The Atlantic Coast Conference can never have nice things. We began strong, or at the very least, strong enough. The ACC hung tough and even defeated top-notch competition from the Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac-12. Weeks later and what has become of it? The ACC has gone 0-3 against the Big Ten, 1-2 against the American Athletic Conference, and has two conference members in the USA Today Coaches' Poll.

Coinciding with the Atlantic Coast Conference's backslide, conference members are now entering the thick of conference play. This makes enhancing the ACC's perception a daunting task, as if it hadn't been already. Asking a team other than Florida State to survive these turbulent waters and emerge as a top-25 caliber program is a demanding prospect. Currently Duke is hanging onto their 23^rd ranking by a thread. The outcome at Sun Life Stadium this Saturday may even shrink the ACC to having only one representative in the polls. But hey, we're fine with that.

Atlantic Division

1^st - Florida State Seminoles 3-0 ACC: 1-0

AP/Coaches ranking: 1st/1st

Previous week: vs. Clemson (1-2); Result: WIN 23-17 OT

Next opponent: 9/27 3:30PM @ N.C. State Wolfpack (4-0)

Florida State withstood Winston's absence and pulled out the overtime victory. A cupcake fattened, undefeated N.C. State squad awaits the Seminoles in Raleigh.

2^nd - Clemson Tigers 1-2 ACC: 0-1

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: @ #1 Florida State (3-0); Result: LOSS 23-17 OT

Next opponent: 9/27 7:00PM vs. North Carolina Tar Heels (2-1)

Clemson's offense has an opportunity to showcase its young talent with an underwhelming Tar Heel defense traveling to Death Valley. North Carolina's defense surrendered 70 points to East Carolina and had 34 missed tackles in their win over San Diego State.

3^rd - Boston College Eagles 3-1 ACC: 0-1

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: vs. Maine Black Bears (1-2); Result: WIN 40-10

Next opponent: 9/27 12:30PM vs. Colorado State Rams (2-1)

Boston College's non-conference slate comes to an end after Colorado State pays a visit to Alumni Stadium.

4^th - Louisville Cardinals 3-1 ACC: 1-1

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: @ FIU Panthers (1-3); Result: WIN 34-3

Next opponent: 9/27 3:30PM vs. Wake Forest Demon Deacons (2-2)

Louisville rebounded from its narrow loss to Virginia with a solid performance over FIU.

5^th - Syracuse Orange 2-1 ACC: 0-0

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: vs. Maryland Terrapins (3-1); Result: LOSS 34-20

Next opponent: 9/27 8:00PM vs. #8 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (3-0)

Syracuse found themselves plagued by costly turnovers, missed opportunities and penalties in the red zone as the Orange fell short against the Terrapins.

6^th - N.C. State Wolfpack 4-0 ACC: 0-0

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: vs. Presbyterian Blue Hose (2-2); Result: WIN 42-0

Next opponent: 9/27 3:30PM vs. #1 Florida State Seminoles (3-0)

N.C. State began the season with suspect victories over Georgia Southern (24-23) and Old Dominion (46-34) but have since blown out USF (49-17) and Presbyterian (42-0).

7^th - Wake Forest Demon Deacons 2-2 ACC: 0-0

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: vs. Army Black Knights (1-2); Result: WIN 24-21

Next opponent: 9/27 3:30PM @ Louisville Cardinals (3-1)

Freshman quarterback John Wolford showed signs of improvement in Wake Forest's defeat of the Army Black Knights.

Coastal Division

1^st - Duke Blue Devils 4-0 ACC: 0-0

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/23^rd

Previous week: vs. Tulane Green Wave (1-3); Result: WIN 47-13

Next opponent: 9/27 7:30PM @ Miami Hurricanes (2-2)

The Blue Devils' contest with Miami this weekend gives David Cutcliffe and company their first opportunity to truly show their might. Duke has handedly put away lesser opponents to begin the season and in doing so has risen to 23^rd in the USA Today Coaches' Poll.

2^nd - Virginia Cavaliers 2-2 ACC: 1-0

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: @ #20 BYU Cougars (4-0); Result: LOSS 41-33

Next opponent: 9/27 3:30PM vs. Kent State Golden Flashes (0-3)

Virginia fought hard but ultimately fell short in Provo. BYU avoided turnovers, a strength for the Cavaliers, and tired UVA's defense to put the game out of reach. With conference play entering full swing it's important to note that the Cavalier offense and sophomore quarterback Greyson Lambert had one of their best games yet against a capable BYU defense.

3^rd - Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 4-0 ACC: 1-0

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: @ Virginia Tech (2-2); Result: WIN 27-24

Next opponent: BYE

Georgia Tech took advantage of a downtrodden Virginia Tech to take an early lead in the race for the Coastal Division. They also stole a ‘T' and Paul Johnson became hilariously enraged - separate events but worth a laugh nonetheless. The Yellow Jackets have the upcoming week off and will be preparing for their next game against the Hurricanes on October 4th.

4^th - Pittsburgh Panthers 3-1 ACC: 1-0

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: vs. Iowa Hawkeyes (3-1); Result: LOSS 24-20

Next opponent: 9/27 1:30PM Akron Zips (1-2)

A disappointing effort from Pittsburgh resulted in a loss to a mediocre Iowa Hawkeyes.

5^th - Miami Hurricanes 2-2 ACC: 0-1

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: @ #19 Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-0); Result: LOSS 41-31

Next opponent: 9/27 7:30PM vs. #23 Duke Blue Devils (4-0)

State of the U will have all your Miami-Duke needs covered throughout the week.

T5^th - Virginia Tech Hokies 2-2 ACC: 0-1

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: vs. Georgia Tech (4-0); Result: LOSS 27-24

Next opponent: 9/27 12:30PM vs. Western Michigan Broncos (2-1)

Virginia Tech is in a downward spiral that perhaps only a strong win over Western Michigan may cure.

6^th - North Carolina Tar Heels 2-1 ACC: 0-0

AP/Coaches ranking: NR/NR

Previous week: @ #24 East Carolina Pirates (3-1); Result: LOSS 70-41

Next Opponent: 9/27 7:00PM @ Clemson Tigers (1-2)

In what began as a competitive game, UNC-ECU quickly turned into an s***-storm the likes of which the state of North Carolina has never seen. Fellow Hurricane fans, there just may be a defense worse than ours!

Conference Notes:

ACC vs. AAC (3-2)

ACC vs. Big Ten (1-3)

ACC vs. Big 12 (2-0)

ACC vs. PAC-12 (1-1)

ACC vs. SEC (0-1)

#GOACC