2017 ACC Football: Coastal Division power rankings Week 13
Cry on the Shoulder of the Road
It is 1,175 miles from Pittsburgh to Miami and I am sure the Hurricanes stopped a couple of times along the way to cry over their loss to the Panthers (yes, I know they flew, but this is more dramatic).
This was the first time Miami had lost this season and it also ended a 15-game winning streak, that was the longest in the nation before the defeat. The loss also continued a trend of Miami failing to show up in games against lesser teams as Pitt was a 4-7 squad.
Miami should cry over the loss to as they only had 7 points through most of the game, a late touchdown with 38 seconds left made the game closer than it was, and saw the Canes average a measly two yards per carry on the game.
Travis Homer rushed the ball seven times for 12 yards, a season low, while Malik Rosier completed 44.1 percent of his passes for 187 yards, his second lowest total of the season.
Additionally, Miami was only able to convert four of their 15 third down opportunities and had just 14 total first downs on the game.
The only positive was their defense which did force two more turnovers and a sack. The defense finished the regular season with 39 sacks and 29 turnovers, both of which were top ten in the nation.
Miami will not have a lot of time to cry as they head to Charlotte to take on Clemson in the ACC title game. As I said before, win and they are in the playoff. Lose and they will have to settle for a spot in the Orange Bowl.
That does it for this round of rankings. Before I sign off, here is how I rank the entire ACC after this week (Coastal teams in bold, rankings movement in parentheses):
- Clemson Tigers (0)
- Miami Hurricanes (0)
- Virginia Tech Hokies (0)
- NC State Wolfpack (+1)
- Boston College Eagles (+1)
- Louisville Cardinals (+1)
- Florida State Seminoles (+1)
- Wake Forest Demon Deacons (-3)
- Duke Blue Devils (+2)
- Virginia Cavaliers (-1)
- Pittsburgh Panthers (+3)
- North Carolina Tar Heels (-2)
- Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (0)
- Syracuse Orange (-2)
Enjoy the week and get rested up for Week 14. This will be the last football rankings of the year, but don’t worry, the season is about to get real with championship weekend on its way.
What did you think of this week’s rankings? Let us know in the comments below.