The ESPN Football Power Index remains a slightly fickle beast.
One week after the Blue Devils dropped a spot by beating the Florida State Seminoles, Duke actually moved up four spots to 60th in the site’s national rankings on Sunday after an overtime loss to the SMU Mustangs.
Yes, the movement makes sense when fans account for the respective opponents. Florida State lost to Miami by 22 points on Saturday to drop to 1-7 for the season while the Mustangs, now 7-1 for the year and undefeated in ACC play, control their own destiny within the conference. The comparison is just funny to point out.
One could actually argue that ESPN Analytics is being a little stingy by only moving Duke up four spots. The Mustangs stood tight at No. 16 despite giving the ball to the Blue Devils six different times and relying upon a blocked field goal on the final play of regulation.
Either way, Duke’s tiny boost moves the Blue Devils to 11th among ACC teams. In a small bit of injustice, the North Carolina Tar Heels, who are 4-4 for the season after notably blowing a 20-point in Durham, jumped 12 spots to 57th because of their blowout victory over the Virginia Cavaliers.
The Hurricanes (10th) and the Clemson Tigers (13th) remain in line for a showdown in the conference title game with potential College Football Playoff appearances in store. The Mustangs and Louisville Cardinals (17th) are the only other ACC teams within the top 25 of the ESPN rankings.