It was a good week to be on a bye. It was a crazy week in the ACC with some unexpected results changing a lot in this week's power rankings.
Duke held steady on a bye, but a whole of movement beneath them.
ACC Power Rankings after Week 5
1. Miami: 5-0 (3-0)
Miami continues to look head and shoulders above the pack in the ACC. In what could have been a tricky road game at Clemson, the Hurricanes dominated the Tigers, 41-13, to move to 5-0 overall and 3-0 in the ACC. They'll now have a bye week before facing rival Florida State in Week 7.
2. Duke: 4-0 (2-0)
Duke had a well-placed bye to avoid a chaotic weekend. Manny Diaz and company remain unranked in the AP Poll and will go on the road to face Georgia Tech in Week 6.
3. Wake Forest: 4-1 (2-1)
Wake Forest continues to look like a real contender, and they have an argument right now for the No. 2 spot. The Demon Deacons' only loss came in a competitive matchup against Miami. Outside of that, they've looked pretty dominant, and that remained the same in Week 5 with a 57-3 annihilation of Stanford.
4. Pittsburgh: 5-0 (2-0)
Pitt earned an impressive road win over Virginia Tech on Friday night to remain undefeated. It was a costly win, however. Star QB Mason Heintschel suffered a torn ACL in the win, which will keep him out for the remainder of the season. The Panthers will get their first taste of life without him at home this weekend against North Carolina.
5. Virginia Tech: 4-1 (1-1)
It was a heartbreaking loss for Virginia Tech on Friday night at home against Pitt with a controversial missed field goal as time expired. They'll have to avoid that result causing them to lose twice with a long road trip to California this weekend to face the Golden Bears on tap.
6. SMU: 4-1 (2-1)
SMU improved to 4-1 on the season, but it's difficult to get a read on how good the Mustangs actually are. The 25-16 win over Boston College wasn't all that inspiring. SMU is on a bye this week before hosting Virginia in Week 7.
7. Florida State: 3-2 (1-1)
Florida State might be better than a lot of folks assumed. They've lost two games, but one was a nail-biter to SMU and the other was a two-touchdown defeat on the road at an Alabama team that looks like a title contender. The Seminoles earned an impressive win in Week 5, blowing out Virginia 38-7. They've got a tricky Friday night road game at Louisville before heading to Miami in Week 7.
8. Clemson: 3-2 (2-1)
Clemson is another team that is hard to get a read on. They have two non-competitive losses, but they came against Top 10 teams in LSU and Miami. They're on a bye after this week and then will face an FCS foe a home date against Virginia Tech on 10/24.
9. North Carolina: 2-2 (0-1)
Far be it for me to give any kind of kudos to North Carolina, but the Tar Heels were competitive in a loss to Notre Dame, only falling to the undefeated Irish by 11 points on Saturday afternoon. Road games at Pitt and Duke loom in consecutive weeks, and could determine the direction of the rest of the season.
10. NC State: 3-2 (1-1)
Speaking of teams that make absolutely zero sense, NC State rebounded from a baffling loss to Vanderbilt by beating App State last week and then taking down Louisville this week. The Wolf Pack might be the most Jekyll and Hyde team in the ACC.
11. Louisville: 2-3 (1-1)
There may not be a more disappointing team in the ACC than Louisville. After a competitive loss to Ole Miss in Week 1, the Cardinals looked like a playoff contender when they knocked off SMU. But since then, Louisville has lost two in a row to Wake Forest and NC State and now has a losing record. They need to bounce back in a big way with Florida State in town on Friday night.
12. Virginia: 3-2 (1-1)
After a dominant season-opening win over NC State, Virginia looked like an ACC contender. They've been pretty mediocre since then. They have wins over Norfolk State and Delaware since then, but lost to West Virginia and then got their doors blown off by Florida State last week.
13. California: 2-3 (1-1)
It has been a disappointing year so far for Cal when many expected the Golden Bears to be a surprise team in the ACC this year. They lost again this week, falling on the road to UNLV. The schedule doesn't get any easier from here, with matchups against Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, SMU, NC State, and Virginia all in a row.
14. Boston College: 2-3 (0-2)
They lost both games, but Bill O'Brien's Boston College squad has shown some fight in consecutive weeks with closer-than-expected losses to Virginia Tech and SMU. After the bye week, they'll have an opportunity to earn a quality win at home against Pitt.
15. Stanford: 2-3 (1-3)
Stanford was unable to build off its win over Georgia Tech. They went on the road to Wake Forest this week and got decimated by the Demon Deacons by 54 points. Next up: at Notre Dame. Gulp.
16. Syracuse: 2-2 (0-2)
Syracuse earned a much-needed win this week, taking down UConn 42-41 on the road. Any win is a good win for the Orange at this point. A road date at Virginia waits 'Cuse this weekend.
17. Georgia Tech: 1-3 (0-1)
Georgia Tech has taken a substantial fall from where they've been the last couple of years. They had a bye week in Week 5 after a disappointing loss to Stanford. The Jackets host Duke this weekend as the Blue Devils look to remain undefeated and Georgia Tech looks to earn a season-changing victory.
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