Carolina's College Football Power Rankings: Weeks 1 & 2

- Dawson Haywood

We are a little late to the party but better late than never. Building off the success of the North Carolina Minor League Power Rankings we will now start a Carolina's College Football Power Rankings throughout the season. These power rankings will look slightly different from our NC MILB Power Rankings. Each week, every team will receive points based off their weekly spot in the power rankings. At the end of the season we will crown our champion base on the amount of points each team has accumulated. Points will be given as followed...

#1: 13 Points
#2: 10 Points
#3: 8 Points
#4: 7 Points
#5: 6 Points
#6: 5 Points
#7: 4 Points
#8: 3 Points
#9: 2 Points
#10: 1 Point

Lets get started with this week's standings! 

#1: Clemson (1-1) (13 Points)
Previous: vs South Carolina State (W: 49-3)
Upcoming: vs Georgia Tech
Summary: Clemson, the Carolina's pride and joy for the last couple of seasons. This is their first season without a quarterback named Trevor Lawrence or Deshaun Watson. Their loss to Georgia tells us one of two things. Either Clemson is slowing down without a superstar and clear first round quarterback or Georgia is just that good. Since they lost to Georgia we cannot really knock Clemson off title talk just yet. Time will tell the fate of Dabo and this Clemson program. 

#2: App State (1-1) (10 Points)
Previous: @ Miami (L: 25-23)
Upcoming: vs Elon
Summary: App State has proven to be a very good team since entering the FBS. Their game against Miami proves that the Mountaineers should probably be in a more competitive conference, which I think is going to happen soon with all the movement we are about to see in the NCAA. They very well could be one of the best teams we see come out of the Carolinas this year. They only lost to Miami because of a field goal made in the last 3 minutes of the game. A little bit of polishing up and this team is going to be competing for the #1 spot. 

#3: North Carolina (8 Points)
Previous: vs Georgia State (W: 59-17)
Upcoming: vs Virginia
Summary: North Carolina was supposed to be the team to knock Clemson off the ACC throne this season with Mack Brown and Sam Howell but after the Virginia Tech loss that reality seems to be further away than we thought. It is possible that the Virginia Tech game was not the real Carolina that we expected them to be but maybe I am being biased and optimistic. They do have a few games this season that should they win they could be back into the ACC Title Conversation but until then we will have to sit back and wait. 

#4: Coastal Carolina (2-0) (7 Points)
Previous: vs Kansas (W: 49-22)
Upcoming: @ Buffalo 
Summary: Coastal Carolina allowed Kansas to hang in the game right up until the middle of the third quarter. Coastal has the potential to be a great team and their only real test for the rest of the season is App State. Can Grayson McCall lead the Chanticleers to another Sun Belt Title?

#5: NC State (1-1) (6 Points)
Previous: @ Mississippi State (L: 24-10)
Upcoming: vs Furman
Summary: I am going to be nice to NC State this week because they did produce a goose egg against South Florida two weeks ago. Though Mississippi State is an SEC team, they have not found much success in the conference in recent history only winning three games against SEC opponents last season. This did make for a fun game to watch since Mississippi State and NC State fans get along due to the College Baseball World Series. NC State is a wishy washy team and could be really good or really bad. Time will tell. 

#6: South Carolina (2-0) (5 Points)
Previous: ECU (20-17)
Upcoming: @ #2 Georgia
Summary: South Carolina is the clear underdog for this week's upcoming matchup against the Georgia Bulldogs. A 31.7 point underdog to be exact. Like Clemson, if they lose this game against Georgia, there will not be a severe penalty in these power rankings. Now, if the Gamecocks manage to pull off this major upset, the South Carolina / Clemson Rivalry may be something we actually talk about this season.

#7: Charlotte (2-0) (4 Points)
Previous: vs Garder-Webb (W: 38-10) 
Upcoming: @ Georgia State
Summary: Charlotte beat Duke week one of this season. The Blue Devils were the first Power 5 team Charlotte has beaten in program history. This could be Charlotte's turnaround point for the program. Struggling in the C-USA since their inaugural season in the FBS has left a bad taste in this team's mouth. In 2019, the 49ers went to their first Bowl Game and unfortunately lost. Regardless, Charlotte is heading in the right direction as a program when you look at how far they have come over the last few seasons. They may not be the best team in the Carolina's but a C-USA Conference Title may be next on Charlotte's accomplishment list. 

#8: Wake Forest (2-0) (3 Points)
Previous: vs Norfolk State (W: 41-16)
Upcoming: vs Florida State
Summary: Wake Forest is a team that does not get talked about much around North Carolina because of the Big 3 (UNC, Duke, NC State). They are truly that one kid at the party that does not have much to say, does not beef with anybody, keeps to themselves, and are just there. They will forever be a sleeper team, it does not matter if it is in football or basketball. They may end up being one of the top teams in the two states but it's Wake Forest so who ever really knows?

#9: Duke (1-1) (2 Points)
Previous: vs NC A&T (W: 45-17)
Upcoming: vs Northwestern
Summary: Duke is on the Hot Seat as mentioned before they lost to Charlotte giving them their first Power 5 win. Beating NC A&T is expected but the Blue Devils have a long season ahead of them if they cannot figure things out quickly. They have to win the next two games against Northwestern and Kansas before kicking off ACC play against a North Carolina team that is seeking vengeance after their loss to Virginia Tech. 

#10: East Carolina (0-2) (1 Point)
Previous: vs South Carolina (L: 20-17)
Upcoming: @ Marshall
Summary: It has been since 2014 since East Carolina has had a winning season. Having a close game against SEC opponent South Carolina is promising but let us not kid ourselves, the Gamecocks are not exactly SEC worthy at the moment. This is not that bold of a prediction, but East Carolina will likely finish as one of the bottom teams in the Carolinas.