Miami continued to roll with its second win over a ranked team this season, 49-12 over South Florida on Saturday, to improve to 3-0. Clemson lost 24-21 on a 55-yard walk-off field goal by Georgia Tech. The Tigers fell to 1-2 with the loss. After beginning the season ranked below Clemson, Miami has emerged as the best team in the ACC.
Miami is 11th nationally in the ESPN Football Power Index and Clemson is 30th. Miami is the top ACC team in the ESPN FPI and Florida State is the second-highest-rated team in the conference and 27th nationally in the ESPN FPI. Miami is now the clear favorite to win the ACC.
The ESPN FPI provides Miami with a 51.0 percent chance to win the ACC and a 58.0 percent chance to earn a College Football Playoff berth. Those numbers are up from 28.0 and 35.0 percent on Saturday. Florida State has a 11.3 percent chance to win the ACC and 18.8 percent chance for a CFP berth.
The ESPN FPI has Georgia Tech at 15.9 and 18.3 percent and Clemson at 5.0 percent and 4.0 after week three games. Georgia Tech will almost certainly be ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 and USA Today Coaches polls that will be released on Sunday.
Clemson entered the season with a 38% chance to make the Playoff.
— ESPN Insights (@ESPNInsights) September 13, 2025
After today’s loss, that number drops to just 5% 📉 pic.twitter.com/LzTf2wFSDy
Florida will likely drop out of the top 20 with a loss to LSU on Saturday night. A Florida loss would leave Florida State as the only team remaining on the 2025 Miami schedule in the top 25. Notre Dame will also drop in the national rankings after their 41-40 loss to Texas A&M on Saturday night.
The reemergence of Florida State after a 2-10 2024 season is key for Miami after Florida is on its way out of the rankings. A win at Florida State would provide Miami with three early-season wins over ranked opponents. Other than Florida and FSU, SMU is the highest-rated remaining 2025 Miami opponent at 35th in the ESPN FPI.