The Wake Forest Demon Deacons (7-1, 5-1 ACC) once again dominated an opponent last week, beating Virginia 51-7. The win kept the Deacs decisively in 2nd place in our Week 10 ACC Football Power Rankings.

It's the sixth straight week Wake has been in second place and the third consecutive week that the vote was unanimous among our editorial staff. Miami is once again the unanimous No.1. The Canes still haven't received a vote lower than first place all season.

There is a shake-up in the next tiers of teams. SMU had a stronghold on third place, but in this week's rankings, Louisville moved into third. Duke also moved up to fourth place. That dropped SMU down to fifth place this week.

There are two ties in this week's rankings. Clemson and North Carolina are tied at No. 7. Boston College and Florida State are tied at No. 13.

How Power Rankings Are Determined

Each week, our nine-person editorial staff ranks the 17 ACC teams individually. We tabulate all the votes and determine the weekly power rankings.

Here's where our staff ranked the teams this week:

2026 ACC Power Rankings – Week 10

• Miami remains in the top spot. No other team received a first-place vote.
• Wake Forest is No. 2, also unanimously.
• Georgia Tech is once again No. 17.
• Florida State, NC State, and Stanford also received last-place votes.
• The biggest movers this week were Syracuse (+5) and California (-3).
• Seven teams had six or more spots between their highest and lowest rankings; Virginia had the most, with a 10-point spread.
• Other teams with at least six spots between the highest and lowest rankings are Boston College (6), Florida State (9), NC State (7), Pittsburgh (6), SMU (8), and Virginia Tech (6).

17. Georgia Tech (2-6, 1-4)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 17
Highest Ranking: #13
Lowest Ranking: #17
Last Week: Lost at Pittsburgh 11-34
This Week: vs. Louisville

16. California (3-6, 2-4)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 13
Highest Ranking: #11
Lowest Ranking: #16
Last Week: Lost at NC State 10-31
This Week: Bye Week

15. Stanford (4-5, 2-4)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 14 (tie)
Highest Ranking: #13
Lowest Ranking: #17
Last Week: Lost at Louisville 24-52
This Week: Bye Week

13 (tie). Boston College (4-4, 2-3)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 12
Highest Ranking: #10
Lowest Ranking: #16
Last Week: Lost at Duke 2-47
This Week: vs. Florida State

13 (tie). Florida State (3-5, 1-4)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 11
Highest Ranking: #8
Lowest Ranking: #17
Last Week: Lost to Clemson 24-36
This Week: at Boston College

12. NC State (4-4, 2-3)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 14 (tie)
Highest Ranking: #10
Lowest Ranking: #17
Last Week: Beat California 31-10
This Week: vs. Duke

11. Syracuse (4-4, 2-4)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 16
Highest Ranking: #9
Lowest Ranking: #14
Last Week: Beat SMU 30-27
This Week: vs. Clemson

10. Virginia (4-5, 2-4)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 10
Highest Ranking: #5
Lowest Ranking: #15
Last Week: Lost at Wake Forest 7-51
This Week: Bye Week

9. Pittsburgh* (6-3, 3-3)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 8 (tie)
Highest Ranking: #6
Lowest Ranking: #12
Last Week: Beat Georgia Tech 34-11
This Week: Bye Week

7 (tie). Clemson (5-3, 3-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 7
Highest Ranking: #6
Lowest Ranking: #9
Last Week: Beat Florida State 36-24
This Week: at Syracuse

7 (tie). North Carolina (4-4, 2-3)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 8 (tie)
Highest Ranking: #6
Lowest Ranking: #9
Last Week: Lost to Miami 35-38
This Week: at UConn

6. Virginia Tech* (6-2, 3-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 5
Highest Ranking: #4
Lowest Ranking: #10
Last Week: Bye Week
This Week: at SMU

5. SMU* (6-2, 4-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 3
Highest Ranking: #3
Lowest Ranking: #11
Last Week: Lost at Syracuse 27-30
This Week: vs. Virginia Tech

4. Duke* (6-2, 3-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 6
Highest Ranking: #3
Lowest Ranking: #7
Last Week: Beat Boston College 47-2
This Week: at NC State

3. Louisville (5-3, 4-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 4
Highest Ranking: #3
Lowest Ranking: #6
Last Week: Beat Stanford 52-24
This Week: at Georgia Tech

2. #16 Wake Forest* (6-1, 4-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 2
Highest Ranking: #2
Lowest Ranking: #2
Last Week: Beat Virginia 51-7
This Week: vs. Merrimack

1. #1 Miami* (8-0, 6-0)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 1
Highest Ranking: #1
Lowest Ranking: #1
Last Week: Beat North Carolina38-35
This Week: at Notre Dame

Note: Power Rankings are determined by the Wake Forest Demon Deacons On SI editorial staff.
* - Team is bowl eligible (Six ACC teams are now bowl eligible)

How Do Other On SI Sites See the ACC?

We aren't the only On SI site ranking the ACC this week. Georgia Tech On SI and Virginia Tech On SI have ACC Football Power Rankings this week. Check out their rankings here to see how they compare with our staff's rankings:

- Georgia Tech On SI - Wake Forest No. 2 (no change)
- Virginia Tech On SI - Wake Forest No. 2 (no change)

What's Next

Wake Forest hosts Merrimack on Saturday, November 7. The game is at 3:30 pm ET and will be played at Allegacy Financial Stadium in Winston-Salem, NC. It will air on ESPN2.