2010 CFBZ Prediction: 3rd Place in ACC Atlantic
2010 Actual Finish: Tied for 4th Place in ACC Atlantic (6-7, 4-4)
When Dabo Swinney replaced Tommy Bowden during the 2008 season I'm sure that 6-7 isn't what the administration was hoping for. Especially in a year that was considered a down year for the ACC. Ultimately trying to replace C.J. Spiller, Jacoby Ford and Michael Palmer all in one year was just too much for the offense to handle. Clemson came ultra close to picking off Auburn early in the season (losing in OT) but then dropped the next two games to Miami (Fl) and UNC to put them in a 2-3 hole. Clemson rebounded with good wins over bowl-bound Maryland and Georgia Tech and looked like it had righted the ship and was headed to a turnaround. Unfortunately, Clemson lost 3 of their next 5 and took a 6-6 record into their bowl loss against South Florida. We caught up with Dr B of SB Nation's Clemson Blog Shakin The Southland exactly what they thought of Clemson's performance in 2010 and how they feel going into 2011.
In our Pre-Season Preview you said that Clemson needed to finish 9-3 for it to be a successful season in your eyes. The season is over and the Tigers finished 6-7. What went wrong?
Everything.
Coming into this year we felt that if Clemson played to its strengths, they would end up in the 9-10 win range, particularly with what was coming back for us. Our coaching staff never played to these strengths, and we paid for it.
Lets say your team brought back 4 starters off a fair O-line, and two backs who both averaged over 5 ypc and each had over 400 yards the year before. You have no proven WRs, 1 very talented TE, and a RS Soph at QB. What would you do with that? You'd run the ball quite a bit right? Wrong, not Clemson. We threw the ball over 30 times in each loss, some over 40.
Clemson had a sensible gameplan for Auburn and we took it to them up front. Parker took a nasty late hit to the ribs and it dazed him, and while our staff said it had no effect for Miami the next week, it was quite apparent that it did. Knowing that your QB is hurting, wouldn't you gameplan to play to your strength and run a lot more? No, not Clemson. DeAndre McDaniel got his teeth knocked out on the first Miami TD and they left him in the game, and he made coverage bust after coverage bust and Miami went up big, and we abandoned the run altogether early. Despite Harris' best efforts we could not win it.
The next week they wouldn't attack a depleted UNC defense and lost. They decided to not give the football to our best back and instead throw the ball around. Same thing continued to happen over and over throughout the season, and even when we won it looked horrible. Once we lost our best back at Boston College, it was over.
Last year we were an I-formation and zone running pro-style play-action team. Hand it off to Spiller 19 times a game and then use some PA passes and we could win. This year, they ditched all that, and we hardly saw the I-formation after the first few games. When you see Clemson line up in the shotgun, we pass. When we're one-back under center, we run. Most of the time they went to the Gun, even when both backs were healthy. They claim to self-scout, but never recognized this on film, and we kept up with it all year on the site in the game reviews.
I just don't think our staff is intelligent. I know Dabo is the one that decided to scrap the power run game that became our identity last year to get the ball into his WRs hands, just because he believes it will work. Now that he finished 6-7 and everyone raised hell, he knows he has to fire people to keep his own job.
What game was the turning point of the season?
You know, this happens to us quite a bit. One game really flips the season around, and you look back and wonder "what if we won it?"
We took Auburn to the wire, and if we had snapped the ball correctly in OT on the FG attempt to tie it, and later won, who knows how our season would've gone. Who knows how Auburn would've turned out had they lost there? I tend to think momentum like that is a freaky thing with a team. If you get on a roll, sometimes you continue to play above your level and winning breeds winning. Sometimes when you prepare for a team all offseason, which we did, a loss crushes you and you don't recover.
The gameplan we had there was the one that worked last year for us. After we lost, Swinney decided to take power-running personnel and run a spread system. I think he made an impulsive decision to abandon what works just because it didn't win at Auburn.
Which player(s) was the biggest surprise of the season and on the flip-side who was the biggest disappointment?
Probably Hopkins, I rarely expect a true FR to come in and basically take the job at Flanker away from a senior, but that is what happened. He needs to add some weight but he's a tough football player.
Jamie Harper averaged over 5 ypc last year and barely cracked 4 ypc this year. He cracked 100 yards against North Texas in the first game, and then tanked. He tiptoes into holes and refuses to lower his shoulder on defenders. Now the dummy declares for the NFL? I just laugh at that.
Which player are you most excited about for next season?
Who knows with Dabo calling the shots. I think if Andre Ellington stays healthy, he gets over 1000 yards. I think if we insist on passing heavily that DeAndre Hopkins will crack 70 receptions and 1000 yards. Both of them are outstanding football players.
In what areas does Clemson need to improve the most to get back into contention for the ACC Championship?
Next year the chief concern is former 5-star QB Tajh Boyd. He showed us this year that he was not ready to play, and next year he has to be. If he gets the new offense down pat, we might be ok.
The second is the WRs. Someone besides Hopkins must show ball skills.
3rd, the defense. We lose most of it. Up front we are depleted with two starters leaving, one rumored to go, and a chief backup leaving. We lose SS Deandre McDaniel, CB Byron Maxwell and CB Marcus Gilchrist, who is also our KR/PR. Linebacker is the only spot we don't lose anyone.
And finally coaching. The defensive staff earned their paycheck. When an opponent does something, I can see the adjustments they make and they work. The offensive staff makes no adjustments and showed me they should be fired. Some of them already have been but I think Swinney is the real problem there: he fancies himself an offensive visionary, having never been an OC in his life.
So who knows...I won't make a prediction on next year. We could go 3-9 or 8-4.
Showing posts with label Clemson Tigers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Clemson Tigers. Show all posts
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Saturday, January 8, 2011
2010 CFBZ College Football Awards
NCAA Offensive Player of the Year:
Winner: QB Cameron Newton, Auburn
Newton took an 8-5 team and has them playing in the National Championship Game. He's the highest rated passer in all of College Football and he's 13th in rushing (including leading the SEC in rushing....as a QB).He has 20 TD running the football, 28 passing and he even caught a TD pass against Ole Miss. What more is there to say? He was amazing to watch. His stats were incredible and his highlights were even more jaw-dropping. He was a sensation.
Runner-Up: RB LaMichael James, Oregon
Honorable Mention: QB Andrew Luck (Stanford), QB Denard Robinson (Michigan), QB Dan Persa (Northwestern), QB Ryan Mallet (Arkansas), QB Kellen Moore (Boise St), QB Andy Dalton (TCU), WR Justin Blackmon (Oklahoma St)
NCAA Defensive Player of the Year:
Winner: DE Da'Quan Bowers, Clemson
He led the Nation in sacks with 15 averaging 1.15 per game. He was second in the Nation (to Ryan Kerrigan of Purdue) with 25 tackles for loss.
Runner-Up: DT Nick Fairley, Auburn
Honorable Mention: DE Ryan Kerrigan (Purdue), CB Patrick Peterson (LSU), CB Jaron Hosley (Virginia Tech), LB Von Miller (Texas A&M), LB Luke Kuechly (Boston College)
NCAA Coach of the Year:
Winner: Chip Kelly, Oregon
Kelly has really developed Oregon into an offensive juggernaut. They score the most points at 49.3 per game and also gain the most yards at 537 per game. But they aren't a one-dimensional football team as their defense also ranks 12th in points allowed at 18 per game. Kelly has this machine running and he just fills in the pieces as needed.
Runner-Up: Jim Harbaugh, Stanford
Honorable Mention: Randy Edsall (UConn), Bret Bielema (Wisconsin), Gene Chizik (Auburn), Michael Haywood (Miami/OH), Mark Dantonio (Michigan State), Dan Mullen (Mississippi State), Doug Marrone (Syracuse), Gary Patterson (TCU), Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State)
NCAA Coordinator of the Year:
Winner: Gus Malzahn, Auburn
Sure Malzahn has Cam Newton to thank but Malzahn did a great job this year molding his offense into an offense that best fits Cam Newton and his personnel. Malzahn would probably rather throw the ball all over the field but he saw what would help his team win and made some tweaks as the season went on.Without Malzahn, Auburn is not playing in the National Championship Game...it's that simple.
Runner-Up: Dana Holgorsen, Oklahoma State
Honorable Mention: Dick Bumpas (TCU), Mark Helfich (Oregon), Scott Shafer (Syracuse), John Chavis (LSU), Paul Chryst (Wisconsin), Bryan Harsin (Boise State), Kirby Smart (Alabama)
SEC Player of the Year:
Winner: QB Cam Newton, Auburn
Do we need to re-hash this? If he's the NCAA Offensive Player of the Year then we are also taking him for SEC Player of the Year.
Runner-Up: QB Ryan Mallett, Arkansas
Honorable Mention: DT Nick Fairley (Auburn), WR Alshon Jeffrey (South Carolina), RB Marcus Lattimore (South Carolina), CB Patrick Peterson (LSU), WR Julio Jones (Alabama)
Big Ten Player of the Year:
Winner: QB Denard Robinson, Michigan
This was a very tight race between Robinson and Persa but ultimately Robinson stats were just too good to ignore. As a QB Robinson rushed for 1702 yards (second to only Mikel Leshoure of Illinois who rushed for 4 more yards than Denard) averaging 6.6 yards per carry. Robinson also threw for 2570 yards. Without Robinson, Michigan doesn't go to a bowl game.
Runner-UP: QB Dan Persa, Northwestern
Honorable Mention: DE Ryan Kerrigan (Purdue), RB Mikel Leshoure (Illinois), QB Kirk Cousins (Michigan State), QB Scott Tolzien (Wisconsin), QB Terrelle Pryor (Ohio State), WR Dan Sanzenbacher (Ohio State), RB Montee Ball (Wisconsin), RB James White (Wisconsin)
Big 12 Player of the Year:
Co-Winner: WR Justin Blackmon, Oklahoma State
Blackmon finished his freshman season with 20 receptions for 2 TD. This year he had 111 receptions for 1782 yards (and that's missing a game) and was a big reason for Oklahoma State exceeding everybody's expectations this year. Blackmon finished 3rd in the Nation in receptions, 2nd in receiving yards, 2nd in receptions per game and 1st in TD. He was a difference maker in the Big 12.
Co-Winner: QB Landry Jones, Oklahoma
What a difference a year makes. Landry really blossomed this year and helped the Sooners rebound from a disappointing 8-5 season to winning the Big 12 and playing in a BCS bowl game. Landry finished 2nd in the Nation in Passing Yards (only Bryant Moniz of Hawai'i had more) and passing TD with 38 (2nd again to Moniz).
Honorable Mention: WR Ryan Broyles (Oklahoma), QB Robert Griffin (Baylor), QB Brandon Weeden (Oklahoma State), RB Kendall Hunter (Oklahoma State), RB Daniel Thomas (Kansas State), LB Von Miller (Texas A&M)
ACC Player of the Year:
Winner: QB Tyrod Taylor, Virginia Tech
The season could not have started out worse for Virginia Tech as they lost to Boise State and then fell victim of an unfathomable upset at the hands of James Madison. Behind Tyrod's Senior Leadership the Hokies rebounded and won 11 straight regular season games and went undefeated in the ACC. Taylor passed for 2743 yards and had a great TD to INT ratio (24 TD and only 5 INT). He finished the year as the highest rated passer in the ACC (a conference that also includes Christian Ponder, Russell Wilson, Kyle Parker and T.J. Yates). Tyrod also placed in the Top 15 in the ACC in rushing as he finished with 659 yards and 5 TD running the football.
Runner-Up: DE Da'Quan Bowers, Clemson
Honorable Mention: QB Russell Wilson (NC State), QB T.J. Yates (UNC), CB Jayron Hosley (VT), RB Montel Harris (BC), WR Torrey Smith (Maryland)
Big East Player of the Year
Winner: RB Jordan Todman (UConn)
UConn rode Todman to their first BCS birth and Big East Championship. Todman had an incredible year and led the Big East in rushing and came in 3rd Nationally (only 11 yards behind Mikel Leshoure and 7 behind Denard Robinson) despite missing the game against Buffalo. Todman was a symbol of consistency as he rushed for over 100 yards in 10 of the 12 games he played and his lowest output of the year was 80 yards.
Runner-Up: QB Geno Smith (WVU)
Honorable Mention: RB Bilal Powell (Louisville), QB Ryan Nassib (Syracuse), WR Armon Binns (Cincy), DE Bruce Irvin (WVU), DT Jabaal Sheard (Pitt), CB Blidi Wreh-Wilson (UConn)
Pac-10 Player of the Year
Winner: RB LaMicheal James, Oregon
James finished 3rd in the Heisman voting behind Cam Newton and Andrew Luck but we picked James over Luck (by the narrowest of margins). James was a Tour de Force for Oregon running up 1682 yards at 5.99 yards per clip and also scoring 21 TDs. James did all of this while also missing a game against one of the weakest opponents on Oregon's schedule. Like Todman, James was a model of consistency gaining over 100 yards in 9 of Oregon's 11 games played (so far) and he also gained over 90 yards in every game he played.
Runner-Up: QB Andrew Luck, Stanford
Honorable Mention: QB Darron Thomas (Oregon), RB Jacquizz Rodgers (Oregon St), QB Nick Foles (Arizona), WR Juron Criner (Arizona), WR Jeff Maehl (Oregon)
Non-BCS Conference Player of the Year
Winner: QB Kellen Moore, Boise State
Moore has done everything that Boise State has asked him to do. He engineered a game winning drive in the season opening victory against Virginia Tech and put them in the same position against Nevada before a very make-able FG was missed. Moore was 2nd to only Cam Newton in Passer Rating and posted an incredible TD/INT ratio (35 to 6).
Runner-Up: QB Andy Dalton, TCU
Honorable Mention: QB Colin Kapaernick (Nevada), QB Bryant Moniz (Hawai'i), QB Dominique Davis (ECU), RB Vai Taua (Nevada), QB Ryan Lindley (SDSU), QB Chandler Harnish (NIU), WR Greg Salas (Hawai'i)
Winner: QB Cameron Newton, Auburn
Newton took an 8-5 team and has them playing in the National Championship Game. He's the highest rated passer in all of College Football and he's 13th in rushing (including leading the SEC in rushing....as a QB).He has 20 TD running the football, 28 passing and he even caught a TD pass against Ole Miss. What more is there to say? He was amazing to watch. His stats were incredible and his highlights were even more jaw-dropping. He was a sensation.
Runner-Up: RB LaMichael James, Oregon
Honorable Mention: QB Andrew Luck (Stanford), QB Denard Robinson (Michigan), QB Dan Persa (Northwestern), QB Ryan Mallet (Arkansas), QB Kellen Moore (Boise St), QB Andy Dalton (TCU), WR Justin Blackmon (Oklahoma St)
NCAA Defensive Player of the Year:
Winner: DE Da'Quan Bowers, Clemson
He led the Nation in sacks with 15 averaging 1.15 per game. He was second in the Nation (to Ryan Kerrigan of Purdue) with 25 tackles for loss.
Runner-Up: DT Nick Fairley, Auburn
Honorable Mention: DE Ryan Kerrigan (Purdue), CB Patrick Peterson (LSU), CB Jaron Hosley (Virginia Tech), LB Von Miller (Texas A&M), LB Luke Kuechly (Boston College)
NCAA Coach of the Year:
Winner: Chip Kelly, Oregon
Kelly has really developed Oregon into an offensive juggernaut. They score the most points at 49.3 per game and also gain the most yards at 537 per game. But they aren't a one-dimensional football team as their defense also ranks 12th in points allowed at 18 per game. Kelly has this machine running and he just fills in the pieces as needed.
