2017 ACC Football: Coastal Division Power Rankings week 12

Another week of college football, means another week of the ACC Coastal Power Rankings.

Week 12 did exactly as it promised, it snoozed.

With only one top 25 matchup and so many teams playing lesser conference opponents or FCS squads, no one in the top 12 lost.

In fact, only three of the top 25 lost and one of those was the aforementioned loser of the single top 25 matchup. So with no losses, you would think my top ten would stay the same. Think again.

Not all wins are created equal and that can be seen this week as well.

Let’s start with number ten where things do stay the same with USC holding on to that tenth spot.

The Trojans had already clinched the south, but a loss to UCLA would’ve been disastrous for the Pac-12 as much as USC’s playoff hopes.

At number nine is UCF who dropped a spot this week. I know the Knights are still undefeated but other teams look more likely to make an impact with this upcoming week than UCF does.

The Knights do get extra credit for winning despite all the rumors surrounding their coach, but still aren’t better than these next eight teams.

Moving up a spot to number eight is Ohio State. It pains me to acknowledge the Buckeyes aren’t out of the playoff hunt yet, crushing Illinois 52-14. The Buckeyes have now won two straight since the Iowa blowout, but still have to win on the road against rival Michigan in the Game.

Staying at number seven is Auburn. The Tigers remain the two-loss team in the best shape to break the top four with their crushing win over UL Monroe. Next up is Alabama.

If Auburn wins the Iron Bowl, they will jump up this list pretty quick.

That brings us to number six where we find Georgia for the second-straight week as well. I know the Bulldogs lost to Auburn, but again have one loss compared to two and are already in the SEC Championship game, while the Tigers are not.

Moving on to the top five we find Miami who drops a spot this week. I know Miami won by two scores against Virginia, but that game was closer than it appeared. Miami’s best win is against a Notre Dame squad that struggled to beat Navy and I feel like they aren’t as good as the next four.

At number four is Wisconsin, who jumps over the Hurricanes into the top four. Wisconsin now has back to back wins over ranked teams and continues to move up this list.

Their two-score win over a ranked Michigan squad looks better than the Canes over an unranked Virginia.

Staying at number three is Oklahoma. The Sooners destroyed Kansas, as all Big 12 teams have done and continue to show they have an impressive offense. That is thanks to Baker Mayfield who should win the Heisman but is, unfortunately, making headlines for his antics and not his play.

Coming in at number two is Clemson, who crushed their warmup game against the Citadel 61-3. Clemson continues to look to be in strong position for a top four spot and needs to not stumble against a competitive South Carolina squad this week.

Which leaves just the number one team which remains Alabama who steamrolled Mercer this past weekend. Alabama is not a sure thing to make the top four as they have the aforementioned road game against Auburn in the Iron Bowl this weekend.

Well with all that worked out, we move on to our real rankings.

This week, in honor of rivalry week, I went with comic book villains to round out the headings. First up is a new Coastal team for the third straight week.