I give Wake credit - they haven't played as poorly this year as last.  But they still aren't any good.  The losses have been to Dayton, Arizona State, Richmond and Seton Hall.  They have two wins against big six conference teams (Nebraska and Texas Tech).  They also struggled to beat Yale in their last game at home.  I'd still be surprised if they win more than four conference games this year.


12. Boston College (5-8)
Boston College is unspeakably bad.  They will not get to double digit wins this year.  Here are their losses: Holy Cross, UMass, Saint Louis, New Mexico, Penn State, Boston U, Providence, Harvard.  Six of those losses are by double digits.  Enough said.