Week 1 has come and gone in the 2026 college football season, and there were some surprises and some not-so-big surprises when it comes to the ACC. Some teams took care of business while others, well, not so much. Miami flexed its muscle and proved that they are not only the top team in the ACC, but also one of the top teams in the country.
Week 2 offers more matchups that will tell us more about some teams. With that said, here are the latest ACC Power Rankings.
Week 2 ACC Football Power Rankings
Bill O'Brien began the season on the hot seat, and the Eagles' 34-15 loss at Cincinnati didn't do anything to cool that seat down. The home opener against Rutgers on Friday is suddenly a big game for O'Brien at BC.
After opening the season with a win over Hawai'i in Week 0, the Cardinal got a first-hand look at just how good Miami is this season. Stanford gets a week off before a trip to Duke on Sept. 19.
Fran Brown's third season began with a blowout of New Hampshire at home. There is a step up in competition for the Orange this week against Cal at home.
After getting spanked by Virginia in Week 0, the Wolfpack had a bye this past weekend ahead of their home opener on Friday night against Richmond.
Th seat is now hotter for Mike Norvell as a last-second loss to SMU. He really needed that one to take some of the pressure off going into Alabama in two weeks.
It was not the start Cal was looking for, with the team blown out at home by UCLA by three touchdowns. A tough cross-country flight to Central New York awaits the Golden Bears this weekend.
Year 2 of the Jake Dickert era began with a blowout of Akron from the MAC. The Demon Deacons had an interesting non-conference road game at Purdue this upcoming weekend. The Boilermakers are not expected to fare well in the Big Ten this season, but this is a tricky road game for Dickert and his team.
The Tar Heels had the weekend off after upsetting TCU in Ireland in Week 0. They will open their home schedule on Saturday with another non-conference game, this time against East Tennessee State University.
Duke opened the season by beating Tulane and the weather in Durham. Things get much tougher this weekend for Manny Diaz and his team with a trip to Big Ten country against Illinois, which won on the road last season in Durham.
There were some disappointing losses this past weekend in college football, and maybe the biggest disappointing loss in the ACC this past weekend was in Atlanta. Trailing Colorado 14-13, Aidan Burr's game-winning field goal attempt was blocked on the game's final play. It's not a great start to a season when a Chris Marve defense shuts you down at home.
Like O'Brien, the seat is hot for Clemson coach Dabo Swinney to begin the season, and he didn't do anything to cool it off with an abysmal performance at LSU. They get Georgia Southern at home this week, and a big bounce-back game is needed.
The Hokies began the James Franklin era with a 73-3 rout of VMI out of the FCS. This upcoming week, they host Old Dominion in what is a major revenge game for anyone who was part of the program last season, including new defensive coordinator Brent Pry.
Pitt had one of the more impressive performances over the weekend, blasting Miami of Ohio, 59-14 at home. They get a step up in competition this weekend when Central Florida, out of the Big 12, visits for a second straight non-conference game.
The Cavaliers had a week off as well after blasting NC State at home to open the season and will host former Virginia Tech star Michael Vick and Norfolk State on Friday night.
Even though the Cardinals lost the opener to No. 9 Ole Miss in Nashville on Sunday, 41-38, they proved that they belong near the top of the ACC. It looks like the Hokies caught a break by not having Louisville on the schedule this season.
The Mustangs survived a power delay in Northern Florida to take down FSU on a late field goal to open the season with a win.
Everyone knew going into the game that the Hurricanes were the team to beat in the ACC, and after the way they dismantled Stanford, nothing changed in those thoughts. It's going to take a monster performance to take down the Hurricanes in 2026.
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