Week 6 only made one thing clearer in the ACC: Miami is pulling away, and the rest of the league keeps tripping over itself.
That was especially evident in a weekend that sent Florida State sliding again. Mike Norvell had a chance to stack back-to-back wins before the Seminoles meet Miami, but the trip to an injury-riddled Louisville team went sideways fast. Florida State had looked more put together in Week 5 against Virginia, yet the follow-up was a flat showing that did nothing to improve confidence in where this season is headed.
Here’s how the ACC stacks up after another wild round of games:
- Miami Hurricanes (5-0) - Last Week: 1
Nobody in the conference has matched Miami’s consistency. The Hurricanes are 5-0 and look dominant in every phase, making them the clear team to beat in the ACC right now.
- Wake Forest Demon Deacons (5-1) - Last Week: 3
Wake Forest continues to climb, and quarterback Gio Lopez has been a big reason why. The one blemish is already on the board in a loss to Miami, which leaves the question of whether the Demon Deacons can still catch the Hurricanes.
- Pittsburgh Panthers (5-1) - Last Week: 4
Pittsburgh saw its perfect season disappear with the loss to UNC, and that defeat also added more noise to an already shaky conference race. Without a true starting quarterback in place, the Panthers do not look like a team that can reel in Miami.
- Virginia Tech Hokies (4-2) - Last Week: 5
Virginia Tech has now dropped two straight ACC games, and that is not the kind of finish James Franklin had in mind for the first half of the season. Even so, Ethan Grunkemeyer gives the Hokies a steady presence at quarterback, and an 8-4 finish is still very much in play.
- Duke Blue Devils (4-1) - Last Week: 2
Duke came into last week sitting second in the rankings, but the loss to Georgia Tech may have cracked the illusion a bit. That result raised real questions about where the Blue Devils stand right now.
- SMU Mustangs (4-1) - Last Week: 6
SMU had the week off, so there was no reason to move the Mustangs. The offense remains dangerous, but the resume still needs a convincing win before the Mustangs climb much higher.
- Clemson Tigers (3-2) - Last Week: 7
Clemson’s season has been one of the league’s stranger storylines. After opening with a 51-10 loss to LSU, the Tigers bounced back with three straight wins, but both of their ranked games have ended in lopsided losses by a combined 69 points. Even so, Florida State, Syracuse, and Georgia Tech are still ahead on the schedule, and eight wins is still possible.
- Virginia Cavaliers (4-2) - Last Week: 10
Virginia’s loss to Florida State hurts more after Louisville went out and handled the Seminoles in Week 6. The Cavaliers still have talent, but after what happened in Tallahassee, they no longer look like a team that scares opponents.
- Louisville Cardinals (3-3) - Last Week: 11
Louisville used the Florida State win to remind the league that its offense can do damage no matter who is running it. Scoring 44 against the Seminoles was no accident, and with Syracuse, Stanford, and Georgia Tech still ahead, the Cardinals could be right back in the conversation soon.
- California Golden Bears (3-3) - Last Week: 12
The losses to UCLA and UNLV have already been costly after all the preseason hype around Cal, but Week 6 offered a chance to reset. A win over Wake Forest would go a long way toward changing the mood around the Golden Bears.
- North Carolina Tar Heels (3-2) - Last Week: 13
North Carolina remains tough to pin down from week to week, but the defense has flashed real ability. If the Tar Heels can clean up the offense, they could become much more than a dark horse in the ACC picture.
- Florida State Seminoles (3-3) - Last Week: 8
Florida State looked like it had turned a corner against Virginia, but that momentum vanished in a rough loss to Louisville. Norvell called the performance from the staff and players "not good enough", and the bigger issue is whether this team can ever become a legitimate threat again under him.
The loss looks even worse when you consider Louisville’s injury situation and the number of Cardinals players grinding through issues just to stay on the field. Florida State has its own depth concerns, but with its starters mostly healthy, the Seminoles had little excuse for that kind of showing.
At this point, confidence in Florida State is hard to find. Norvell has had trouble winning on the road, the team changes from week to week, and whatever looming changes are hanging over the program may only be making things harder.
- NC State Wolfpack (3-3) - Last Week: 9
NC State has been all over the place, looking sharp in some moments and then falling apart in others. The loss to Wake Forest is a tough one to absorb, though the rest of the schedule aside from Duke is manageable.
- Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (2-3) - Last Week: 17
Georgia Tech’s upset of Duke only deepened the mystery around this team. The question now is simple: was that the start of something, or just a one-game burst?
- Boston College Eagles (2-3) - Last Week: 16
Boston College has struggled badly on offense, posting the ACC’s second-worst scoring output and sitting just one point ahead of Stanford. Take Stanford and Syracuse out of the equation, and Boston College would be at the bottom by a wide margin.
- Syracuse Orange (2-3) - Last Week: 14
Syracuse is still searching for answers at quarterback, and that lack of clarity keeps dragging the Orange down. That problem was already there last season, and it remains unresolved.
- Stanford Cardinal (2-4) - Last Week: 15
Stanford’s offense has had moments, but the defense has been a disaster. The Cardinal have allowed 249 points this season, which is 83 more than the next closest team, NC State.
In Other News...
Florida State Fans Are Turning On Mike Norvell Fast
Florida States loss to Louisville left the Seminoles sitting at 3-3, and the frustration around Tallahassee is starting to spill over fast. Mike Norvell had to answer for a rough 44-20 defeat, and he acknowledged the teams poor performance and his own responsibility afterward, a familiar kind of postgame accountability that does little to calm a fan base expecting more from this season.
The bigger issue now is the temperature of the conversation around the program. Supporters have made their dissatisfaction with Norvell clear, and some are already wondering whether Deion Sanders could eventually become a name to watch if things keep sliding. For now, though, no coaching change has been made, which leaves Florida State in an uneasy spot heading into the next stretch. [Read more 🡒]
Florida's Poll Collapse Is Another Reminder For Florida State Fans
Georgias climb to No. 1 after beating Alabama sent another week of chaos through the AP Top 25, and its the kind of shake-up Florida State fans know all too well by now. Texas slipped six spots to No. 7 after losing to Oklahoma, Oregon dropped out of the rankings for the first time in four years, and the rest of the poll shifted with the usual kind of October volatility that makes every result feel magnified.
For Seminoles fans, the larger point is less about the teams at the top and more about how quickly a season can turn on one afternoon. Notre Dame, Miami and Indiana all moved as the voters reacted to recent outcomes, another reminder that reputation only lasts so long when the games start piling up. It leaves Florida State watching a ranking landscape that keeps changing, and wondering how fast the next reset might come. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Norvells Gamble Sparked An FSU Collapse Fans Wont Ignore
The turning point came with Florida State staring at a fourth-and-goal from the 2 against Louisville, a spot where a routine field goal would have still kept the Seminoles in control. Instead, the offense stayed aggressive and came away empty, handing Louisville the ball deep in its own end and leaving a result that quickly spiraled into something far worse than a single missed opportunity.
From there, the game flipped in a way Florida State fans will not ignore soon. Louisville ripped off 35 unanswered points and turned a two-touchdown deficit into a commanding lead, making the fourth-down decision loom even larger in hindsight. The bigger question now is not just why the Seminoles passed on the points, but whether the play call matched the options they had on the field. [Read more 🡒]