The Atlantic Coast Conference’s guaranteed berth in the College Football Playoff could include a surprise representative. Maybe a couple.
Unbeaten and fourth-ranked Miami (9-0, 5-0), predicted this summer by media to finish third in the ACC behind defending champion Florida State and Clemson, is rated No. 4 as a projected league champion among the 12 teams announced in Tuesday night’s initial bracket. One of just five unbeaten Football Bowl Subdivision teams, the Hurricanes could earn a first-round bye if they go on and win the title — unless the Mustangs or Tigers beat them to it.
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“I think the hunger grows,” Miami coach Mario Cristobal said this week. “I think we understand what a blessing it is to be in November and to be playing very significant football.”
League newcomer SMU (8-1, 5-0) sits just outside at No. 13 and is hoping to crack the field. It’s the highest playoff ranking ever for the Mustangs, who are enjoying their first season back as a Power 4 school after winning the American Athletic championship last fall.
“I think it means that our program belongs at this level and our program is capable of competing at this level, which we all believe,” SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said after beating Pitt last week. The Mustangs have a bye before hosting Boston College.
The first rankings include three other ACC teams including No. 23 Pitt (7-1, 3-1, No. 18 CFP); No. 25 Louisville (6-3, 4-2, No. 22 CFP), which returned to the poll this week after beating Clemson 33-21; and the 19th-ranked Tigers (6-2, 5-1, No. 23 CFP), who are just a half-game behind in the hunt for the championship they’ve claimed six times since 2015.
FSU? The one-win Seminoles are just above ACC newcomer Cal at the bottom of the standings.
ACC Network analyst Eric Mac Lain believes having its top five teams in the rankings speaks volumes about the league’s depth and the respect it has earned as a result.
For all the initial recognition of FSU and Clemson, he noted that there was just as much curiosity in what Miami could achieve with Ward, who arrived in south Florida after passing for 6,963 yards and 48 touchdowns the previous two seasons at Washington State. Ward is now considered the Heisman Trophy favorite.
“It’s good to see a team like Miami, who we all thought in the offseason about the run they could go on,” he said. “When you look at who they’ve acquired and (having) a big-time coach who came home and a lot of expectations, for them to deliver on that is truly amazing.”
Meanwhile, the two new faces sharing first place are focused on staying healthy and maintaining high-scoring offenses led by dynamic quarterbacks.
Ward has guided college football’s top attack at 556.9 yards and 47.4 points per game. The senior has completed 67% of his passes for a nation-leading 29 touchdowns and 3,146 yards that rank second.
Ward strung together a school-record seven consecutive 300-yard passing games to start the season and has eight overall, including 400 with five scores in last week’s 53-31 victory over Duke. Miami’s defense is pretty stout as well, ranking 19th nationally at 310.7 yards per game to help build their best start since beginning 10-0 in 2017.
Cristobal said that cornerback Jadais Richard will miss time with a “significant” undisclosed injury but is encouraged by what each victory reveals about Miami’s diligence.
“We’ve understood the blessing and the importance of focusing on (being) 1-0 and nothing else,” he said. “Nothing else matters behind us or beyond the current opportunity. … We still have a long ways to go.”
SMU has its own dual threat in sophomore Kevin Jennings, who has passed for 1,900 of his 2,217 yards offensively and 20 of 23 TDs with just five interceptions.
The Mustangs, who rank seventh with 40.1 points and 23rd with 446.1 yards per contest, have won six in a row since Jennings took over at QB after an 18-15 loss to No. 9 BYU in September. SMU has taken off on both sides of the ball, allowing an ACC-best 90 yards rushing per game defensively while boasting the league’s No. 4 unit overall (341.0).
Intriguing as it might have been to see the ’Canes and Mustangs clash over the final weeks, a possible showdown in next month’s championship in Charlotte, North Carolina, seems just as tantalizing. Clemson could still be part of the discussion if one of them loses, a scenario that Lashlee notes has kept his team locked in.
“We’re not done,” he said. “We’ve not accomplished anything yet, but we’ve put ourselves in position that in the middle of November, we’re competing for a conference championship in our first year in the league. I think our players and our staff deserve a ton of credit for that.”
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