Entering the season, Louisville looked like a team that could not only contend for the ACC Championship Game but was also trending as a dark-horse pick to make the College Football Playoffs. Jeff Brohm secured a top-five transfer portal class and brought back notable starters, including preseason All-American Isaac Brown.
Louisville football vs Florida State early odds and a prediction
However, things just haven’t gone to plan. Louisville just suffered its second straight loss and its third loss in five weeks. Now, rather than looking like an ACC contender, Louisville is trending in the wrong direction in our power rankings. The 'Cardinals' three losses total a combined nine points, with each loss by three.
Brohm has a lot to fix, especially on defense, and Louisville falling into the double digits in our ACC power rankings proves it. So, with Week 6 almost here, let’s break down our ACC power rankings.
ACC Power Rankings
1. Miami Hurricanes
2. SMU Mustangs
3. Duke Blue Devils
4. Wake Forest Demon Deacons
5. Pittsburgh Panthers
6. Virginia Tech Hokies
7. Florida State Seminoles
8. Virginia Cavaliers
9. Clemson Tigers
10. North Carolina State Wolfpack
11. Louisville Cardinals
12. North Carolina Tar Heels
13. Syracuse Orange
14. Boston College Eagles
15. California Golden Bears
16. Stanford Cardinal
17. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
ACC Power Rankings breakdown
The Cardinals plummet again after another close loss, dropping to No. 11 in our power rankings. As for other notable movement in these power rankings, Florida State surges after their dominant win over Virginia, moving them from No. 16 all the way to No. 7.
As for the rest of the group, Miami proved this league is theirs after they dominated Clemson in Death Valley, 41-13. Friday night was a battle between two undefeated teams, and Pitt barely beat Virginia Tech after the Hokies missed the game-winning field goal. The Panthers would be in our top three, but with starting quarterback Mason Heintschel suffering a season-ending injury, they move to No. 5.
As for the bottom teams, Stanford just lost 57-3 to Wake Forest, which is why the Demon Deacons keep impressing us and moving up in these rankings, while the Cardinal keep falling. Stanford was able to beat Georgia Tech earlier this year, which is why the Yellow Jackets remain No. 17, and Stanford is No. 16. As for Cal, they are coming off a loss to UNLV, while Boston College lost by nine and hung around with SMU.
After five weeks of football, Miami is the clear top team in the conference, and now it is trying to figure out who can challenge the Canes. Wake Forest looks like a contender, but ACC fans should also watch the Duke Blue Devils, who are quietly sitting at 4-0.
The Cardinals face Florida State this Friday night at L&N Stadium. Louisville will look to improve to 3-3, while the Seminoles will look to build on their dominant 38-7 win over Virginia. Louisville and Florida State kick off at 7 p.m. local time.
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