Runner-Up: Jim Harbaugh, Stanford
Honorable Mention: Randy Edsall (UConn), Bret Bielema (Wisconsin), Gene Chizik (Auburn), Michael Haywood (Miami/OH), Mark Dantonio (Michigan State), Dan Mullen (Mississippi State), Doug Marrone (Syracuse), Gary Patterson (TCU), Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State)
NCAA Coordinator of the Year:
Winner: Gus Malzahn, Auburn
Sure Malzahn has Cam Newton to thank but Malzahn did a great job this year molding his offense into an offense that best fits Cam Newton and his personnel. Malzahn would probably rather throw the ball all over the field but he saw what would help his team win and made some tweaks as the season went on.Without Malzahn, Auburn is not playing in the National Championship Game...it's that simple.
Runner-Up: Dana Holgorsen, Oklahoma State
Honorable Mention: Dick Bumpas (TCU), Mark Helfich (Oregon), Scott Shafer (Syracuse), John Chavis (LSU), Paul Chryst (Wisconsin), Bryan Harsin (Boise State), Kirby Smart (Alabama)
SEC Player of the Year:
Winner: QB Cam Newton, Auburn
Do we need to re-hash this? If he's the NCAA Offensive Player of the Year then we are also taking him for SEC Player of the Year.
Runner-Up: QB Ryan Mallett, Arkansas
Honorable Mention: DT Nick Fairley (Auburn), WR Alshon Jeffrey (South Carolina), RB Marcus Lattimore (South Carolina), CB Patrick Peterson (LSU), WR Julio Jones (Alabama)
Big Ten Player of the Year:
Winner: QB Denard Robinson, Michigan
This was a very tight race between Robinson and Persa but ultimately Robinson stats were just too good to ignore. As a QB Robinson rushed for 1702 yards (second to only Mikel Leshoure of Illinois who rushed for 4 more yards than Denard) averaging 6.6 yards per carry. Robinson also threw for 2570 yards. Without Robinson, Michigan doesn't go to a bowl game.
Runner-UP: QB Dan Persa, Northwestern
Honorable Mention: DE Ryan Kerrigan (Purdue), RB Mikel Leshoure (Illinois), QB Kirk Cousins (Michigan State), QB Scott Tolzien (Wisconsin), QB Terrelle Pryor (Ohio State), WR Dan Sanzenbacher (Ohio State), RB Montee Ball (Wisconsin), RB James White (Wisconsin)
Big 12 Player of the Year:
Co-Winner: WR Justin Blackmon, Oklahoma State
Blackmon finished his freshman season with 20 receptions for 2 TD. This year he had 111 receptions for 1782 yards (and that's missing a game) and was a big reason for Oklahoma State exceeding everybody's expectations this year. Blackmon finished 3rd in the Nation in receptions, 2nd in receiving yards, 2nd in receptions per game and 1st in TD. He was a difference maker in the Big 12.
Co-Winner: QB Landry Jones, Oklahoma
What a difference a year makes. Landry really blossomed this year and helped the Sooners rebound from a disappointing 8-5 season to winning the Big 12 and playing in a BCS bowl game. Landry finished 2nd in the Nation in Passing Yards (only Bryant Moniz of Hawai'i had more) and passing TD with 38 (2nd again to Moniz).
Honorable Mention: WR Ryan Broyles (Oklahoma), QB Robert Griffin (Baylor), QB Brandon Weeden (Oklahoma State), RB Kendall Hunter (Oklahoma State), RB Daniel Thomas (Kansas State), LB Von Miller (Texas A&M)
ACC Player of the Year:
Winner: QB Tyrod Taylor, Virginia Tech
The season could not have started out worse for Virginia Tech as they lost to Boise State and then fell victim of an unfathomable upset at the hands of James Madison. Behind Tyrod's Senior Leadership the Hokies rebounded and won 11 straight regular season games and went undefeated in the ACC. Taylor passed for 2743 yards and had a great TD to INT ratio (24 TD and only 5 INT). He finished the year as the highest rated passer in the ACC (a conference that also includes Christian Ponder, Russell Wilson, Kyle Parker and T.J. Yates). Tyrod also placed in the Top 15 in the ACC in rushing as he finished with 659 yards and 5 TD running the football.
Runner-Up: DE Da'Quan Bowers, Clemson
Honorable Mention: QB Russell Wilson (NC State), QB T.J. Yates (UNC), CB Jayron Hosley (VT), RB Montel Harris (BC), WR Torrey Smith (Maryland)
Big East Player of the Year
Winner: RB Jordan Todman (UConn)
UConn rode Todman to their first BCS birth and Big East Championship. Todman had an incredible year and led the Big East in rushing and came in 3rd Nationally (only 11 yards behind Mikel Leshoure and 7 behind Denard Robinson) despite missing the game against Buffalo. Todman was a symbol of consistency as he rushed for over 100 yards in 10 of the 12 games he played and his lowest output of the year was 80 yards.
Runner-Up: QB Geno Smith (WVU)
Honorable Mention: RB Bilal Powell (Louisville), QB Ryan Nassib (Syracuse), WR Armon Binns (Cincy), DE Bruce Irvin (WVU), DT Jabaal Sheard (Pitt), CB Blidi Wreh-Wilson (UConn)
Pac-10 Player of the Year
Winner: RB LaMicheal James, Oregon
James finished 3rd in the Heisman voting behind Cam Newton and Andrew Luck but we picked James over Luck (by the narrowest of margins). James was a Tour de Force for Oregon running up 1682 yards at 5.99 yards per clip and also scoring 21 TDs. James did all of this while also missing a game against one of the weakest opponents on Oregon's schedule. Like Todman, James was a model of consistency gaining over 100 yards in 9 of Oregon's 11 games played (so far) and he also gained over 90 yards in every game he played.
Runner-Up: QB Andrew Luck, Stanford
Honorable Mention: QB Darron Thomas (Oregon), RB Jacquizz Rodgers (Oregon St), QB Nick Foles (Arizona), WR Juron Criner (Arizona), WR Jeff Maehl (Oregon)
Non-BCS Conference Player of the Year
Winner: QB Kellen Moore, Boise State
Moore has done everything that Boise State has asked him to do. He engineered a game winning drive in the season opening victory against Virginia Tech and put them in the same position against Nevada before a very make-able FG was missed. Moore was 2nd to only Cam Newton in Passer Rating and posted an incredible TD/INT ratio (35 to 6).
Runner-Up: QB Andy Dalton, TCU
Honorable Mention: QB Colin Kapaernick (Nevada), QB Bryant Moniz (Hawai'i), QB Dominique Davis (ECU), RB Vai Taua (Nevada), QB Ryan Lindley (SDSU), QB Chandler Harnish (NIU), WR Greg Salas (Hawai'i)
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Three Intriguing Match-Ups This Week
On Wednesday Ross posted his "Six Pack Games of the Week" previewing and predicted the six best games of the week. Looking at the schedule I can't help but feel that this week deserves a look a little bit deeper and here are 3 more match-ups out there in college football land to keep an eye on this week.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23 Georgia (3-4, 2-3) AT Kentucky (4-3, 1-3) (7:00pm EST, CSS, ESPN 3) At first look this might not look like an interesting match-up but I feel it's the most intriguing match-up in the SEC this week other than LSU/Auburn. Kentucky is coming off of a win at South Carolina and Georgia is trying to resurrect it's season after blowout wins over Tennessee and Vanderbilt. This game is about one of these teams coming out of this game as a legit contender to the SEC East crown. This morning on Gameday both Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard tabbed Georgia as the team that would come out of the pack of the SEC East and travel to Atlanta for the SEC East. I really need to know what they have been drinking. It's possible that Georgia can win the SEC East but there are so many things that have to happen (including Georgia beating Florida and Auburn). Now, onto the game....Georgia has throttled it's last two opponents. But they were Tennessee and Vandy and both were at home. Georgia has not won a game on the road this year (usually a trademark under Mark Richt). Kentucky comes into the game riding high after a home victory over South Carolina. Will the Kentucky team that beat the Gamecocks and came within 3 of beating Auburn show up or will we see the team that got dismantled by Florida 48-14 and lost to Ole Miss. I expect this to either be a blow-out win by Georgia (not likely but in the 3 games they've won they've won by an avg of 39 points) or a game that comes down to who has the ball last (Georgia's 4 losses have come by an avg of 8 points). Derrick Locke will not play for Kentucky so it's up to Mike Hartline and Randall Cobb against Todd Grantham and the Georgia defense.
THE PICK: Georgia 38 Kentucky 31
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23 Georgia Tech (5-2, 3-1) AT Clemson (3-2, 1-2) (3:30pm EST, ABC/ESPN) Georgia Tech has posted a 5-2 record by basically picking off teams that aren't very good (South Carolina State, Virginia, Wake Forest and Middle Tennessee are among their victims). That being said, Paul Johnson and Georgia Tech are very dangerous and this game is a critical game for both teams in the ACC. It's critical for Tech to win to have a shot at winning the Coastal with Virginia Tech and Miami coming up in the next two weeks and it's important for Clemson to win because they cannot afford another loss as FSU prepares to defend their spot on the top of the Atlantic division. This should be fun as it's a border-war and a must-win game for both teams. Expect to see a lot of offense. Georgia Tech has to be kicking themselves for losing to Kansas as they would be 6-1 and in the Top 20 if they had not have lost that game.
THE PICK: Georgia Tech 31 Clemson 27
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23 #7 Michigan State (7-0, 3-0) AT Northwestern (5-1, 1-1) (12:00pm EST, ESPN) Michigan State is one of the pleasant surprises in college football this year. The play of the year might be the fake field goal to beat Notre Dame. The win over Wisconsin in Week 5 looks even bigger now that the Badgers have moved on to topple Ohio State. Northwestern has had two weeks to think about their 3 point loss to Purdue. I'm tempted to pick Northwestern but after looking at who they've beat I just can't bring myself to do it (Minnesota by 1, Central Michigan by 5, Vandy by 2, Rice and Illinois State). The Spartans move on and face Iowa next week in the huge Big 10 Showdown.
THE PICK: Michigan State 31 Northwestern 21
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23 Georgia (3-4, 2-3) AT Kentucky (4-3, 1-3) (7:00pm EST, CSS, ESPN 3) At first look this might not look like an interesting match-up but I feel it's the most intriguing match-up in the SEC this week other than LSU/Auburn. Kentucky is coming off of a win at South Carolina and Georgia is trying to resurrect it's season after blowout wins over Tennessee and Vanderbilt. This game is about one of these teams coming out of this game as a legit contender to the SEC East crown. This morning on Gameday both Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard tabbed Georgia as the team that would come out of the pack of the SEC East and travel to Atlanta for the SEC East. I really need to know what they have been drinking. It's possible that Georgia can win the SEC East but there are so many things that have to happen (including Georgia beating Florida and Auburn). Now, onto the game....Georgia has throttled it's last two opponents. But they were Tennessee and Vandy and both were at home. Georgia has not won a game on the road this year (usually a trademark under Mark Richt). Kentucky comes into the game riding high after a home victory over South Carolina. Will the Kentucky team that beat the Gamecocks and came within 3 of beating Auburn show up or will we see the team that got dismantled by Florida 48-14 and lost to Ole Miss. I expect this to either be a blow-out win by Georgia (not likely but in the 3 games they've won they've won by an avg of 39 points) or a game that comes down to who has the ball last (Georgia's 4 losses have come by an avg of 8 points). Derrick Locke will not play for Kentucky so it's up to Mike Hartline and Randall Cobb against Todd Grantham and the Georgia defense.
THE PICK: Georgia 38 Kentucky 31
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23 Georgia Tech (5-2, 3-1) AT Clemson (3-2, 1-2) (3:30pm EST, ABC/ESPN) Georgia Tech has posted a 5-2 record by basically picking off teams that aren't very good (South Carolina State, Virginia, Wake Forest and Middle Tennessee are among their victims). That being said, Paul Johnson and Georgia Tech are very dangerous and this game is a critical game for both teams in the ACC. It's critical for Tech to win to have a shot at winning the Coastal with Virginia Tech and Miami coming up in the next two weeks and it's important for Clemson to win because they cannot afford another loss as FSU prepares to defend their spot on the top of the Atlantic division. This should be fun as it's a border-war and a must-win game for both teams. Expect to see a lot of offense. Georgia Tech has to be kicking themselves for losing to Kansas as they would be 6-1 and in the Top 20 if they had not have lost that game.
THE PICK: Georgia Tech 31 Clemson 27
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23 #7 Michigan State (7-0, 3-0) AT Northwestern (5-1, 1-1) (12:00pm EST, ESPN) Michigan State is one of the pleasant surprises in college football this year. The play of the year might be the fake field goal to beat Notre Dame. The win over Wisconsin in Week 5 looks even bigger now that the Badgers have moved on to topple Ohio State. Northwestern has had two weeks to think about their 3 point loss to Purdue. I'm tempted to pick Northwestern but after looking at who they've beat I just can't bring myself to do it (Minnesota by 1, Central Michigan by 5, Vandy by 2, Rice and Illinois State). The Spartans move on and face Iowa next week in the huge Big 10 Showdown.
THE PICK: Michigan State 31 Northwestern 21
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
The Six Pack Games of the Week: September 16-18
Every week, I’ll throw a spotlight on the six most interesting games of the weekend to tell you why these are the games you should try to catch, who’s going to win (and why), and what ramifications they could have on the rest of the college football landscape.
LAST WEEK: 3-3
OVERALL: 7-5
LAST WEEK: 3-3
OVERALL: 7-5
SATURDAY, SEPT. 18
#12 Arkansas @ Georgia (12pm EST, ESPN)
Arkansas was the trendy pick in the SEC this year, following in the proud footsteps of 2009 Ole Miss and 2008 Georgia, although by now the pollsters have learned their lesson well enough not to place Arkansas immediately in the top ten. They certainly didn't look like a top ten team in struggling with UL-Monroe for three quarters last week. Like that '09 Ole Miss squad, they feature a much-hyped veteran signal-caller (Ryan Mallett for Arkansas, Jevan Snead for Ole Miss) and a good amount of other returning starters and were competitive against other top SEC teams the year prior. Unlike that '09 Ole Miss squad, they don't have Houston Nutt, a serial underachiever when expectations are high. This road trip to Georgia is their first real test of the season and the first game in a fairly brutal four-game stretch that will either reveal them as real contenders for an SEC (and possibly even national) title or expose them as fraudulent pretenders; after the road game against Georgia, Arkansas entertains Alabama at home, faces Texas A&M in Dallas, and heads back on the road to play Auburn. That's some tough sledding. A week ago, Georgia failed their first big test of the season, getting manhandled by South Carolina, 17-6. The Ol' Ball Coach rarely had South Carolina test Georgia's pass defense in that game -- why bother when Marcus Lattimore could grind those undersized Georgia defenders into dust -- but Petrino and Mallett figure to do just that on Saturday. If the Georgia pass defense can keep Mallett in check, they have a shot in this one. Here's guessing they struggle to do that.
THE PICK: ARKANSAS 31, GEORGIA 24
Georgia Tech @ North Carolina (12pm EST, ESPN3.com)
Oh, ACC. It wasn't really just two weeks ago that you had five teams ranked in the top 20 and various pundits (including this one) suggesting that the ACC Coastal could be the toughest division in college football, was it? Yeah, about that... NOT SO MUCH. It may still be tough for one team to emerge from that division, but only because all the teams in it are varying degrees of mediocre. Georgia Tech dispatched South Carolina State easily in week one (41-10), but provided one of the more surprising upsets of the season in traveling to Lawrence and losing to the same Kansas team that a week earlier had failed to score a touchdown against a I-AA North Dakota State team. That's... not good. But when your quarterback goes 5/15, good things generally aren't right around the corner, even if you are an option team. On the other side, North Carolina has had two weeks to think about their near-miss against LSU and prepare for Georgia Tech's always-tricky offense. The bad news is that they still have no idea which players that were suspended for that LSU tilt may be available for this game; the wheels of NCAA justice move very slowly indeed. Giving a team an extra week to prepare for the Tech offense is usually a good way to neutralize (at least in part) its effectiveness, but that may not be of much aid to a Tar Heel team dealing with so much chaos.
