Ranking the Carolinas

1. Wake Forest

Record: 1-0 Last Week: Won at Baylor, 41-13

The Demon Deacons top this list as they continued their usual recipe for success last Thursday night. They went to Waco, Texas and quietly romped Baylor, 44-13, without many people noticing. Quarterback Riley Skinner was 27-of-36 for 220 yards and three touchdowns, while the Deacs' experience-ladened defense held Baylor to 250 total offensive yards. After the game, Skinner told the Associated Press, "We were efficient." Efficient might be a bit of an understatement. Wake Forest will get a much tougher test this week however, when Ole Miss comes to town. Ole Miss looked very impressive in its season-opener and Houston Nutt's debut as Head Coach of the Rebels.

2. ECU

Record: 1-0 Last Week: Won vs. Virginia Tech, 27-22

ECU proved that it belonged Saturday in Charlotte. Maybe the most impressive thing about the win was that it wasn't really an upset, it was a hard-fought game between two good teams, and the Pirates came out on top. The win has created an unprecedented buzz around campus and around Greenville. Anticipation for Saturday's game against West Virginia is very high and the Pirates have a great opportunity in front of them. West Virginia is very talented and very good, but Skip Holtz and his Pirates are no longer a pushover on the schedule-as they proved against Virginia Tech.

3. Clemson

Record: 0-1 Last Week: Lost vs. Alabama, 34-10

The Tigers fell from the top spot in the Carolina's to No. 3 after being embarrassed on national TV last Saturday night. Alabama physically and mentally dominated Clemson, cruising to an impressive 34-10 victory and mocking Clemson's preseason hype. Clemson coach Tommy Bowden was even calling other coaches around the nation, including his father and Alabama coach Nick Saban, searching for answers this week. As bad as things might look for the oft-underachieving Tigers, they still remain uber talented and will more than likely go to win the ACC and be a top-15 team. Clemson's national reputation took a hit this past week, but it can easily gain some of it back as the season progresses-it sure has the talent to do so.

4. South Carolina

Record: 1-0 Last Week: Won vs. N.C. State, 34-0

South Carolina's win over the Wolfpack might have created more questions than answers. The Gamecocks didn't look overly impressive, and the game got out of hand simply because N.C. State might be that bad. The defense, which was expected to be very good, didn't disappoint-but the offense definitely had its problems at times. USC quarterback Tommy Beecher struggled in his first career start and was eventually replaced by back Chris Smelley, who led the Gamecocks to three fourth-quarter touchdown drives. A quarterback controversy now exists and the verdict is still out on how good this team is. USC will play at Vanderbilt tonight, which should help answer some of the questions that weren't answered in its opener.

5. North Carolina

Record: 1-0 Last Week: Won vs. McNeese State, 35-27

The Tar Heels were coined as one of the nation's top breakout teams this preseason, but they sure didn't look like it against 1-AA McNeese State in week one. UNC wide receiver Brandon Tate pretty much won the game by himself, accounting for a school-record 397 all-purpose yards. The game was a quirky one however, as it was delayed for nearly two hours because of a bad storm in the triangle area. The Heels were up 14-0 when the game was delayed so maybe they weren't really interested in playing after sitting for nearly two hours during the delay. Whatever it was, UNC has a bye week this week and some time to recover and figure things out before playing a crucial game at Rutgers one week from today.

This writer can be contacted at sports@theeastcarolinian.com.