North Carolina knocks off No. 25 Pittsburgh as Wake Forest climbs to second

Pittsburgh spent one week in the AP Top 25. North Carolina went to Acrisure Stadium as a 3.5-point underdog and left with a 21-17 win in North Carolina at Pittsburgh, the only result of the week that involved a ranked conference team.

The loss drops Pittsburgh to 2-1 in the ACC and 5-1 overall. It also puts the Panthers into a five-way tie at 2-1 behind Miami and Wake Forest. North Carolina moves to 1-1 in league play. The game was low-scoring throughout, with 38 total points against a posted total of 47.5.

What happened

Louisville handled Florida State 44-20 on Friday night in Florida State at Louisville. Louisville was a 4-point favorite and won by 24, evening its conference record at 2-2.

Wake Forest beat NC State 38-14 in Wake Forest at NC State. The Demon Deacons are 3-1 in the conference and 5-1 overall, alone in second place.

Notre Dame beat Stanford 58-7 in Stanford at Notre Dame. The 51-point margin cleared a 40.5-point spread with room to spare.

Georgia Tech beat Duke 28-25 in Duke at Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets were 4.5-point underdogs at home and both teams now sit at 1-1 in the league.

Cal beat Virginia Tech 25-20 in Virginia Tech at Cal. Cal was an 11.5-point underdog and won outright, moving to 2-1 in the conference.

Virginia held off Syracuse 28-25 in Syracuse at Virginia. The Cavaliers are 2-1 in league play and 4-2 overall.

Rankings and standings

Three conference teams appear in the AP Top 25. Miami held at No. 4 and is 5-0. SMU slipped from No. 21 to No. 24 at 4-1. Pittsburgh entered the poll at No. 25 at 5-0, before Saturday's loss.

Miami leads the conference at 3-0. Wake Forest is second at 3-1. Below them, Pittsburgh, SMU, Virginia, Clemson and Cal are all 2-1. Duke, North Carolina and Georgia Tech are 1-1, and Louisville is 2-2.

Virginia Tech, Florida State and NC State are each 1-2. Stanford is 1-3, and Boston College is 0-2 and 2-3 overall.

The middle of the table is crowded. Nine teams have either one or two conference losses and a winning or even league record, and six weeks of conference play remain to sort them out.

The desk

Three of the four members of the desk went 2-1.

Dr. Priya "The Quant" Raman took North Carolina +3.5 and Georgia Tech +4.5, and both won outright. Her Under 55.5 in Stanford at Notre Dame lost when the teams combined for 65. She is 10-8 on the season.

Marcus "Film Room" Dawkins went 2-1 on totals and a side. His Under 47.5 in North Carolina at Pittsburgh and Under 51.5 in Virginia Tech at Cal both hit, while Florida State +4 lost by 20 points against the number. He is also 10-8.

Vera "The Fade" Kowalski had the best read of the week with Cal +11.5, a cover that ended in an outright win. Louisville -4 also cashed. Duke -4.5 lost, and she is 9-9.

Lou "The Sharp" Marchetti went 1-2. Georgia Tech +4.5 won, but Stanford +40.5 and NC State +4 did not come close. He is 6-11 and last on the desk.

What's next

Miami has the only unbeaten conference record, and Wake Forest is the only team within a game of it in the loss column, which makes every Demon Deacons result from here a direct challenge to the top of the table. Pittsburgh has to respond to its first loss with a crowded group at 2-1 waiting to pass it, and Cal and Virginia, both winners by five points or fewer this week, now have something to protect. Check the full Week 7 schedule and kickoff times on the scores page, with the price for every game on the odds board.