Updated Sept. 20, 2026, 12:05 p.m. ET
Week 3 of the 2026 college football season wrapped up on Saturday and it was a major weekend for the ACC. The Louisville Cardinals picked up the biggest win of the week, beating the SMU Mustangs 41-31 in one of the week’s few ranked matchups. The Wake Forest Demon Deacons battled, but the Miami Hurricanes were able to pull out the victory on the road. The Virginia Tech Hokies picked up another quality win, beating the Maryland Terrapins on the road.
It wasn’t all good, though, the FSU Seminoles fell to the Alabama Crimson Tide, NC State suffered a heartbreaking loss against the Vanderbilt Commodores, and the Boston College Eagles barely beat Wagner. The Clemson Tigers rallied to beat the North Carolina Tar Heels, but both teams struggled during the game.
How does all the action change our power rankings of the ACC? Here is an updated look at the ACC picture after Week 3. Updated ACC football power rankings after Week 3 Miami Hurricanes (35-20 win at Wake Forest) – No change Louisville Cardinals (41-31 win vs SMU) – Up 1 Duke Blue Devils (35-7 win vs Stanford) – Up 2 Virginia Tech Hokies (35-26 win at Maryland) – Up 3 SMU Mustangs (41-31 loss at Louisville) – Down 3 Virginia Cavaliers (38-27 loss to West Virginia) – Down 3 Pitt Panthers (27-13 win vs Syracuse) – No change California Golden Bears (49-7 win vs Wagner) – No change Wake Forest Demon Deacons (35-20 loss vs Miami) – No change Clemson Tigers (28-20 win vs North Carolina) – Up 4 North Carolina Tar Heels (28-20 loss at Clemson) – Down 2 Boston College Eagles (22-16 win vs Maine) – Down 2 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (44-11 win vs Mercer) – Up 3 NC State Wolfpack (35-31 loss at Vanderbilt) – Down 2 Syracuse Orange (27-13 loss at Pitt) – Down 1 FSU Seminoles (50-36 loss at Alabama) – No Change Stanford Cardinal (35-7 loss at Duke) – No Change Follow us @FSUWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida State news, notes and opinions.