THE PICK: GEORGIA TECH 34, NORTH CAROLINA 21
#8 Nebraska @ Washington (330pm EST, ABC/ESPN2)
Nebraska pulled off a sloppy 38-17 win over Idaho last week, turning the ball over four times and committing ten penalties (for 123 yards); they'll need to be sharper than that to get to to 3-0 this week. The Washington hype bus got a flat tire in week one as they came undone on a road trip to BYU, but they bounced back nicely to take care of business against Syracuse last week. Nebraska obviously represents a massive leap in quality from either of those teams, but Washington has been a scrappy team against ranked opponents under Sarkisian. They went 2-3 a year ago, blasting a 19th ranked Cal team to the end the season and pulling off a memorable September upset over then-#3 USC. (In their three losses, they lost a spirited 31-23 game to LSU, but got smashed by both Oregon schools.) Granted, those teams may have been overrated at the time of those games (USC certainly was, judging by the rest of their season), but still: Sark has done an excellent job of getting his team ready to play against top teams when they come to Seattle. Nebraska, meanwhile, has found a bit of offense to go with their very solid defense, led by freshman quarterback Taylor "T-Magic" Martinez, who's been a capable passer (21/32, 242 yards, 0/1 TD/INT) and a dynamic runner (21 carries, 384 yards, 1 TD). Washington keeps it close by forcing Martinez into some costly errors, but Nebraska's defense ultimately makes enough stops to secure victory.
THE PICK: NEBRASKA 27, WASHINGTON 24
Clemson @ #16 Auburn (7pm EST, ESPN)
Somewhat inexplicably, ESPN's College Gameday has chosen to head to this game this week. Maybe they got some good buy one/get one free deals when they were in Alabama for the Penn State-Alabama game last week. In any event, it is an intriguing match-up between one of the few ACC teams that hasn't fallen on their faces yet and an SEC West team that continues to generate buzz as an SEC title contender. Mind you, Clemson's largely managed to avoid the embarrassing fates that have befallen fellow ACC teams by playing no one with a pulse (North Texas and Presbyterian so far) and Auburn looked decidedly not-ready-for-primetime in eking out a win over a Mississippi State team that could barely complete a pass. Andre Ellington and Jamie Harper have done an adequate job of replacing CJ Spiller so far (27 carries, 243 yards, 4 TD) and QB Kyle Parker has been efficient (15/26, 283 yards, 4/1 TD/INT), but Auburn's defense is a gigantic leap in quality from the likes of the Mean Green and the Blue Hose. Auburn's been led by JUCO transfer QB Cam Newton, still best known for stealing a laptop at Florida a few years ago. Newton's leading the team in both passing (20/33, 322 yards, 5/1 TD/INT) and running (33 carries, 241 yards, 2 TD) and Clemson hasn't had to deal with anything like him yet. Throw in the fact that Auburn has utterly owned this series (14 wins in a row dating back to 1952, including 9 in a row in Auburn) and the pick to win is pretty easy. And, hell, Clemson's from the ACC -- are you really gonna pick them to do something good?
THE PICK: AUBURN 34, CLEMSON 24
#6 Texas @ Texas Tech (8pm EST, ABC/ESPN2)
The last time Texas went to Lubbock these two teams played one of the best games of the last few years and Michael Crabtree made one of the most memorable catches of the decade in Tech's sensational upset of Texas that ended Texas' conference (and national) title ambitions. Sadly, most of the key personnel from that game -- Colt McCoy, Quan Cosby, Jordan Shipley, Graham Harrell, Michael Crabtree, Mike Leach -- are no longer around for this installment, so it may be hard to get a rematch that lives up to that tremendous standard. That said, if Texas Tech continues to build upon the promise shown in their first two games and the Texas offense continues to look lethargic, an upset isn't out of the question. The atmosphere in Lubbock should be frenzied and Tuberville's Auburn teams frequently played their best ball in the biggest games (from 2004-2008, Tuberville's Auburn teams went 9-6 against top ten-ranked foes). On the other hand, for all its sluggishness, the Texas offense hasn't turned the ball over thus far and has scored 30+ points in both games and the defense has been absolute nails most of the time. Thus far, Tuberville's stayed remarkably faithful to the Air Raid offense that Mike Leach installed at Texas Tech: they threw 53 times against SMU and 41 times against New Mexico. Of course, they also ran the ball 36 times against New Mexico and two backs had ten carries, so Tuberville clearly hasn't forgotten about establishing the run. Against a stout Texas defense that may be easier said than done, so look for Taylor Potts to chuck the ball early and often. On the other side of the ball, the Texas Tech defense hasn't been particularly fearsome yet: they conceded 433 yards of offense to New Mexico and two second-quarter touchdowns when the game was still in doubt to a degree. Against SMU they gave up 327 yards and 27 points, so this is clearly a work in progress; in any event, there should be some holes for the Texas offense to exploit. Unless Texas has some really costly turnovers, they should win this one; they have a defense capable of stopping Tech a few times, while Tech doesn't seem to have a defense capable of stopping Texas very often.
THE PICK: TEXAS 35, TEXAS TECH 24
#9 Iowa @ #24 Arizona (1030pm EST, ESPN)
And now we come to the only game of the day to feature two ranked opponents. Iowa beat Arizona 27-17 a year ago in Iowa City in a game that wasn't as close as the score indicated (Arizona's two touchdowns came off a pick-six and late touchdown drive against reserve defenders after Iowa had already built a 27-10 lead). So what's changed in a year, aside from the locale? Not much for Iowa, aside from a rebuilt offensive line that's performed well against admittedly below-average competition (this week will be the first true test) and a linebacking corps that's two-thirds new. Arizona, on the other hand, has a lot of new faces in the front seven on defense, but returns a lot on offense. But the most significant change is at quarterback; Matt Scott was the Wildcats' QB in the early going last year, but he was so disastrous against Iowa (4/14, 50 yds, 0/1 TD/INT) that he gave way to Nick Foles... and never got the job back. Foles led the Arizona offense on their only scoring drive against Iowa a year ago and went to garner all-conference honors in the Pac-10; the Arizona offense really exploded when he took over and bears little resemblance to the outfit that sputtered and died against Iowa a year ago -- so that will be a significant new challenge. One thing that should give Iowa confidence? That offense curled up into a ball and whimpered when faced with a fast, hard-hitting, aggressive defense in Nebraska in the Holiday Bowl last year. Iowa doesn't have an Ndamukong Suh to lead that attack, but they do have Adrian Clayborn and the rest of a very aggressive and disruptive defensive line, linebackers that have been coming into their own, and a mostly veteran secondary.
#12 Arkansas @ Georgia (12pm EST, ESPN)
Arkansas was the trendy pick in the SEC this year, following in the proud footsteps of 2009 Ole Miss and 2008 Georgia, although by now the pollsters have learned their lesson well enough not to place Arkansas immediately in the top ten. They certainly didn't look like a top ten team in struggling with UL-Monroe for three quarters last week. Like that '09 Ole Miss squad, they feature a much-hyped veteran signal-caller (Ryan Mallett for Arkansas, Jevan Snead for Ole Miss) and a good amount of other returning starters and were competitive against other top SEC teams the year prior. Unlike that '09 Ole Miss squad, they don't have Houston Nutt, a serial underachiever when expectations are high. This road trip to Georgia is their first real test of the season and the first game in a fairly brutal four-game stretch that will either reveal them as real contenders for an SEC (and possibly even national) title or expose them as fraudulent pretenders; after the road game against Georgia, Arkansas entertains Alabama at home, faces Texas A&M in Dallas, and heads back on the road to play Auburn. That's some tough sledding. A week ago, Georgia failed their first big test of the season, getting manhandled by South Carolina, 17-6. The Ol' Ball Coach rarely had South Carolina test Georgia's pass defense in that game -- why bother when Marcus Lattimore could grind those undersized Georgia defenders into dust -- but Petrino and Mallett figure to do just that on Saturday. If the Georgia pass defense can keep Mallett in check, they have a shot in this one. Here's guessing they struggle to do that.
THE PICK: ARKANSAS 31, GEORGIA 24
Georgia Tech @ North Carolina (12pm EST, ESPN3.com)
Oh, ACC. It wasn't really just two weeks ago that you had five teams ranked in the top 20 and various pundits (including this one) suggesting that the ACC Coastal could be the toughest division in college football, was it? Yeah, about that... NOT SO MUCH. It may still be tough for one team to emerge from that division, but only because all the teams in it are varying degrees of mediocre. Georgia Tech dispatched South Carolina State easily in week one (41-10), but provided one of the more surprising upsets of the season in traveling to Lawrence and losing to the same Kansas team that a week earlier had failed to score a touchdown against a I-AA North Dakota State team. That's... not good. But when your quarterback goes 5/15, good things generally aren't right around the corner, even if you are an option team. On the other side, North Carolina has had two weeks to think about their near-miss against LSU and prepare for Georgia Tech's always-tricky offense. The bad news is that they still have no idea which players that were suspended for that LSU tilt may be available for this game; the wheels of NCAA justice move very slowly indeed. Giving a team an extra week to prepare for the Tech offense is usually a good way to neutralize (at least in part) its effectiveness, but that may not be of much aid to a Tar Heel team dealing with so much chaos.
THE PICK: GEORGIA TECH 34, NORTH CAROLINA 21
#8 Nebraska @ Washington (330pm EST, ABC/ESPN2)
Nebraska pulled off a sloppy 38-17 win over Idaho last week, turning the ball over four times and committing ten penalties (for 123 yards); they'll need to be sharper than that to get to to 3-0 this week. The Washington hype bus got a flat tire in week one as they came undone on a road trip to BYU, but they bounced back nicely to take care of business against Syracuse last week. Nebraska obviously represents a massive leap in quality from either of those teams, but Washington has been a scrappy team against ranked opponents under Sarkisian. They went 2-3 a year ago, blasting a 19th ranked Cal team to the end the season and pulling off a memorable September upset over then-#3 USC. (In their three losses, they lost a spirited 31-23 game to LSU, but got smashed by both Oregon schools.) Granted, those teams may have been overrated at the time of those games (USC certainly was, judging by the rest of their season), but still: Sark has done an excellent job of getting his team ready to play against top teams when they come to Seattle. Nebraska, meanwhile, has found a bit of offense to go with their very solid defense, led by freshman quarterback Taylor "T-Magic" Martinez, who's been a capable passer (21/32, 242 yards, 0/1 TD/INT) and a dynamic runner (21 carries, 384 yards, 1 TD). Washington keeps it close by forcing Martinez into some costly errors, but Nebraska's defense ultimately makes enough stops to secure victory.
THE PICK: NEBRASKA 27, WASHINGTON 24
Clemson @ #16 Auburn (7pm EST, ESPN)
Somewhat inexplicably, ESPN's College Gameday has chosen to head to this game this week. Maybe they got some good buy one/get one free deals when they were in Alabama for the Penn State-Alabama game last week. In any event, it is an intriguing match-up between one of the few ACC teams that hasn't fallen on their faces yet and an SEC West team that continues to generate buzz as an SEC title contender. Mind you, Clemson's largely managed to avoid the embarrassing fates that have befallen fellow ACC teams by playing no one with a pulse (North Texas and Presbyterian so far) and Auburn looked decidedly not-ready-for-primetime in eking out a win over a Mississippi State team that could barely complete a pass. Andre Ellington and Jamie Harper have done an adequate job of replacing CJ Spiller so far (27 carries, 243 yards, 4 TD) and QB Kyle Parker has been efficient (15/26, 283 yards, 4/1 TD/INT), but Auburn's defense is a gigantic leap in quality from the likes of the Mean Green and the Blue Hose. Auburn's been led by JUCO transfer QB Cam Newton, still best known for stealing a laptop at Florida a few years ago. Newton's leading the team in both passing (20/33, 322 yards, 5/1 TD/INT) and running (33 carries, 241 yards, 2 TD) and Clemson hasn't had to deal with anything like him yet. Throw in the fact that Auburn has utterly owned this series (14 wins in a row dating back to 1952, including 9 in a row in Auburn) and the pick to win is pretty easy. And, hell, Clemson's from the ACC -- are you really gonna pick them to do something good?
THE PICK: AUBURN 34, CLEMSON 24
#6 Texas @ Texas Tech (8pm EST, ABC/ESPN2)
The last time Texas went to Lubbock these two teams played one of the best games of the last few years and Michael Crabtree made one of the most memorable catches of the decade in Tech's sensational upset of Texas that ended Texas' conference (and national) title ambitions. Sadly, most of the key personnel from that game -- Colt McCoy, Quan Cosby, Jordan Shipley, Graham Harrell, Michael Crabtree, Mike Leach -- are no longer around for this installment, so it may be hard to get a rematch that lives up to that tremendous standard. That said, if Texas Tech continues to build upon the promise shown in their first two games and the Texas offense continues to look lethargic, an upset isn't out of the question. The atmosphere in Lubbock should be frenzied and Tuberville's Auburn teams frequently played their best ball in the biggest games (from 2004-2008, Tuberville's Auburn teams went 9-6 against top ten-ranked foes). On the other hand, for all its sluggishness, the Texas offense hasn't turned the ball over thus far and has scored 30+ points in both games and the defense has been absolute nails most of the time. Thus far, Tuberville's stayed remarkably faithful to the Air Raid offense that Mike Leach installed at Texas Tech: they threw 53 times against SMU and 41 times against New Mexico. Of course, they also ran the ball 36 times against New Mexico and two backs had ten carries, so Tuberville clearly hasn't forgotten about establishing the run. Against a stout Texas defense that may be easier said than done, so look for Taylor Potts to chuck the ball early and often. On the other side of the ball, the Texas Tech defense hasn't been particularly fearsome yet: they conceded 433 yards of offense to New Mexico and two second-quarter touchdowns when the game was still in doubt to a degree. Against SMU they gave up 327 yards and 27 points, so this is clearly a work in progress; in any event, there should be some holes for the Texas offense to exploit. Unless Texas has some really costly turnovers, they should win this one; they have a defense capable of stopping Tech a few times, while Tech doesn't seem to have a defense capable of stopping Texas very often.
THE PICK: TEXAS 35, TEXAS TECH 24
#9 Iowa @ #24 Arizona (1030pm EST, ESPN)
And now we come to the only game of the day to feature two ranked opponents. Iowa beat Arizona 27-17 a year ago in Iowa City in a game that wasn't as close as the score indicated (Arizona's two touchdowns came off a pick-six and late touchdown drive against reserve defenders after Iowa had already built a 27-10 lead). So what's changed in a year, aside from the locale? Not much for Iowa, aside from a rebuilt offensive line that's performed well against admittedly below-average competition (this week will be the first true test) and a linebacking corps that's two-thirds new. Arizona, on the other hand, has a lot of new faces in the front seven on defense, but returns a lot on offense. But the most significant change is at quarterback; Matt Scott was the Wildcats' QB in the early going last year, but he was so disastrous against Iowa (4/14, 50 yds, 0/1 TD/INT) that he gave way to Nick Foles... and never got the job back. Foles led the Arizona offense on their only scoring drive against Iowa a year ago and went to garner all-conference honors in the Pac-10; the Arizona offense really exploded when he took over and bears little resemblance to the outfit that sputtered and died against Iowa a year ago -- so that will be a significant new challenge. One thing that should give Iowa confidence? That offense curled up into a ball and whimpered when faced with a fast, hard-hitting, aggressive defense in Nebraska in the Holiday Bowl last year. Iowa doesn't have an Ndamukong Suh to lead that attack, but they do have Adrian Clayborn and the rest of a very aggressive and disruptive defensive line, linebackers that have been coming into their own, and a mostly veteran secondary.
