By Will Vandervort.
Where does 17th-ranked Clemson stand in the ACC power rankings heading into Saturday’s key ACC showdown with No. 22 Georgia Tech? The Clemson Insider breaks down the ACC and more as the league gets ready for Week 12.
1. Florida State (9-0, 6-0 ACC), last week No. 1: Florida State wide receiver Rashad Greene moved into fourth place on the ACC’s all-time receiving as he has 3,454 yards. He had 136 yards in the Seminoles’ 34-20 win over Virginia. Greene is also third in all-time receptions with 242. FSU ranks No. 3 in this week’s College Football Playoff Rankings. Florida State visits Miami this Saturday. The Seminoles have won 25 straight games overall and 21 straight ACC games.
2. Clemson (7-2, 6-1 ACC), last week No. 2: The Tigers held Wake Forest to 119 total yards and 32 yards from the second quarter on. The Deacons ran the ball for only 7 yards all night. In ACC games, Clemson is allowing just 69 rushing yards a game and 2.0 yards per carry. ACC foes are only averaging 3.9 yards per play. The Tigers will visit No. 22 Georgia Tech on Saturday. The Yellow Jackets lead the ACC in rushing and are averaging 348.9 yards per game against ACC foes.
3. Duke (8-1, 4-1 ACC), last week No. 3: Duke kicker Ross Martin is one of just three kickers nationwide who are perfect in their field goal attempts with a minimum of one per game. Martin has made all 13 of his attempts. He ranks seventh nationally among all active players in career field goals. Duke will host Virginia Tech on Saturday.
4. Louisville (7-3, 5-3 ACC), last week No. 4: Safety Gerod Holliman leads the nation in pass interceptions with 13 in 10 games, an average of 1.3 per game. His total of 13 interceptions already ties the single-season record in an ACC season. He had three interceptions in Louisville’s win over Boston College last week. The Cardinals are off this week and play at Notre Dame a week from Saturday.
5. Georgia Tech (8-2, 5-2 ACC), last week No. 5: The Yellow Jackets rushed for 479 yards in last week’s win at NC State. It is the fourth-best performance in an ACC game and the seventh best by an ACC team all-time. The Jackets will host No. 17 Clemson on Saturday (noon, ESPN). Running back Synjyn Days is averaging 139.3 yards per game from his B-back position the last three games. He has recorded three straight 100-yard games on the ground, while topping 150 yards in each of the last two games.
6. Miami (6-3, 3-2 ACC), last week No. 6: Miami running back Duke Johnson is averaging 7.68 yards per carry, which ranks fourth among all players nationally. The Hurricanes will host No. 3 Florida State on Saturday. The Seminoles are allowing 135.7 yards per game on the ground this year.
7. Boston College (6-4, 3-4 ACC), last week No. 7: Quarterback Tyler Murphy ranks third in the ACC in rushing and now has 1,006 yards this season, becoming the first quarterback in the conference to rush for at least 1,000 yards in a season since Josh Nesbitt did it for Georgia Tech in 2009. The Eagles are off this week and will host Florida State a week from Saturday.
8. North Carolina (4-5, 2-3 ACC), last week No. 8: Quarterback Marquise Williams is second in the ACC in both passing yards (317.5) and total offense (303.0) in the ACC. The Tar Heels host Pittsburgh on Saturday as the two teams try to position themselves into bowl contention with three weeks left in the regular season.
9. Pitt (4-5, 2-3 ACC), last week No. 10: Running back James Conner is making headlines as the nation’s fourth leading runner with 1,342 yards in just nine games. Wide receiver Tyler Boyd is second in the ACC in receiving yards per game (87.9) and is fourth in receptions per game (5.8). Pitts travels to UNC this Saturday.
10. Virginia (4-6, 2-4 ACC), last week No. 9: The Cavaliers have to win their last two games to become bowl eligible. They will host Miami on Nov. 22 and then close the regular season at Virginia Tech on Nov. 29.
11. Virginia Tech (4-5, 2-3 ACC), last week No. 11: I know this sounds surprising, but quarterback Michael Brewer has not thrown an interception in three straight games – a streak that started at North Carolina. He has thrown 118 consecutive passes without an interception. He threw 11 interceptions in the first six games of the season. The Hokies play at No. 21 Duke on Saturday.
12. NC State (5-5, 1-5 ACC), last week No. 13: NC State has an opportunity to become bowl eligible on Saturday when it hosts Wake Forest. If the Wolfpack do, they will become the eighth ACC team to become bowl eligible this season. Wake Forest and Syracuse are the only two teams eliminated from bowl consideration at this point.
13. Syracuse (3-7, 1-5 ACC), last week No. 12: The Orange finally get a week off, again, and will close the season at Pittsburgh (Nov. 22) and at Boston College (Nov. 29).
14. Wake Forest (2-7, 0-5 ACC), last week No. 14: The Demon Deacons are still trying to find themselves on offense. They had just 119 yards against Clemson last week and now rank last nationally in total offense (203 yds) and rushing offense (31.4 yds). Wake closes the season at NC State on Saturday, hosting Virginia Tech on the Nov. 22 and then on the road at Duke to close the season on Nov. 29.