Though the ACC, at least in recent years, seems to be on a downward slide in football on the national scene, the 2022 season may change the trend. After three weeks of play, the ACC still has seven schools that have yet to lose a game. All have perfect 3-0 marks.
Here are my rankings of those five programs heading into Week Four.
Clemson remains on top. The Tigers are coming off a 48-20 victory over Louisiana Tech. Clemson has a Heisman candidate in runningback, Will Shipley. He should have a big game this Saturday when the Tigers meet a Wake Forest team that gave up 333 yards on the ground to Clemson last week.
Next up for me is North Carolina State. The Wolfpack notched a quality 27-14 win at home over Texas Tech last week. NC State forced four turnovers in that contest and will need a similar effort in two weeks when they play at Clemson.
Wake Forest shows up at No. 3 for me. The Deacons struggled last week in barely beat Liberty. Quarterback Sam Hartman will need to play better this week when Wake plays Clemson.
I have the Tar Heels fourth. I doubt they will stay this high in my rankings as UNC squares off against Notre Dame this week. I just do not see how a program that barely beat App State can give the Irish a game. a bye week, which comes at a good time for them.
Florida State is also 3-0 and are fifth on my list. The Seminoles are coming off a tough 35-31 win against Louisville. The game cost FSU their starting quarterback in Jordan Travis as he fell to injury. However, Tate Rodemaker came off the bench to lead the Seminoles to the comeback victory.
Syracuse came up big at home last week, edging visiting Purdue by a 32-29 score. Dual-threat quarterback Garrett Shrader led the way for Syracuse, passing for 181 yards and three touchdowns, adding another 83 yards on the ground.
Last up on my list is Duke. The Blue Devils are still undefeated in the Mike Elko era after defeating NC A&T 49-20. Quarterback Riley Leonard was impressive, combining for four touchdowns through the air and on the ground, while only missing one pass. The defense also came up big, registering 11 tackles for loss and four sacks.