On offense, Iowa's approach won't be much of a mystery: they're going to pound away with their physical offensive line and the one-two punch of Adam Robinson and Jewel Hampton at running back and then use play-action to go over the top to Marvin McNutt and Derrell Johnson-Koulianos. A week ago, they demoralized Iowa State with an unstoppable, punishing ground game and followed it up by finishing them off with some deep bombs in the passing game. If the offensive line can open holes for the running game and give Stanzi time to survey the field, the Iowa offense should do very well; on the other hand, the Arizona defense has far more speed and physical talent than either the Iowa State or the Eastern Illinois defenses, so the going won't be easy. Iowa has a dreadful record in games played out west, but that was then and this is now: they have a well-prepared, mentally tough team that should be able to punish Arizona physically.
THE PICK: IOWA 27, ARIZONA 20
THE PICK: IOWA 27, ARIZONA 20
Saturday, August 21, 2010
ACC Preview
2009 Standings
Atlantic Division
Clemson Tigers 9-5 (6-2)
Boston College Eagles 8-5 (5-3)
Florida State Seminoles 7-6 (4-4)
Wake Forest Demon Deacons 5-7 (3-5)
North Carolina St Wolfpack 5-7 (2-6)
Maryland Terrapins 2-10 (1-7)
Coastal Division
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 10-3 (7-1)
Virginia Tech Hokies 10-3 (6-2)
Miami Hurricanes 9-4 (5-3)
North Carolina Tar Heels 8-5 (4-4)
Duke Blue Devils 5-7 (3-5)
Virginia Cavaliers 3-9 (2-6)
ACC Championship Game: Georgia Tech 39 Clemson 34
Returning Leaders: Passing
Jacory Harris, Miami, Jr (242 of 406 for 3352 yds, 24 TD, 17 INT)
Russell Wilson, NC St, Jr (224 of 378 for 3027 yds, 31 TD, 11 INT)
Kyle Parker, Clemson, Soph (205 of 369 for 2526 yds, 20 TD, 12 INT)
Tyrod Taylor, Va Tech, Sr (136 of 243 for 2311 yds, 13 TD, 5 INT)
T.J. Yates, NC, Sr (214 of 355 for 2136 yds, 14 TD, 15 INT)
Returning Leaders: Rushing
Ryan Williams, Va Tech, Soph (293 carries for 1655 yds, 21 TD)
Montel Harris, BC, Jr (308 carries for 1457 yds, 14 TD, 4.7 ypc)
Joshua Nesbitt, GT,Sr, (279 carries for 1037 yds, 18 TD, 3.7 ypc)
Jermaine Thomas, FSU, Jr (163 carries for 832 yds, 9 TD, 5.1 ypc)
Ryan Houston, UNC, Sr (191 carries for 713 yds, 9 TD, 5.1 ypc)
Returning Leaders: Receiving
Donovan Varner, Duke, Jr (65 rec for 1047 yds, 8 TD, 5.4 rec/game)
Greg Little, UNC, Sr (62 rec for 724 yds, 5 TD, 4.8 rec/game)
Torrey Smith, Maryland, Jr (61 rec for 828 yds, 5 TD, 5.1 rec/game)
Devon Brown, Wake Forest, Jr (61 rec for 671 yds, 6 TD)
Marshall Williams, Wake Forest, Sr (60 rec for 867 yds, 6 TD)
Bert Reed, FSU, Jr (60 rec for 711 yds, 0 TD, 4.6 rec/game)
Returning Leaders: Tackles
Luke Kuechly, BC, Soph, LB (158 total, 12.1 tackles/game)
Alex Wujciak, Maryland, Sr, LB (131 total, 10.9 tackles/game)
DeAndre McDaniel, Clemson, Sr, SS (98 total, 7 tackles/game
Marcus Gilchrist, Clemson, Sr, CB (96 total, 6.8 tackles/game)
Barquell Rivers, Va Tech, Jr, LB (96 total, 7.3 tackles/game)
Returning Leaders: Sacks
Robert Quinn, UNC, Jr, DE (11.0 sacks)
Allen Bailey, Miami, Sr, DE (7.0)
Adrian Moten, Maryland, Sr, LB (5.5)
Mister Alexander, FSU, Sr, LB (5.0)
Quinton Copes, UNC, Jr, DE (5.0)
Returning Leaders: Interceptions
DeAndre McDaniel, Clemson, Sr, SS (8 interceptions)
Deunta Williams, UNC, Sr, FS (6)
Rashad Carmichael, Va Tech, Sr, CB (6)
Rashard Hall, Clemson, Soph, FS (6)
Kendric Burney, UNC, Sr, CB (5)
Around the Blogs
Who is your pick to win the ACC?
BC Interruption:
Virginia Tech. It always comes back to the Hokies.
Gobbler Country:
I'm a homer so I have to go with Virginia Tech. I think issues with both lines might cause the Hokies to struggle early on, but they'll hit their stride in time for conference play. They have a tough gauntlet of games in November against the other three Coastal contenders, but they're helped by not having to play FSU or Clemson this year.
From The Rumble Seat:
I am picking Georgia Tech to win the conference again. Despite the pundits stating otherwise, Georgia Tech's schedule lines up perfectly. The easy games are early in the season allowing Georgia Tech to focus on tougher opponents later in the season and build momentum. The offense relies heavily on timing and execution. CPJ gets the wheels turning by the midpoint of the season and very few teams late in the season can slow down GT's rushing attack. And I have proof. Check out the average points and yards per game per month since CPJ has been at GT:
September - 26.0 PPG, 362 YPG
October - 31.6 PPG, 393 YPG
November - 32.4, 433 YPG
No other team in the ACC has shown more consistency from start to finish in the regular season from 2008-2009 besides the Jackets. VPI lost a ton of talent on defense (their offense's crutch). Miami and FSU will ruin one or the other's season on Labor Day and the winner of that game will start losing once the temperature drops below 85 degrees. UNC and Clemson are tragically flawed (UNC with a terrible offense and Clemson with a terrible head coach). And the rest of the teams don't have the horses to run with Georgia Tech in a Championship Game.
The Sports Age
I think Virginia Tech finally gets it done this season. The Hokies always come in as a top-rated team, but never seem to be able to finish the job in conference. However, quarterback Tyrod Taylor, running backs Ryan Williams and Darren Evans (who missed all of last season), and a healthy dose of Beamer ball can finally get the job done and bring an ACC Conference Championship to Blacksburg this season.
Breaking Down The ACC With The Zealots
Boston College Eagles
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #2): The Eagles return many of the major pieces to the puzzle. The odd piece out is Dave Shinskie, although his low profile hard work are character traits rather famous with former BC quarterbacks. Montel Harris can be a star, but at worst he's a very productive back...to the tune of 1,450 yards 14 TD's a year ago. Add in Mark Herzlich and you've got your Atlantic Division runners up. But if Shinskie can improve, there is no doubt the Eagles are capable of going to the ACCCG.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #2): Each of the last two years, I've picked BC to finish last in the division. And each year, they've made me look foolish, winning the division in 2008 and placing second last season. So I'm not making that mistake again. This year's squad looks like another really solid unit with good experience and a great running back in Montel Harris. If Dave Shinskie can cut his interceptions in half, there's no reason they can't compete for the division title. And remember, they're 3-1 over the last 4 years against Florida State, their primary competition. Though they travel to Tallahassee and get a visit from Virginia Tech this season, they also draw the two worst teams from the Coastal Division (Duke, Virginia) and have no other really challenging away games. Whatever they can get out of Mark Herzlich is just gravy. There will be a lot of inspirational stories told about what he means to this team, but in truth, they're capable of winning big without him.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #2): BC has an overpowering OL, a top-notch RB (Montel Harris), and a member of the Chris Weinke All-Stars at QB (26-year old sophomore Dave Shinskie). On the other hand, Shinskie threw 14 interceptions last year and lacks many returning targets at WR. Until the offense proves they can throw the ball at least moderately well, Harris may not have much room to run. The defense should be good as it returns a pair of starters at LB, DL, and in the secondary -- and could be really good if cancer survivor Mark Herzlich is as good as he was in 2008 (ACC Defensive Player of the Year). They draw Virginia Tech, Duke, and Virginia from the other division, which is pretty favorable; the division title may come down to their 10/16 road tilt against Florida State.
Clemson Tigers
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #1): Kyle Parker shocked a lot of people when he decided to return to school despite being picked early in the MLB Draft in an early round. He brings back with him a nearly intact offensive line, though the skill position players are relatively new. The guy who it just seems like was the fresh face (Parker) will have to lead and teach these new guys the ropes. Even after losing Spiller and Jacoby Ford, I believe that Parker is up to the job. Add in a defense that was very good overall last year and returns 7 starters and it begins to start becoming more apparent why I picked these guys. Remember, not too many reasons are needed, after all, this is the weaker side of the ACC.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #3): I'm feeling Clemson a little more than I was, now that Kyle Parker has confirmed he's returning this season. He looked very promising as a freshman, but at the same time, you have to wonder how much he's improved in the off-season with so much of his attention going towards baseball. You also have to wonder how much motivation he has to improve from here out, knowing that this is likely going to be his last year playing football. Regardless, Clemson is better off with him under center than to be breaking in a freshman for the second straight year. But that's somewhat beside the point. The REAL issue facing the Tigers this season is figuring out where they can dig up about 2,700 total yards and 21 TDs, because that's what walked out the door with CJ Spiller. He WAS the offense last year. Andre Ellington and Jamie Harper are nice players, but they won't come close to matching Spiller's impact. Clemson also doesn't have a returning receiver who caught more than 14 passes last year. The defense should be alright, but Clemson draws 3 of the toughest teams out of the Coastal division AND has to go on the road to play FSU and BC. On second thought, maybe this wouldn't be such a bad year to break in Tajh Boyd at QB. They aren't going to contend for anything, anyway.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #3): The good news for Clemson's offense is that they return four starters on the offensive line and their starting QB; the bad news is they don't return much else. CJ Spiller leaves a big hole to fill and they have no proven receivers. The defense should be pretty solid since they return a lot along the defensive line and in the secondary, but until this team finds some new stars at the skill positions, they're going to have a tough time equaling last year's accomplishments. They draw Miami, North Carolina, and Georgia Tech from the other division, too, which is no picnic.
Duke Blue Devils
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #5): Let me now clarify that I hate Duke. Having said that, I think Duke is improving under David Cutcliffe. It will certainly be interesting to see how sophomore Sean Renfree tries to fill the shoes of four-year starter at quarterback Thaddeus Lewis. I think Duke could finish as high as fourth and maybe even contend for a bowl this year, BUT it all centers around Renfree. He has the skill position players to get it done, as was evidenced by Duke finishing #9 in the nation last year in passing. But they also finished DEAD last in rushing. Many teams had a single player that out-rushed Duke's 762-yard rushing output for the season. So to improve and become bowl eligible, it starts with being able to have some semblance of a running game. And then the Blue Devils must also improve upon a defense that was a little below average last year. But if they can stay in that range, they will put themselves in position to maybe move up a spot in the ACC pecking order.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #5): I'm a big fan of David Cutcliffe as a coach. He walked in the door at Duke and had them pushing for bowl eligibility after 4 straight years of 2 wins or less (6 double-digit loss seasons in the previous 8 years). However, I think he takes a step back in 2010. Its a bit of a rebuilding year on defense (and when you're rebuilding at Duke you're REALLY rebuilding), and Duke has to replace Thad Lewis at QB. Sean Renfree looks promising as his replacement, but there are going to be major growing pains. And the schedule doesn't set up well for them at all. Their only winnable conference home game looks like Virginia, beyond that maybe they catch Maryland or Wake Forest on the road. Regardless, the gap between Duke and the Big Four in the Coastal is gargantuan.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #5): They lose their best player in some time (Thaddeus Lewis), as well as slew of other key players on offense and defense and play in arguably the toughest division in college football. David Cutcliffe is doing a nice job at Duke, but this year doesn't set up too well for him.
Florida State Seminoles
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #3): I know, I know, I know. I am not picking the post-Bobby Bowden Seminoles to win the Atlantic. I just don't think that Christian Ponder is the savior of the fan nation with the annoying chop chant (most annoying thing in college football, closely followed by Rockytop). Rather, he reminds me more of the lineage of Chris Weinke, Chris Rix, or Wyatt Sexton (Minus the whole I am the messiah worship me part). On one hand they do return their entire offensive line. A GREAT offensive line! On the other hand, which skill position player is going to do something with it? Also, a key skill player was already suspended. The BIGGEST question mark is how drastically the D can improve under Jimbo Fisher. Without it, they don't stand a chance at #1 in the Atlantic. If they do, I may need to think about changing my pick.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #1): The Jimbo Fisher era at FSU got off to a hot start on the recruiting trail, where he dramatically upgraded the defensive talent level with the likes of LaMarcus Joyner, Jeff Luc, and Christian Jones, among others. Those guys are throwbacks to the freak athletes that used to dominate the Seminole defense, and all of them will get on the field this year. Of course, they'll be a bit erratic, being so inexperienced, but they'll make up for it by making the sort of dynamic plays FSU has lacked on that side of the ball during Mickey Andrews' last years. And expect new defensive coordinator Mark Stoops to light a fire under everyone. It's unlikely they're going to turn into a defensive powerhouse over night, but if they can just keep their points allowed under 30 points per game (last year's average), FSU is going to win a lot of games. Because the offense is going to take care of itself. FSU may boast the best offensive line in the country, and Christian Ponder seemed to be making a lot of progress as a passer before going down with an injury last season. I'm not buying into the Heisman hype, though.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #1): Every year we talk about Florida State being "back"... but this really might be the year. Christian Ponder should be the best QB in the league (and a possible Heisman contender) and he should get ample time to find his experienced receivers behind an offensive line that returns all five starters. That same line should be able to open up a lot of holes for a pair of solid running backs (Jermaine Thomas and Chris Thompson), too. As good as the offense should be, though, the defense will need to be a lot better for FSU to win the division. They were one of the worst in the nation a year ago, so there's a lot of work for new defensive coordinator Mark Stoops to do. But if he can get them up to even respectable levels, the offense should be potent enough to lead them back to the promised land. The schedule is a little tricky, especially in October when they play Miami, Boston College, and North Carolina over the span of four games (the fourth game is against NC State). That run of games will either sink their title hopes or put them in pole position.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #4): This may finally be the year where Paul Johnson's triple option attack at GT will look humanly possible to contain. Aside from quarterback Josh Nesbitt, the Yellow Jackets lost nearly every other playmaker on offense and defense. Roddy Jones and Embry Peoples will try to reproduce some of the explosiveness and productivity of Dwyer while Anthony Allen will try to be the punishing back that Dwyer could channel as well. However, the Yellow Jackets may have to go away from their run, run, run, run, run, hail mary deep pass strategy with the loss of Demaryius Thomas. Thomas was a huge field-stretcher for the Yellow Jackets and their most reliable option. Nesbitt was able to throw up balls for grabs and Thomas would come down with them. Even still, Nesbitt completed a paltry 46% of his passes, and that is likely to worsen and make the Jackets into even more of a running team that in Johnson's two previous years with them. The Jackets also lose a lot on the defensive side of the ball, most notably with Derrick Morgan. They are changing their defense as well, so I would imagine it may take some time to click. Basically, Georgia Tech is high in many peoples polls, but not mine. Despite Nesbitt's leadership and experience, working with some new skill position players and behind a completely revamped offensive line (2 returning starters) makes me doubt their ACC contention. In my eyes, Duke even has a chance to leap the Yellow Jackets. Don't sleep on the Dookies!
