The Atlantic Coast Conference is officially devoid of undefeated teams. No. 8 Georgia Tech fell 48-36 to North Carolina State on the road, dropping to 8-1 and re-opening the conference race.
After stumbling against the Wolfpack, the Yellow Jackets have given new life to teams like Virginia and Louisville, which both claimed victories on Saturday. Miami's heartbreaking overtime loss to SMU was less devastating as a result of Georgia Tech's failure too.
There are now three teams in the ACC with just a single loss, but only Georgia Tech and Virginia are tied at the top of the conference standings. It's unlikely the ACC gets more than two bids into the 12-team College Football Playoff, but now the race for those spots has gotten even more intense — and if you're a Georgia Tech fan, even more harrowing.
What is Georgia Tech's most realistic path to the College Football Playoff?
The Yellow Jackets have three games remaining in their 2025-26 schedule with the final game being the most important now that they're no longer perfect on the year.
- Week 12 at Boston College
- Week 13 vs. Pittsburgh
- Week 14 vs. No. 5 Georgia
Georgia Tech should have no problem against the first two opponents, but after losing to NC State, anything is possible at this point. That would leave them at 10-1 entering rivalry week against the Bulldogs at home.
Virginia and Louisville face no ranked opponents down the stretch of their schedules, meaning Georgia Tech could be in a must-win scenario against Georgia. If the Cavaliers and Cardinals run the table and the Yellow Jackets drop a second game, the former two would face off in Charlotte for the ACC title.
The CFP selection committee would have a tough decision on its hands over whether to allow a third ACC team into the bracket. Georgia Tech's résumé, with just a single ranked win against Clemson (proven to be frauds this year, so the win means much less), is not as impressive as other potential two-loss teams from the Big Ten and SEC. The Yellow Jackets would likely be one of the first teams outside the Top 12.
So, unfortunately, it really is just as simple as winning out for Georgia Tech. That's its simplest path to the CFP. If either of Virginia or Louisville drop another game, the Yellow Jackets have some leeway to getting in, likely by virtue of some obscure tiebreakers in the conference race. But any hopes of an at-large bid may already be out the window.