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #4): I'm looking for a big step backwards for Paul Johnson's option attack this season. The biggest loss for this team probably isn't even Jonathan Dwyer; Anthony Allen should fill his role as the big B-back very well. No, the guy they'll miss the most is Demaryius Thomas. His emergence as a gigantic deep threat (1,154 receiving yards - out of 1,701 passing yards for Josh Nesbitt), opened up the field for the option game to be even more explosive than before. With him gone, teams are going to clamp down again. I highly doubt there are any other receivers on the team capable of filling that void. I doubt Nesbitt could get the ball to them, anyway. Nesbitt really can't throw, but Thomas was great for him because he was so huge, he was hard to miss. Two of GT's biggest conference rivals also have bye weeks prior to their games with the Yellow Jackets (UNC and VT), which further lessens the effectiveness of the option by giving them more prep time. They'll still roll up yards, but scoring is going to be much more difficult. Defensively, they slipped last season, and I see more slippage in 2010 with the loss of guys like Morgan Burnett, Sedric Griffin, and Derrick Morgan. They return nearly every one else, but Johnson doesn't seem to be refreshing the talent level to the same standard as Chan Gailey to this point. You also have to expect some degree of an adjustment period as they make the switch to a 3-4 defense.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #4): It's hard not to see this team taking a step back, given how much they lost on offense (three linemen, plus their leading rusher [Jonathan Dwyer] and their top receiver [Demaryius Thomas]) and defense (Derrick Morgan, Morgan Burnett). That's a lot of high-level production to replace. Nesbitt was a poor passer a year ago even with a stud WR and a more experienced OL... what's he going to be like if he has to scramble more and he doesn't have a target like Thomas out there? The defense was lousy a year ago and adding Al Groh as defensive coordinator and switching to a 3-4 isn't going to fix things overnight. It doesn't help that two of their toughest opponents (Virginia Tech, North Carolina) are on the road and get 10-14 days to prep for GT's funky offense. High-level defense + extended prep time = bad news for Georgia Tech.
Maryland Terrapins
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #5): The only separation I have between Maryland and Wake at the bottom of the division is that Maryland not only has play-makers in Da'Rel Scott and Torrey Smith, but they also have a quarterback to get it to them, or at least they know who the guy who will try to do that is. Friedgen is on the hot seat, and all indications point to him being gone by this time next year. This could negatively effect this team and cause them to lose focus or feel like they really don't have anything to play for. It will be interesting to see how this team reacts. Looking at what the Terps need to improve on, the list goes on so long that I can't definitively say what it is that needs most improvement. They have a bad defense, a bad offense, and a young roster. If they don't improve though, they could be asking him to leave College Park mid-season and return that athletic department Nordic Trek that's collecting dust somewhere in the Friedgen house.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #5): I can only assume the people at Maryland don't care about football. That's the only explanation I have as to why Ralph Friedgen still has a job there. I know he had those 3 great years in the beginning, but the program has been trending downwards every since, bottoming out at 2-10 last season. I don't see them doing much better this year. What they gain in favorable conference scheduling (drawing Duke and Virginia from the Coastal), they make up for in tough non-conference games against Navy and at West Virginia. Maybe they'll get serious about football up there after their 5th losing season in the last 7 years.
Ross: (Atlantic Prediction: #6): Ralph Friedgen is a dead man walking and this doesn't look like the sort of team that can give him a proud send-off.
Miami Hurricanes
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #3): Many people have Miami in the second spot switched with Carolina, but not me. I like the Canes, and I like Jacorry Harris (although he needs to limit his mistakes), but I think replacing 3 offensive linemen and the leading rusher for 3 consecutive years in Greg Cooper will be a big blow. Cooper may return, but it is doubtful. Defensively, they will be good, but I would expect Carolina to unseat the Hokies at the top of the division if it is going to be anyone.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #2): They're the glamor team in the ACC this year. And for good reason, I guess. I think they're by far the most athletically gifted team in the conference. Leonard Hankerson and Alderius Johnson look like gazelles running around on the field. And, of course, everyone is in love with Jacory Harris. I'm...not so much. Obviously, he has the talent, but I question his decision making process. 17 interceptions is just unacceptable. Normally, you would expect progression in that area between seasons, but he missed a lot of valuable reps during the spring with an injury. Defensively, they lose a handful of very good players, but return a ton more. I think this could be the year Randy Shannon finally gets them under 20 points allowed per game. And the schedule will definitely help them (in conference at least), as they get all their big games except Georgia Tech at home and draw Virginia and Duke from the Atlantic. At times, I think the biggest thing holding this team back is Shannon himself. Half the time I see him, he looks half asleep. Teams tend to take on the personalities of their coaches, and I wonder if this Miami team's lack of intensity and killer instinct, things that would take them to the next level, comes straight from the languorous Shannon.
Ross: (Coastal Prediction: #2): The lingering Randy Shannon factor is still a concern, but there's a lot of returning talent on offense and defense here -- especially on defense, where they could field the most Miami-like defense in quite a while this year. On the other hand, they have to find three new starters on the offensive line and the schedule is loaded with potholes, especially a brutal four-game stretch early on: @ Ohio State (9/11), @ Pitt (9/23), @ Clemson (10/2), Florida State (10/9). Only two of those games will have a bearing on their hunt for a division title, but that's still a stretch of games that could take a lot out of them.
North Carolina Tar Heels
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #2): You will never catch me praising Butch Davis for his coaching skills (what? he has those?), but he is an amazing recruiter. And finally, his players that he has brought in have made what will be the most intimidating defense in the nation this year. If Butch Davis can coach his way out of a paper bag then the Heels may take the Hokies spot in the ACC title game, but he hasn't proven to have any competence in the area that his job title indicates. What you will see is a NASTY defense, an anemic but improving offense (it can't get much worse than 108th nationally), and a coach trying to make sense of it all on the sideline. If he ever does, watch out. If not, just expect Butch to keep landing top of the line kids and twiddle his thumbs on gameday.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #3): On paper, this should be North Carolina's year. With something like 19 returning starters, including a 3 year starter at QB, a deep o-line, and a ton of guys on defense who are going to be getting paid to play on Sundays (if they're not already), the Tar Heels seem like a no-brainer for #1 in the division, maybe even the conference. But, for one thing, there have been SO many distractions around the team as of late. Even if everybody stays eligible, I don't see how they can NOT be affected by it. And even if they can stay focused and the defense only allows 17 points per game again, can the offense be counted on to score 18? That's two too many if's. TJ Yates is such an enigma at QB. I have no idea what to expect out of him. I do know that another 15 interception year isn't going to be winning any titles. And while Ryan Houston and Shaun Draughn are nice players, neither are exactly a Mark Ingram that can carry a game and hide rough QB play while the defense wins it. I won't be shocked if Butch Davis gives Bryn Renner a shot at QB is Yates struggles early. So that's my dilemma: the defense is BCS bowl material, the offense is Pizza Bowl material. Who do I side with? Unless the defense puts up crazy 08 USC numbers (think under 10 points a game), I don't think they can win consistently enough to get above that Meineke Car Care Bowl level they've been at the past couple of years.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #3): If Agentgate doesn't take too big a bite out of their team, they could be even better than this, frankly. Their defense should be flat-out nasty, given how many returning starters they have -- and how many guys they have who turned down the NFL to come back to Chapel Hill. And just ask Virginia Tech how far a dominant defense can carry you in the ACC, even with a middling offense. Whether or not the UNC offense is any better than middling will depend on what kind of progress QB TJ Yates can make. 15 TD/14 INT again probably won't get it done. UNC also benefits from the scheduling, which spaces out their toughest games (aside from back-to-back games with FSU and Virginia Tech in late November) pretty nicely.
North Carolina State Wolfpack
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #4): When Coach Tom O'Brien left a successful Boston College program for a stalling NC State program, I was shocked. Still, 4 years late I sit here shocked...not at the result, but the decision. The reason I have NC State at #4 is this: I don't trust a team that is not as talented as the top-3 and returns a total of 9 starters to make a run for the Atlantic Division crown. Heck, if not for Russell Wilson, they would be dead last in the Atlantic in my mind. But they do happen to have one of the nation's best quarterbacks. People feeling bad for Jake Locker should look at Wilson. Their skill position players are similar in talent and yet Wilson is the more efficient. The Pack will have to make the most of their opportunities and their junior quarterback, and try to aide their inexperience at the three interior offensive line spots and defense. If they can do that, they'll be going bowling.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #4): This is probably the end for Tom O'Brien in Raleigh. The Wolfpack has one of the best QBs in the conference, in terms of his actual production to this point, with Russell Wilson, but they have NOTHING around him. Despite owning North Carolina on the field, O'Brien has been taken to the woodshed by Butch Davis on the recruiting trail. He just doesn't have the talent on hand to compete in an ACC with several program peaking at the same time. The schedule is hellacious. By my count, there's only one sure win on their entire schedule. Every other game is going to be a desperate fight for survival. I like them heads-up against Wake Forest and Maryland, but beyond that...I don't see them being bowl eligible. UCF and ECU will give them a run for their money.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #4): Russell Wilson might be the second best QB in the ACC, but there may not be much to work with here. NC State has big holes to fill on both lines and the defense was miserable last year. It doesn't help that they have to play Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, and North Carolina from the other division.
Virginia Cavaliers
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #6): I like Mike London, don't get my wrong. I think he was the right guy for the job. But man is he going to have one tough first year. Usually when coaches vacate their jobs they at least leave something behind. For UVA, the cupboard is almost completely bare. They will be EXTREMELY lucky to win more than one ACC game this year.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #6): Step 1 is acknowledging you have a problem. Virginia did that when they finally showed Al Groh the door. Unfortunately, there's no undoing the damage he did in short order. It's going to be a lengthy process. I'm not sure if Mike London is the guy to get it done, but consider this inevitably brutal season as Step 2. At the very least, I expect Virginia to avoid another William & Mary-esque debacle against Richmond or VMI. That's progress.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #6): Getting rid of Groh was a good first step, but it's still going to take a while to turn this ship around. Especially in this division.
Virginia Tech Hokies
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #1 and ACC Champion): The Hokies return a crop of offensive talent the likes of which Blacksburg has never seen at any one time. They are loaded in the backfield, challenging Alabama for the best backfield in the nation. They have one of the nation's top 5 running backs in Ryan Williams and a guy backing him up that is also previously a 1,000 yard rusher. Their backup from a season ago was moved to fullback to get him touches and the most athletic player on the team, sophomore David Wilson, is a former High School All-American and will probably redshirt because the backfield is too deep for him despite scoring 4 touchdowns in 2009 in a reserve role. His replacement will be Tony Gregory, a back who prepped for an extra year and was the star of the spring game, breaking tackles left and right...yet he will be the Hokies fifth rushing option out of the backfield as Tyrod Taylor is a mobile QB. Speaking of Taylor, he will be entering his third full year as a starter. He finally started to turn his game around a year ago, and was impressive and efficient. He returns all of his receivers, a VERY deep and versatile core, except for TE Greg Boone who was only in on 7 catches in 2009. Back up quarterback Logan Thomas, a former Army All-American will also play tight end and H-back and be a big time player wherever he lines up. The Hokies lost their best offensive lineman in Sergio Render and somewhat of a liability in Ed Wang. However, I do not see much of a drop off in offensive line play. On defense, believe it or not the Hokies will not be AS good as their counterparts on the offensive side of the ball. I actually think they are getting off a little easy in the media for what they have coming back. They return 5 starters, only 4 of which will be on the field against Boise State, when their most experienced linebacker Barquell Rivers will be out of action still with a torn quadriceps tendon, so that could be big. Eventually, conventional wisdom says that they will be alright there, especially with defensive coordinator Bud Foster at the helm. The offense may have to beat teams early though for the defense to catch on. There is too much talent to ignore on this Virginia Tech team, and they will win the Coastal Division and the Conference Championship.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #1 and ACC Champion): Generally speaking, it's hard to go wrong picking Virginia Tech to win the Coastal. What Frank Beamer does in Blacksburg isn't flashy, but it wins a heck of a lot of football games. However, this year he could have his most prolific offene since the days of Mike Vick. Ryan Williams and a healthy Darren Evans comprise the most powerful 1-2 punch at running back outside the Tuscaloosa city limits. And while I'm not a huge fan of Tyrod Taylor as a quarterback, he did show improvement in his decision making last year, and with Williams and Evans dominating on the ground, it should make his job much easier. He'll also have the benefit of playing with all of his favorite receiving targets from last year. Defensively, they'll be somewhat of a work in progress, but Bud Foster has a tremendous reputation as a defensive coordinator and hasn't allowed opponents to average over 20 points or 300 yards per game in 6 years. They'll be fine. They do have to travel to North Carolina and Miami, but Beamer has winning records against both schools over the past 5 years. If they can get up for Boise State and take care of business to start the year, they'll be dark horse national title contenders.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #1 and ACC Champion): When in doubt, bet on Virginia Tech in the ACC. And with so much parity in the ACC (and this division in particular), there's room for plenty of doubt. But they should have an absolutely dynamite offense and it's not really taking a huge leap of faith to expect Bud Foster to assemble another nasty defense, even if the does have to slot in a lot of new faces this year. That said, their season really boils down to a three-game stretch in November: Georgia Tech (11/4), @ UNC (11/13), and @ Miami (11/20). If they go at least 2-1 in that stretch, they should be in good shape to win the division. Getting 10 days to prep for Georgia Tech's offense and playing them in Blacksburg on a Thursday night (where VT is almost unbeatable) is a big boost.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #6): This call is so hard because of how little teams like Maryland and Wake can be separated on paper, and possibly will be at the end of the year. The two teams are so similar that Athlon sports projected them one pick apart nationally and 5th and 6th in this division respectively. Wake can be a lot higher if their young athletic defense can mature and if their quarterback (s) (realize I use an s. They don't know who their starter is definitively yet) and young offensive line don't slow down what is otherwise an impressive slew of skill position players. Jim Grobe is one of the best coaches in the league and has been as consistent as you can expect for the smallest school in FBS football (enrollment just over 4,000), you just kind of feel sorry for the guy because it's hard to recruit players there.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #6): The post-Riley Skinner Era begins in much the same place the pre-Riley Skinner Era ended: with a losing record. Jim Grobe is a very good coach, and he did an excellent job of taking advantage of a down ACC. But the ACC is coming back around again, and he just doesn't have the talent to keep up. You can actually track the resurgence of the ACC against Wake's conference record since their BCS season in 06 (7-2, 5-3, 4-4, 3-5). Well, this is going to be the best ACC in a long while, and I can easily see Wake only winning 1 conference game (home against Duke in week 2). Beyond that, all their home games are tough and all their winnable matchups are on the road.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #5): Jim Grobe's a helluva coach, but they're looking a little thin in the talent department at the moment.
CFBZ Predicted ACC Finish
Coastal Division
1. Virginia Tech Hokies
2. Miami Hurricanes
3. North Carolina Tar Heels
4. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
5. Duke Blue Devils
6. Virginia Cavaliers
Atlantic Division
1. Florida State Seminoles
2. Boston College Eagles
3. Clemson Tigers
4. North Carolina State Wolfpack
5. Maryland Terrapins
6. Wake Forest Demon Deacons
ACC Championship Game: Virginia Tech over FSU
Atlantic Division
Clemson Tigers 9-5 (6-2)
Boston College Eagles 8-5 (5-3)
Florida State Seminoles 7-6 (4-4)
Wake Forest Demon Deacons 5-7 (3-5)
North Carolina St Wolfpack 5-7 (2-6)
Maryland Terrapins 2-10 (1-7)
Coastal Division
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 10-3 (7-1)
Virginia Tech Hokies 10-3 (6-2)
Miami Hurricanes 9-4 (5-3)
North Carolina Tar Heels 8-5 (4-4)
Duke Blue Devils 5-7 (3-5)
Virginia Cavaliers 3-9 (2-6)
ACC Championship Game: Georgia Tech 39 Clemson 34
Returning Leaders: Passing
Jacory Harris, Miami, Jr (242 of 406 for 3352 yds, 24 TD, 17 INT)
Russell Wilson, NC St, Jr (224 of 378 for 3027 yds, 31 TD, 11 INT)
Kyle Parker, Clemson, Soph (205 of 369 for 2526 yds, 20 TD, 12 INT)
Tyrod Taylor, Va Tech, Sr (136 of 243 for 2311 yds, 13 TD, 5 INT)
T.J. Yates, NC, Sr (214 of 355 for 2136 yds, 14 TD, 15 INT)
Returning Leaders: Rushing
Ryan Williams, Va Tech, Soph (293 carries for 1655 yds, 21 TD)
Montel Harris, BC, Jr (308 carries for 1457 yds, 14 TD, 4.7 ypc)
Joshua Nesbitt, GT,Sr, (279 carries for 1037 yds, 18 TD, 3.7 ypc)
Jermaine Thomas, FSU, Jr (163 carries for 832 yds, 9 TD, 5.1 ypc)
Ryan Houston, UNC, Sr (191 carries for 713 yds, 9 TD, 5.1 ypc)
Returning Leaders: Receiving
Donovan Varner, Duke, Jr (65 rec for 1047 yds, 8 TD, 5.4 rec/game)
Greg Little, UNC, Sr (62 rec for 724 yds, 5 TD, 4.8 rec/game)
Torrey Smith, Maryland, Jr (61 rec for 828 yds, 5 TD, 5.1 rec/game)
Devon Brown, Wake Forest, Jr (61 rec for 671 yds, 6 TD)
Marshall Williams, Wake Forest, Sr (60 rec for 867 yds, 6 TD)
Bert Reed, FSU, Jr (60 rec for 711 yds, 0 TD, 4.6 rec/game)
Returning Leaders: Tackles
Luke Kuechly, BC, Soph, LB (158 total, 12.1 tackles/game)
Alex Wujciak, Maryland, Sr, LB (131 total, 10.9 tackles/game)
DeAndre McDaniel, Clemson, Sr, SS (98 total, 7 tackles/game
Marcus Gilchrist, Clemson, Sr, CB (96 total, 6.8 tackles/game)
Barquell Rivers, Va Tech, Jr, LB (96 total, 7.3 tackles/game)
Returning Leaders: Sacks
Robert Quinn, UNC, Jr, DE (11.0 sacks)
Allen Bailey, Miami, Sr, DE (7.0)
Adrian Moten, Maryland, Sr, LB (5.5)
Mister Alexander, FSU, Sr, LB (5.0)
Quinton Copes, UNC, Jr, DE (5.0)
Returning Leaders: Interceptions
DeAndre McDaniel, Clemson, Sr, SS (8 interceptions)
Deunta Williams, UNC, Sr, FS (6)
Rashad Carmichael, Va Tech, Sr, CB (6)
Rashard Hall, Clemson, Soph, FS (6)
Kendric Burney, UNC, Sr, CB (5)
Around the Blogs
Who is your pick to win the ACC?
BC Interruption:
Virginia Tech. It always comes back to the Hokies.
Gobbler Country:
I'm a homer so I have to go with Virginia Tech. I think issues with both lines might cause the Hokies to struggle early on, but they'll hit their stride in time for conference play. They have a tough gauntlet of games in November against the other three Coastal contenders, but they're helped by not having to play FSU or Clemson this year.
From The Rumble Seat:
I am picking Georgia Tech to win the conference again. Despite the pundits stating otherwise, Georgia Tech's schedule lines up perfectly. The easy games are early in the season allowing Georgia Tech to focus on tougher opponents later in the season and build momentum. The offense relies heavily on timing and execution. CPJ gets the wheels turning by the midpoint of the season and very few teams late in the season can slow down GT's rushing attack. And I have proof. Check out the average points and yards per game per month since CPJ has been at GT:
September - 26.0 PPG, 362 YPG
October - 31.6 PPG, 393 YPG
November - 32.4, 433 YPG
No other team in the ACC has shown more consistency from start to finish in the regular season from 2008-2009 besides the Jackets. VPI lost a ton of talent on defense (their offense's crutch). Miami and FSU will ruin one or the other's season on Labor Day and the winner of that game will start losing once the temperature drops below 85 degrees. UNC and Clemson are tragically flawed (UNC with a terrible offense and Clemson with a terrible head coach). And the rest of the teams don't have the horses to run with Georgia Tech in a Championship Game.
The Sports Age
I think Virginia Tech finally gets it done this season. The Hokies always come in as a top-rated team, but never seem to be able to finish the job in conference. However, quarterback Tyrod Taylor, running backs Ryan Williams and Darren Evans (who missed all of last season), and a healthy dose of Beamer ball can finally get the job done and bring an ACC Conference Championship to Blacksburg this season.
Breaking Down The ACC With The Zealots
Boston College Eagles
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #2): The Eagles return many of the major pieces to the puzzle. The odd piece out is Dave Shinskie, although his low profile hard work are character traits rather famous with former BC quarterbacks. Montel Harris can be a star, but at worst he's a very productive back...to the tune of 1,450 yards 14 TD's a year ago. Add in Mark Herzlich and you've got your Atlantic Division runners up. But if Shinskie can improve, there is no doubt the Eagles are capable of going to the ACCCG.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #2): Each of the last two years, I've picked BC to finish last in the division. And each year, they've made me look foolish, winning the division in 2008 and placing second last season. So I'm not making that mistake again. This year's squad looks like another really solid unit with good experience and a great running back in Montel Harris. If Dave Shinskie can cut his interceptions in half, there's no reason they can't compete for the division title. And remember, they're 3-1 over the last 4 years against Florida State, their primary competition. Though they travel to Tallahassee and get a visit from Virginia Tech this season, they also draw the two worst teams from the Coastal Division (Duke, Virginia) and have no other really challenging away games. Whatever they can get out of Mark Herzlich is just gravy. There will be a lot of inspirational stories told about what he means to this team, but in truth, they're capable of winning big without him.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #2): BC has an overpowering OL, a top-notch RB (Montel Harris), and a member of the Chris Weinke All-Stars at QB (26-year old sophomore Dave Shinskie). On the other hand, Shinskie threw 14 interceptions last year and lacks many returning targets at WR. Until the offense proves they can throw the ball at least moderately well, Harris may not have much room to run. The defense should be good as it returns a pair of starters at LB, DL, and in the secondary -- and could be really good if cancer survivor Mark Herzlich is as good as he was in 2008 (ACC Defensive Player of the Year). They draw Virginia Tech, Duke, and Virginia from the other division, which is pretty favorable; the division title may come down to their 10/16 road tilt against Florida State.
Clemson Tigers
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #1): Kyle Parker shocked a lot of people when he decided to return to school despite being picked early in the MLB Draft in an early round. He brings back with him a nearly intact offensive line, though the skill position players are relatively new. The guy who it just seems like was the fresh face (Parker) will have to lead and teach these new guys the ropes. Even after losing Spiller and Jacoby Ford, I believe that Parker is up to the job. Add in a defense that was very good overall last year and returns 7 starters and it begins to start becoming more apparent why I picked these guys. Remember, not too many reasons are needed, after all, this is the weaker side of the ACC.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #3): I'm feeling Clemson a little more than I was, now that Kyle Parker has confirmed he's returning this season. He looked very promising as a freshman, but at the same time, you have to wonder how much he's improved in the off-season with so much of his attention going towards baseball. You also have to wonder how much motivation he has to improve from here out, knowing that this is likely going to be his last year playing football. Regardless, Clemson is better off with him under center than to be breaking in a freshman for the second straight year. But that's somewhat beside the point. The REAL issue facing the Tigers this season is figuring out where they can dig up about 2,700 total yards and 21 TDs, because that's what walked out the door with CJ Spiller. He WAS the offense last year. Andre Ellington and Jamie Harper are nice players, but they won't come close to matching Spiller's impact. Clemson also doesn't have a returning receiver who caught more than 14 passes last year. The defense should be alright, but Clemson draws 3 of the toughest teams out of the Coastal division AND has to go on the road to play FSU and BC. On second thought, maybe this wouldn't be such a bad year to break in Tajh Boyd at QB. They aren't going to contend for anything, anyway.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #3): The good news for Clemson's offense is that they return four starters on the offensive line and their starting QB; the bad news is they don't return much else. CJ Spiller leaves a big hole to fill and they have no proven receivers. The defense should be pretty solid since they return a lot along the defensive line and in the secondary, but until this team finds some new stars at the skill positions, they're going to have a tough time equaling last year's accomplishments. They draw Miami, North Carolina, and Georgia Tech from the other division, too, which is no picnic.
Duke Blue Devils
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #5): Let me now clarify that I hate Duke. Having said that, I think Duke is improving under David Cutcliffe. It will certainly be interesting to see how sophomore Sean Renfree tries to fill the shoes of four-year starter at quarterback Thaddeus Lewis. I think Duke could finish as high as fourth and maybe even contend for a bowl this year, BUT it all centers around Renfree. He has the skill position players to get it done, as was evidenced by Duke finishing #9 in the nation last year in passing. But they also finished DEAD last in rushing. Many teams had a single player that out-rushed Duke's 762-yard rushing output for the season. So to improve and become bowl eligible, it starts with being able to have some semblance of a running game. And then the Blue Devils must also improve upon a defense that was a little below average last year. But if they can stay in that range, they will put themselves in position to maybe move up a spot in the ACC pecking order.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #5): I'm a big fan of David Cutcliffe as a coach. He walked in the door at Duke and had them pushing for bowl eligibility after 4 straight years of 2 wins or less (6 double-digit loss seasons in the previous 8 years). However, I think he takes a step back in 2010. Its a bit of a rebuilding year on defense (and when you're rebuilding at Duke you're REALLY rebuilding), and Duke has to replace Thad Lewis at QB. Sean Renfree looks promising as his replacement, but there are going to be major growing pains. And the schedule doesn't set up well for them at all. Their only winnable conference home game looks like Virginia, beyond that maybe they catch Maryland or Wake Forest on the road. Regardless, the gap between Duke and the Big Four in the Coastal is gargantuan.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #5): They lose their best player in some time (Thaddeus Lewis), as well as slew of other key players on offense and defense and play in arguably the toughest division in college football. David Cutcliffe is doing a nice job at Duke, but this year doesn't set up too well for him.
Florida State Seminoles
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #3): I know, I know, I know. I am not picking the post-Bobby Bowden Seminoles to win the Atlantic. I just don't think that Christian Ponder is the savior of the fan nation with the annoying chop chant (most annoying thing in college football, closely followed by Rockytop). Rather, he reminds me more of the lineage of Chris Weinke, Chris Rix, or Wyatt Sexton (Minus the whole I am the messiah worship me part). On one hand they do return their entire offensive line. A GREAT offensive line! On the other hand, which skill position player is going to do something with it? Also, a key skill player was already suspended. The BIGGEST question mark is how drastically the D can improve under Jimbo Fisher. Without it, they don't stand a chance at #1 in the Atlantic. If they do, I may need to think about changing my pick.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #1): The Jimbo Fisher era at FSU got off to a hot start on the recruiting trail, where he dramatically upgraded the defensive talent level with the likes of LaMarcus Joyner, Jeff Luc, and Christian Jones, among others. Those guys are throwbacks to the freak athletes that used to dominate the Seminole defense, and all of them will get on the field this year. Of course, they'll be a bit erratic, being so inexperienced, but they'll make up for it by making the sort of dynamic plays FSU has lacked on that side of the ball during Mickey Andrews' last years. And expect new defensive coordinator Mark Stoops to light a fire under everyone. It's unlikely they're going to turn into a defensive powerhouse over night, but if they can just keep their points allowed under 30 points per game (last year's average), FSU is going to win a lot of games. Because the offense is going to take care of itself. FSU may boast the best offensive line in the country, and Christian Ponder seemed to be making a lot of progress as a passer before going down with an injury last season. I'm not buying into the Heisman hype, though.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #1): Every year we talk about Florida State being "back"... but this really might be the year. Christian Ponder should be the best QB in the league (and a possible Heisman contender) and he should get ample time to find his experienced receivers behind an offensive line that returns all five starters. That same line should be able to open up a lot of holes for a pair of solid running backs (Jermaine Thomas and Chris Thompson), too. As good as the offense should be, though, the defense will need to be a lot better for FSU to win the division. They were one of the worst in the nation a year ago, so there's a lot of work for new defensive coordinator Mark Stoops to do. But if he can get them up to even respectable levels, the offense should be potent enough to lead them back to the promised land. The schedule is a little tricky, especially in October when they play Miami, Boston College, and North Carolina over the span of four games (the fourth game is against NC State). That run of games will either sink their title hopes or put them in pole position.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #4): This may finally be the year where Paul Johnson's triple option attack at GT will look humanly possible to contain. Aside from quarterback Josh Nesbitt, the Yellow Jackets lost nearly every other playmaker on offense and defense. Roddy Jones and Embry Peoples will try to reproduce some of the explosiveness and productivity of Dwyer while Anthony Allen will try to be the punishing back that Dwyer could channel as well. However, the Yellow Jackets may have to go away from their run, run, run, run, run, hail mary deep pass strategy with the loss of Demaryius Thomas. Thomas was a huge field-stretcher for the Yellow Jackets and their most reliable option. Nesbitt was able to throw up balls for grabs and Thomas would come down with them. Even still, Nesbitt completed a paltry 46% of his passes, and that is likely to worsen and make the Jackets into even more of a running team that in Johnson's two previous years with them. The Jackets also lose a lot on the defensive side of the ball, most notably with Derrick Morgan. They are changing their defense as well, so I would imagine it may take some time to click. Basically, Georgia Tech is high in many peoples polls, but not mine. Despite Nesbitt's leadership and experience, working with some new skill position players and behind a completely revamped offensive line (2 returning starters) makes me doubt their ACC contention. In my eyes, Duke even has a chance to leap the Yellow Jackets. Don't sleep on the Dookies!
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #4): I'm looking for a big step backwards for Paul Johnson's option attack this season. The biggest loss for this team probably isn't even Jonathan Dwyer; Anthony Allen should fill his role as the big B-back very well. No, the guy they'll miss the most is Demaryius Thomas. His emergence as a gigantic deep threat (1,154 receiving yards - out of 1,701 passing yards for Josh Nesbitt), opened up the field for the option game to be even more explosive than before. With him gone, teams are going to clamp down again. I highly doubt there are any other receivers on the team capable of filling that void. I doubt Nesbitt could get the ball to them, anyway. Nesbitt really can't throw, but Thomas was great for him because he was so huge, he was hard to miss. Two of GT's biggest conference rivals also have bye weeks prior to their games with the Yellow Jackets (UNC and VT), which further lessens the effectiveness of the option by giving them more prep time. They'll still roll up yards, but scoring is going to be much more difficult. Defensively, they slipped last season, and I see more slippage in 2010 with the loss of guys like Morgan Burnett, Sedric Griffin, and Derrick Morgan. They return nearly every one else, but Johnson doesn't seem to be refreshing the talent level to the same standard as Chan Gailey to this point. You also have to expect some degree of an adjustment period as they make the switch to a 3-4 defense.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #4): It's hard not to see this team taking a step back, given how much they lost on offense (three linemen, plus their leading rusher [Jonathan Dwyer] and their top receiver [Demaryius Thomas]) and defense (Derrick Morgan, Morgan Burnett). That's a lot of high-level production to replace. Nesbitt was a poor passer a year ago even with a stud WR and a more experienced OL... what's he going to be like if he has to scramble more and he doesn't have a target like Thomas out there? The defense was lousy a year ago and adding Al Groh as defensive coordinator and switching to a 3-4 isn't going to fix things overnight. It doesn't help that two of their toughest opponents (Virginia Tech, North Carolina) are on the road and get 10-14 days to prep for GT's funky offense. High-level defense + extended prep time = bad news for Georgia Tech.
Maryland Terrapins
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #5): The only separation I have between Maryland and Wake at the bottom of the division is that Maryland not only has play-makers in Da'Rel Scott and Torrey Smith, but they also have a quarterback to get it to them, or at least they know who the guy who will try to do that is. Friedgen is on the hot seat, and all indications point to him being gone by this time next year. This could negatively effect this team and cause them to lose focus or feel like they really don't have anything to play for. It will be interesting to see how this team reacts. Looking at what the Terps need to improve on, the list goes on so long that I can't definitively say what it is that needs most improvement. They have a bad defense, a bad offense, and a young roster. If they don't improve though, they could be asking him to leave College Park mid-season and return that athletic department Nordic Trek that's collecting dust somewhere in the Friedgen house.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #5): I can only assume the people at Maryland don't care about football. That's the only explanation I have as to why Ralph Friedgen still has a job there. I know he had those 3 great years in the beginning, but the program has been trending downwards every since, bottoming out at 2-10 last season. I don't see them doing much better this year. What they gain in favorable conference scheduling (drawing Duke and Virginia from the Coastal), they make up for in tough non-conference games against Navy and at West Virginia. Maybe they'll get serious about football up there after their 5th losing season in the last 7 years.
Ross: (Atlantic Prediction: #6): Ralph Friedgen is a dead man walking and this doesn't look like the sort of team that can give him a proud send-off.
Miami Hurricanes
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #3): Many people have Miami in the second spot switched with Carolina, but not me. I like the Canes, and I like Jacorry Harris (although he needs to limit his mistakes), but I think replacing 3 offensive linemen and the leading rusher for 3 consecutive years in Greg Cooper will be a big blow. Cooper may return, but it is doubtful. Defensively, they will be good, but I would expect Carolina to unseat the Hokies at the top of the division if it is going to be anyone.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #2): They're the glamor team in the ACC this year. And for good reason, I guess. I think they're by far the most athletically gifted team in the conference. Leonard Hankerson and Alderius Johnson look like gazelles running around on the field. And, of course, everyone is in love with Jacory Harris. I'm...not so much. Obviously, he has the talent, but I question his decision making process. 17 interceptions is just unacceptable. Normally, you would expect progression in that area between seasons, but he missed a lot of valuable reps during the spring with an injury. Defensively, they lose a handful of very good players, but return a ton more. I think this could be the year Randy Shannon finally gets them under 20 points allowed per game. And the schedule will definitely help them (in conference at least), as they get all their big games except Georgia Tech at home and draw Virginia and Duke from the Atlantic. At times, I think the biggest thing holding this team back is Shannon himself. Half the time I see him, he looks half asleep. Teams tend to take on the personalities of their coaches, and I wonder if this Miami team's lack of intensity and killer instinct, things that would take them to the next level, comes straight from the languorous Shannon.
Ross: (Coastal Prediction: #2): The lingering Randy Shannon factor is still a concern, but there's a lot of returning talent on offense and defense here -- especially on defense, where they could field the most Miami-like defense in quite a while this year. On the other hand, they have to find three new starters on the offensive line and the schedule is loaded with potholes, especially a brutal four-game stretch early on: @ Ohio State (9/11), @ Pitt (9/23), @ Clemson (10/2), Florida State (10/9). Only two of those games will have a bearing on their hunt for a division title, but that's still a stretch of games that could take a lot out of them.
North Carolina Tar Heels
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #2): You will never catch me praising Butch Davis for his coaching skills (what? he has those?), but he is an amazing recruiter. And finally, his players that he has brought in have made what will be the most intimidating defense in the nation this year. If Butch Davis can coach his way out of a paper bag then the Heels may take the Hokies spot in the ACC title game, but he hasn't proven to have any competence in the area that his job title indicates. What you will see is a NASTY defense, an anemic but improving offense (it can't get much worse than 108th nationally), and a coach trying to make sense of it all on the sideline. If he ever does, watch out. If not, just expect Butch to keep landing top of the line kids and twiddle his thumbs on gameday.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #3): On paper, this should be North Carolina's year. With something like 19 returning starters, including a 3 year starter at QB, a deep o-line, and a ton of guys on defense who are going to be getting paid to play on Sundays (if they're not already), the Tar Heels seem like a no-brainer for #1 in the division, maybe even the conference. But, for one thing, there have been SO many distractions around the team as of late. Even if everybody stays eligible, I don't see how they can NOT be affected by it. And even if they can stay focused and the defense only allows 17 points per game again, can the offense be counted on to score 18? That's two too many if's. TJ Yates is such an enigma at QB. I have no idea what to expect out of him. I do know that another 15 interception year isn't going to be winning any titles. And while Ryan Houston and Shaun Draughn are nice players, neither are exactly a Mark Ingram that can carry a game and hide rough QB play while the defense wins it. I won't be shocked if Butch Davis gives Bryn Renner a shot at QB is Yates struggles early. So that's my dilemma: the defense is BCS bowl material, the offense is Pizza Bowl material. Who do I side with? Unless the defense puts up crazy 08 USC numbers (think under 10 points a game), I don't think they can win consistently enough to get above that Meineke Car Care Bowl level they've been at the past couple of years.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #3): If Agentgate doesn't take too big a bite out of their team, they could be even better than this, frankly. Their defense should be flat-out nasty, given how many returning starters they have -- and how many guys they have who turned down the NFL to come back to Chapel Hill. And just ask Virginia Tech how far a dominant defense can carry you in the ACC, even with a middling offense. Whether or not the UNC offense is any better than middling will depend on what kind of progress QB TJ Yates can make. 15 TD/14 INT again probably won't get it done. UNC also benefits from the scheduling, which spaces out their toughest games (aside from back-to-back games with FSU and Virginia Tech in late November) pretty nicely.
North Carolina State Wolfpack
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #4): When Coach Tom O'Brien left a successful Boston College program for a stalling NC State program, I was shocked. Still, 4 years late I sit here shocked...not at the result, but the decision. The reason I have NC State at #4 is this: I don't trust a team that is not as talented as the top-3 and returns a total of 9 starters to make a run for the Atlantic Division crown. Heck, if not for Russell Wilson, they would be dead last in the Atlantic in my mind. But they do happen to have one of the nation's best quarterbacks. People feeling bad for Jake Locker should look at Wilson. Their skill position players are similar in talent and yet Wilson is the more efficient. The Pack will have to make the most of their opportunities and their junior quarterback, and try to aide their inexperience at the three interior offensive line spots and defense. If they can do that, they'll be going bowling.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #4): This is probably the end for Tom O'Brien in Raleigh. The Wolfpack has one of the best QBs in the conference, in terms of his actual production to this point, with Russell Wilson, but they have NOTHING around him. Despite owning North Carolina on the field, O'Brien has been taken to the woodshed by Butch Davis on the recruiting trail. He just doesn't have the talent on hand to compete in an ACC with several program peaking at the same time. The schedule is hellacious. By my count, there's only one sure win on their entire schedule. Every other game is going to be a desperate fight for survival. I like them heads-up against Wake Forest and Maryland, but beyond that...I don't see them being bowl eligible. UCF and ECU will give them a run for their money.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #4): Russell Wilson might be the second best QB in the ACC, but there may not be much to work with here. NC State has big holes to fill on both lines and the defense was miserable last year. It doesn't help that they have to play Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, and North Carolina from the other division.
Virginia Cavaliers
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #6): I like Mike London, don't get my wrong. I think he was the right guy for the job. But man is he going to have one tough first year. Usually when coaches vacate their jobs they at least leave something behind. For UVA, the cupboard is almost completely bare. They will be EXTREMELY lucky to win more than one ACC game this year.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #6): Step 1 is acknowledging you have a problem. Virginia did that when they finally showed Al Groh the door. Unfortunately, there's no undoing the damage he did in short order. It's going to be a lengthy process. I'm not sure if Mike London is the guy to get it done, but consider this inevitably brutal season as Step 2. At the very least, I expect Virginia to avoid another William & Mary-esque debacle against Richmond or VMI. That's progress.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #6): Getting rid of Groh was a good first step, but it's still going to take a while to turn this ship around. Especially in this division.
Virginia Tech Hokies
Chris (Coastal Prediction: #1 and ACC Champion): The Hokies return a crop of offensive talent the likes of which Blacksburg has never seen at any one time. They are loaded in the backfield, challenging Alabama for the best backfield in the nation. They have one of the nation's top 5 running backs in Ryan Williams and a guy backing him up that is also previously a 1,000 yard rusher. Their backup from a season ago was moved to fullback to get him touches and the most athletic player on the team, sophomore David Wilson, is a former High School All-American and will probably redshirt because the backfield is too deep for him despite scoring 4 touchdowns in 2009 in a reserve role. His replacement will be Tony Gregory, a back who prepped for an extra year and was the star of the spring game, breaking tackles left and right...yet he will be the Hokies fifth rushing option out of the backfield as Tyrod Taylor is a mobile QB. Speaking of Taylor, he will be entering his third full year as a starter. He finally started to turn his game around a year ago, and was impressive and efficient. He returns all of his receivers, a VERY deep and versatile core, except for TE Greg Boone who was only in on 7 catches in 2009. Back up quarterback Logan Thomas, a former Army All-American will also play tight end and H-back and be a big time player wherever he lines up. The Hokies lost their best offensive lineman in Sergio Render and somewhat of a liability in Ed Wang. However, I do not see much of a drop off in offensive line play. On defense, believe it or not the Hokies will not be AS good as their counterparts on the offensive side of the ball. I actually think they are getting off a little easy in the media for what they have coming back. They return 5 starters, only 4 of which will be on the field against Boise State, when their most experienced linebacker Barquell Rivers will be out of action still with a torn quadriceps tendon, so that could be big. Eventually, conventional wisdom says that they will be alright there, especially with defensive coordinator Bud Foster at the helm. The offense may have to beat teams early though for the defense to catch on. There is too much talent to ignore on this Virginia Tech team, and they will win the Coastal Division and the Conference Championship.
J Martin (Coastal Prediction: #1 and ACC Champion): Generally speaking, it's hard to go wrong picking Virginia Tech to win the Coastal. What Frank Beamer does in Blacksburg isn't flashy, but it wins a heck of a lot of football games. However, this year he could have his most prolific offene since the days of Mike Vick. Ryan Williams and a healthy Darren Evans comprise the most powerful 1-2 punch at running back outside the Tuscaloosa city limits. And while I'm not a huge fan of Tyrod Taylor as a quarterback, he did show improvement in his decision making last year, and with Williams and Evans dominating on the ground, it should make his job much easier. He'll also have the benefit of playing with all of his favorite receiving targets from last year. Defensively, they'll be somewhat of a work in progress, but Bud Foster has a tremendous reputation as a defensive coordinator and hasn't allowed opponents to average over 20 points or 300 yards per game in 6 years. They'll be fine. They do have to travel to North Carolina and Miami, but Beamer has winning records against both schools over the past 5 years. If they can get up for Boise State and take care of business to start the year, they'll be dark horse national title contenders.
Ross (Coastal Prediction: #1 and ACC Champion): When in doubt, bet on Virginia Tech in the ACC. And with so much parity in the ACC (and this division in particular), there's room for plenty of doubt. But they should have an absolutely dynamite offense and it's not really taking a huge leap of faith to expect Bud Foster to assemble another nasty defense, even if the does have to slot in a lot of new faces this year. That said, their season really boils down to a three-game stretch in November: Georgia Tech (11/4), @ UNC (11/13), and @ Miami (11/20). If they go at least 2-1 in that stretch, they should be in good shape to win the division. Getting 10 days to prep for Georgia Tech's offense and playing them in Blacksburg on a Thursday night (where VT is almost unbeatable) is a big boost.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Chris (Atlantic Prediction: #6): This call is so hard because of how little teams like Maryland and Wake can be separated on paper, and possibly will be at the end of the year. The two teams are so similar that Athlon sports projected them one pick apart nationally and 5th and 6th in this division respectively. Wake can be a lot higher if their young athletic defense can mature and if their quarterback (s) (realize I use an s. They don't know who their starter is definitively yet) and young offensive line don't slow down what is otherwise an impressive slew of skill position players. Jim Grobe is one of the best coaches in the league and has been as consistent as you can expect for the smallest school in FBS football (enrollment just over 4,000), you just kind of feel sorry for the guy because it's hard to recruit players there.
J Martin (Atlantic Prediction: #6): The post-Riley Skinner Era begins in much the same place the pre-Riley Skinner Era ended: with a losing record. Jim Grobe is a very good coach, and he did an excellent job of taking advantage of a down ACC. But the ACC is coming back around again, and he just doesn't have the talent to keep up. You can actually track the resurgence of the ACC against Wake's conference record since their BCS season in 06 (7-2, 5-3, 4-4, 3-5). Well, this is going to be the best ACC in a long while, and I can easily see Wake only winning 1 conference game (home against Duke in week 2). Beyond that, all their home games are tough and all their winnable matchups are on the road.
Ross (Atlantic Prediction: #5): Jim Grobe's a helluva coach, but they're looking a little thin in the talent department at the moment.
CFBZ Predicted ACC Finish
Coastal Division
1. Virginia Tech Hokies
2. Miami Hurricanes
3. North Carolina Tar Heels
4. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
5. Duke Blue Devils
6. Virginia Cavaliers
Atlantic Division
1. Florida State Seminoles
2. Boston College Eagles
3. Clemson Tigers
4. North Carolina State Wolfpack
5. Maryland Terrapins
6. Wake Forest Demon Deacons
ACC Championship Game: Virginia Tech over FSU
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Pre-Season Preview: Clemson Tigers
2009 Record: 9-5 (6-2 in ACC)
2009 Bowl: Music City Bowl (beat Kentucky 21-13)
Final 2009 AP Ranking: #24
Head Coach: Dabo Swinney (13-8 Overall, 9-4 in ACC)
Non-Conference Schedule: North Texas (9/4), Presbyterian (9/11), at Auburn (9/18), South Carolina (11/27)
2009 Offensive Statistics
Scoring: 31.1 points per game (3rd in ACC)
Rushing Yards/Game: 170 (3rd in ACC)
Passing Yards/Game: 192 (7th in ACC)
Total Yards/Game: 362 (8th in ACC)
2009 Defensive Statistics
Scoring: 20.4 points per game (4th in ACC)
Rushing Yards/Game: 151 (7th in ACC)
Passing Yards/Game: 162 (1st in ACC, 7th in Nation)
Total Yards/Game: 314 (3rd in ACC, 20th in Nation)
2009 Misc Stats
Turnover Margin: +0.43 per game (5th in ACC)
Penalties: 44 yards per game (4th in ACC)
Returning Starters
Offense: 7
Defense: 6
Kicker/Punter: 2
Top Returning Statistical Leaders
Passing: QB Kyle Parker, Soph (205 of 369 for 2526 yards, 20 TD, 12 INT, 180 ypg)
Rushing: RB Andre Ellington, Soph (68 carries for 491 yds, 7.2 ypc, 4 TD, 35 ypg)
Rushing: RB Jamie Harper, Jr (80 carries for 418 yds, 5.2 ypc, 4 TD, 29 ypg)
Receiving: WR Xavier Dye, Sr (14 rec, 236 yds, 4 TD, 1.2 rec/game, 16 ypc)
Tackles: SS DeAndre McDaniel, Sr (98); CB Marcus Gilchrist, Sr (96); LB Brandon Maye, Jr (95)
Sacks: LB Brandon Maye, Jr (3); DE Da'Quan Bowers, Jr (3)
Interceptions: SS DeAndre McDaniel, Sr (8)
2010 Pre-Season Rankings
Athlon Sports: #25
Phil Steele: #41
Pre-Snap Read: #47
Sporting News: #61
USA Today Coaches Poll: #31
2010 Pre-Season ACC Atlantic Prediction:
Athlon Sports: #2
Phil Steele: #2 (tie with Boston College)
Bowl Prediction:
Athlon Sports: Meineke Car Care Bowl (vs. UConn)
Phil Steele: Meineke Car Care Bowl (vs. West Virginia)
Last years season for the Clemson Tigers was bookmarked with two losses to Georgia Tech, one at the beginning of the season and one in the ACC Championship game, both by less than a touchdown. Clemson had some good victories last year (Boston College, Miami (Fla), FSU) and they had some tough losses (TCU, Maryland, South Carolina). Outside of the South Carolina game they didn't lose a game by more than 5 points. This year Clemson has 2 gimmes at home out of conference and two tough games against mid-tier (possibly higher) SEC schools. In the ACC Clemson will travel to FSU, UNC and Boston College and gets Miami (Fla) and Georgia Tech at home. A tough schedule but one that is manageable. Clemson's offense must replace C.J. Spiller, Jacoby Ford and about two-thirds of last years receptions. We caught up with Dr B of SB Nation's Clemson Blog Shakin The Southland to find out how they felt about Clemson's chances in 2010.
What are the biggest strengths and most glaring weaknesses of the Tigers?
Defensive line and defensive backfield, particular safety, are very stout positions. 3 of the current DLinemen should be playing in the NFL, and two of them I think will be drafted in rounds 1-2 eventually.
Both safeties were all-americans (D. McDaniel on most AA teams, Rashard Hall was Freshman AA) and I predict DeAndre will be a 1st round pick....but Hall is really the better one of the two in pass coverage. This kid is phenomenal to have played so well as a freshman and almost never be out of position or miss an assignment.
Offensive line should be better, 4 starters are back. The new LG was the starting Center for the first half of last season, so its almost like having all 5 back. The two-deep isnt so hot though, and if we have injuries up front, particularly at Tackle, its going to be very bad.
Biggest weaknesses have to be the lack of proven WRs and the LB corps. We have good talent at both if you believe the recruiting sites, yet none of the WRs did anything last year and the LB corps' inability to read their run keys crippled us at times on defense last year. Clemson would've been a Top 10-15 defense if we had had a better MLB in 09.
Clemson has really early back-to-back-to-back games with Auburn, UNC and Miami. What do you hope to learn about the team during this stretch and how do you see it playing out?
3-0 in that stretch seems like a pipe dream, honestly. Clemson certainly could defeat each of them, but I highly doubt we really do, its a grueling stretch in the schedule.
Auburn is currently the only one I have predicted as a loss, just because its a new opponent early in the season and on the road. If this was at Clemson, I would be much more optimistic. Their offense may be too much for us without a proven set of LBs.
Miami I predicted to be a shootout, so I called it a toss-up. Whomever has the ball last wins. Its at Clemson, so we have a really good chance.
UNC vs Clemson may be the defensive game of the year. Their offense is not without skill talent, but they are woeful in their execution for several years. Clemson's defense can handle that. The problem is their defense starts so many future draft picks that it wont be easy to score even if we do find a WR. I think we'll win, but close.
What team on the schedule do you want to beat the most?
This year, South Carolina. The score last year was not indicative of the skill on those teams. We played awful on defense up front (LBs) and no one read their keys. It was atrocious.
Who is the best player on your team that nobody talks about?
Chad Diehl. He's a ball player. He doesnt get carries, and rarely gets catches, but he can flat out play football. He's an outstanding blocker, one of the best we've had in my memory. People dont give enough credit to great blockers.
Who will be attempting to replace C.J. Spiller?
The tag team of Andre Ellington and Jamie Harper, both former 4-star players who can do it. Andre is quick, small, and runs like a jitterbug. He goes from 0-100mph in 2 seconds. No one hits a hole as hard or as fast.
CJ had a 5th gear and elusiveness these guys dont have, but Andre gets to his top speed quicker than CJ did.
Jamie is a bruiser with more deceptive speed. In a straight line he is comparable in speed to Andre, it just takes him more time to get going. If he can break tackles and hold onto the ball, he can be very good.
The two of them will probably each get 15 carries to start out.
What player(s) needs to step up this year in order for the team to reach it's full capability?
WRs. Xavier Dye, Jaron Brown, Marquan Jones, etc. We need vertical threats to take pressure off the run game. Right now only the TE Dwayne Allen has any record of production. People will just bracket cover him if no one outside or in the slot takes pressure off.
Who is your pick to take the ACC this year and are there any teams flying under the radar that might be able to make a run at the ACC championship?
My pick is FSU vs. VT, simply because I think Clemson loses to FSU in Tallahassee this year. BC has the schedule to win the Atlantic, but I just dont see them beating the Coastal champ.
If Miami's offense puts it together, watch out. That team has the ability to be awesome if Harris improves.
Gut feeling on the teams final record at the end of the regular season and what makes this a successful season in your eyes?
10-2 is my expectation, but it needs to be 9-3 to be successful in my opinion. We just fired a guy for going 8-4 every year, we dont need regression. Its time for Clemson to get it together and win the ACC. I wont be satisfied with 9 wins, but I think its reasonable given the schedule.
Thanks to Dr B for answering our questions. Make sure you check out Shakin The Southland this football season for Clemson/ACC coverage. You can also follow them on twitter @shakinsouthland.
Previous ACC Previews:
Boston College Eagles
Duke Blue Devils
Florida State Seminoles
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Maryland Terrapins
North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina State Wolfpack
Virginia Cavaliers
Virginia Tech Hokies
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Next Up: Iowa Hawkeyes
Previous Pre-Season Previews
Big 12- Iowa State Cyclones, Kansas Jayhawks, Kansas State Wildcats, Missouri Tigers, Oklahoma Sooners, Oklahoma State Cowboys, Texas Longhorns, Texas Tech Red Raiders
Big East- Cincinnati Bearcats, Pittsburgh Panthers, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, Syracuse Orange, UConn Huskies, USF Bulls, West Virginia Mountaineers
Big Ten- Illinois Fighting Illini, Michigan Wolverines, Minnesota Golden Gophers, Northwestern Wildcats, Ohio State Buckeyes, Purdue Boilermakers
C-USA- Houston Cougars, SMU Mustangs, Southern Miss Golden Eagles, Tulane Green Wave, UTEP Miners
Independent- Army Black Knights, Navy Midshipmen, Notre Dame Fighting Irish
MAC- Ball State Cardinals, Bowling Green Falcons, Buffalo Bulls, Central Michigan Chippewas, Temple Owls, Toledo Rockets
MWC- BYU Cougars, Colorado State Rams, UNLV Rebels, Utah Utes
Pac-10- Arizona State Sun Devils, California Golden Bears, Oregon Ducks, Oregon State Beavers, Stanford Cardinal, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, Washington Huskies, Washington State Cougars
SEC- Auburn Tigers, Georgia Bulldogs, Kentucky Wildcats, LSU Tigers, Mississippi Rebels, South Carolina Gamecocks, Vanderbilt Commodores
Sun Belt- FIU Golden Panthers, North Texas Mean Green, Troy Trojans
WAC- Boise State Broncos, Fresno State Bulldogs, Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, New Mexico State Aggies
2009 Bowl: Music City Bowl (beat Kentucky 21-13)
Final 2009 AP Ranking: #24
Head Coach: Dabo Swinney (13-8 Overall, 9-4 in ACC)
Non-Conference Schedule: North Texas (9/4), Presbyterian (9/11), at Auburn (9/18), South Carolina (11/27)
2009 Offensive Statistics
Scoring: 31.1 points per game (3rd in ACC)
Rushing Yards/Game: 170 (3rd in ACC)
Passing Yards/Game: 192 (7th in ACC)
Total Yards/Game: 362 (8th in ACC)
2009 Defensive Statistics
Scoring: 20.4 points per game (4th in ACC)
Rushing Yards/Game: 151 (7th in ACC)
Passing Yards/Game: 162 (1st in ACC, 7th in Nation)
Total Yards/Game: 314 (3rd in ACC, 20th in Nation)
2009 Misc Stats
Turnover Margin: +0.43 per game (5th in ACC)
Penalties: 44 yards per game (4th in ACC)
Returning Starters
Offense: 7
Defense: 6
Kicker/Punter: 2
Top Returning Statistical Leaders
Passing: QB Kyle Parker, Soph (205 of 369 for 2526 yards, 20 TD, 12 INT, 180 ypg)
Rushing: RB Andre Ellington, Soph (68 carries for 491 yds, 7.2 ypc, 4 TD, 35 ypg)
Rushing: RB Jamie Harper, Jr (80 carries for 418 yds, 5.2 ypc, 4 TD, 29 ypg)
Receiving: WR Xavier Dye, Sr (14 rec, 236 yds, 4 TD, 1.2 rec/game, 16 ypc)
Tackles: SS DeAndre McDaniel, Sr (98); CB Marcus Gilchrist, Sr (96); LB Brandon Maye, Jr (95)
Sacks: LB Brandon Maye, Jr (3); DE Da'Quan Bowers, Jr (3)
Interceptions: SS DeAndre McDaniel, Sr (8)
2010 Pre-Season Rankings
Athlon Sports: #25
Phil Steele: #41
Pre-Snap Read: #47
Sporting News: #61
USA Today Coaches Poll: #31
2010 Pre-Season ACC Atlantic Prediction:
Athlon Sports: #2
Phil Steele: #2 (tie with Boston College)
Bowl Prediction:
Athlon Sports: Meineke Car Care Bowl (vs. UConn)
Phil Steele: Meineke Car Care Bowl (vs. West Virginia)
Last years season for the Clemson Tigers was bookmarked with two losses to Georgia Tech, one at the beginning of the season and one in the ACC Championship game, both by less than a touchdown. Clemson had some good victories last year (Boston College, Miami (Fla), FSU) and they had some tough losses (TCU, Maryland, South Carolina). Outside of the South Carolina game they didn't lose a game by more than 5 points. This year Clemson has 2 gimmes at home out of conference and two tough games against mid-tier (possibly higher) SEC schools. In the ACC Clemson will travel to FSU, UNC and Boston College and gets Miami (Fla) and Georgia Tech at home. A tough schedule but one that is manageable. Clemson's offense must replace C.J. Spiller, Jacoby Ford and about two-thirds of last years receptions. We caught up with Dr B of SB Nation's Clemson Blog Shakin The Southland to find out how they felt about Clemson's chances in 2010.
What are the biggest strengths and most glaring weaknesses of the Tigers?
Defensive line and defensive backfield, particular safety, are very stout positions. 3 of the current DLinemen should be playing in the NFL, and two of them I think will be drafted in rounds 1-2 eventually.
Both safeties were all-americans (D. McDaniel on most AA teams, Rashard Hall was Freshman AA) and I predict DeAndre will be a 1st round pick....but Hall is really the better one of the two in pass coverage. This kid is phenomenal to have played so well as a freshman and almost never be out of position or miss an assignment.
Offensive line should be better, 4 starters are back. The new LG was the starting Center for the first half of last season, so its almost like having all 5 back. The two-deep isnt so hot though, and if we have injuries up front, particularly at Tackle, its going to be very bad.
Biggest weaknesses have to be the lack of proven WRs and the LB corps. We have good talent at both if you believe the recruiting sites, yet none of the WRs did anything last year and the LB corps' inability to read their run keys crippled us at times on defense last year. Clemson would've been a Top 10-15 defense if we had had a better MLB in 09.
Clemson has really early back-to-back-to-back games with Auburn, UNC and Miami. What do you hope to learn about the team during this stretch and how do you see it playing out?
3-0 in that stretch seems like a pipe dream, honestly. Clemson certainly could defeat each of them, but I highly doubt we really do, its a grueling stretch in the schedule.
Auburn is currently the only one I have predicted as a loss, just because its a new opponent early in the season and on the road. If this was at Clemson, I would be much more optimistic. Their offense may be too much for us without a proven set of LBs.
Miami I predicted to be a shootout, so I called it a toss-up. Whomever has the ball last wins. Its at Clemson, so we have a really good chance.
UNC vs Clemson may be the defensive game of the year. Their offense is not without skill talent, but they are woeful in their execution for several years. Clemson's defense can handle that. The problem is their defense starts so many future draft picks that it wont be easy to score even if we do find a WR. I think we'll win, but close.
What team on the schedule do you want to beat the most?
This year, South Carolina. The score last year was not indicative of the skill on those teams. We played awful on defense up front (LBs) and no one read their keys. It was atrocious.
Who is the best player on your team that nobody talks about?
Chad Diehl. He's a ball player. He doesnt get carries, and rarely gets catches, but he can flat out play football. He's an outstanding blocker, one of the best we've had in my memory. People dont give enough credit to great blockers.
Who will be attempting to replace C.J. Spiller?
The tag team of Andre Ellington and Jamie Harper, both former 4-star players who can do it. Andre is quick, small, and runs like a jitterbug. He goes from 0-100mph in 2 seconds. No one hits a hole as hard or as fast.
CJ had a 5th gear and elusiveness these guys dont have, but Andre gets to his top speed quicker than CJ did.
Jamie is a bruiser with more deceptive speed. In a straight line he is comparable in speed to Andre, it just takes him more time to get going. If he can break tackles and hold onto the ball, he can be very good.
The two of them will probably each get 15 carries to start out.
What player(s) needs to step up this year in order for the team to reach it's full capability?
WRs. Xavier Dye, Jaron Brown, Marquan Jones, etc. We need vertical threats to take pressure off the run game. Right now only the TE Dwayne Allen has any record of production. People will just bracket cover him if no one outside or in the slot takes pressure off.
Who is your pick to take the ACC this year and are there any teams flying under the radar that might be able to make a run at the ACC championship?
My pick is FSU vs. VT, simply because I think Clemson loses to FSU in Tallahassee this year. BC has the schedule to win the Atlantic, but I just dont see them beating the Coastal champ.
If Miami's offense puts it together, watch out. That team has the ability to be awesome if Harris improves.
Gut feeling on the teams final record at the end of the regular season and what makes this a successful season in your eyes?
10-2 is my expectation, but it needs to be 9-3 to be successful in my opinion. We just fired a guy for going 8-4 every year, we dont need regression. Its time for Clemson to get it together and win the ACC. I wont be satisfied with 9 wins, but I think its reasonable given the schedule.
Thanks to Dr B for answering our questions. Make sure you check out Shakin The Southland this football season for Clemson/ACC coverage. You can also follow them on twitter @shakinsouthland.
Previous ACC Previews:
Boston College Eagles
Duke Blue Devils
Florida State Seminoles
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Maryland Terrapins
North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina State Wolfpack
Virginia Cavaliers
Virginia Tech Hokies
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Next Up: Iowa Hawkeyes
Previous Pre-Season Previews
Big 12- Iowa State Cyclones, Kansas Jayhawks, Kansas State Wildcats, Missouri Tigers, Oklahoma Sooners, Oklahoma State Cowboys, Texas Longhorns, Texas Tech Red Raiders
Big East- Cincinnati Bearcats, Pittsburgh Panthers, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, Syracuse Orange, UConn Huskies, USF Bulls, West Virginia Mountaineers
Big Ten- Illinois Fighting Illini, Michigan Wolverines, Minnesota Golden Gophers, Northwestern Wildcats, Ohio State Buckeyes, Purdue Boilermakers
C-USA- Houston Cougars, SMU Mustangs, Southern Miss Golden Eagles, Tulane Green Wave, UTEP Miners
Independent- Army Black Knights, Navy Midshipmen, Notre Dame Fighting Irish
MAC- Ball State Cardinals, Bowling Green Falcons, Buffalo Bulls, Central Michigan Chippewas, Temple Owls, Toledo Rockets
MWC- BYU Cougars, Colorado State Rams, UNLV Rebels, Utah Utes
Pac-10- Arizona State Sun Devils, California Golden Bears, Oregon Ducks, Oregon State Beavers, Stanford Cardinal, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, Washington Huskies, Washington State Cougars
SEC- Auburn Tigers, Georgia Bulldogs, Kentucky Wildcats, LSU Tigers, Mississippi Rebels, South Carolina Gamecocks, Vanderbilt Commodores
Sun Belt- FIU Golden Panthers, North Texas Mean Green, Troy Trojans
WAC- Boise State Broncos, Fresno State Bulldogs, Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, New Mexico State Aggies
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