The Confidential

The ACC Sports Blog

Archive for the month “April, 2012”

23 Apr 2012

Virginia Tech Fires Seth Greenberg

After a 16-17 season, the Virginia Tech Hokies have decided to go in a different direction with its basketball program, firing Seth Greenberg.  Abandoning all class, the Hokies decided to make the move last week, but only bothered to tell Greenberg today–about 3 hours before an already-announced press conference.  This is particularly true when the season has been over for several weeks now.

As such, it is hardly shocking that Greenberg was stunned by the decision:

“I was completely shocked and blindsided by the decision of Jim Weaver and the administration. These past nine years have been some of the most rewarding for me both personally and professionally,” Greenberg told ESPN.com just after 6 p.m. Monday. ” … I appreciate the support from (Virginia Tech) president (Charles W.) Steger, the Hokie Nation, the student body, my coaching staff and all our players. Our program was built on family, trust and relationships. I leave the program in far greater shape than when I was hired nine years ago.”

Greenberg is right.  The Hokies ARE in better shape than they were nine years ago.

Still, it has been bubble-season after bubble-season for Virginia Tech under Greenberg.  The team never did turn the corner.  And this year, they lost sight of the corner completely.

It’s just a shame that the Hokies could not have handled the transition a little classier and smoother.  So it goes.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball and tagged , ,
21 Apr 2012

2012 ACC Men’s Lacrosse Championship Game Set

The Championship Game for the 2012 ACC Men’s Lacrosse Championship is now set.  Following Friday’s two semifinal games, Duke will be playing North Carolina for the Championship.

In the 2-3 game between North Carolina and Virginia, the Cavaliers continued their late season swoon by falling to the Tar Heels, 11-9.  The game was a see-saw affair for the first three quarters, as neither team was able to mount a lead of more than 1 goal.  However, once North Carolina got to a 7-6 lead, it never trailed again.    Attackman Marcus Holman was the leading goal scorer for North Carolina with three goals, while Joey Sankey added five points with two goals and three assists.  Steele Stanwick of Virginia scored 7 points to lead the Cavaliers.  For North Carolina, it was its first win over Virginia since 2004.

In the other semifinal game, red-hot Duke defeated suddenly surging Maryland 6-5.  The low scoring affair was close throughout.  Duke did have a 6-4 lead, before allowing Maryland to get within one goal.  And then Maryland had a few opportunities in the final minutes to tie, before ultimately falling short.  Duke’s Josh Dionne was a star for the Blue Devils with a hat trick.  In the end, Duke protects its number 1 seed and will move on to Sunday’s Championship game against rival North Carolina.

Championship Game details:  Duke v North Carolina.  3 p.m.  The game will be televised on ESPNU and ESPN3.  Good luck to both teams.

 

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Game Review, Lacrosse and tagged , , , , , , ,
20 Apr 2012

ACC Lacrosse Weekly Report 8, April 20, 2012

The ACC Lacrosse season continues to progress…

News/Rankings:

The big news this week was Duke defeating Virginia 13-5.  Duke has been on a roll, so a win over Virginia would not have been entirely shocking.  But to win by 8 goals?  NOBODY saw that coming.

With all the losses, Loyola of Maryland and Massachusetts are atop the standings right now.  Both teams are undefeated.

The Inside Lacrosse poll has Duke at #5, with no first place votes.  Virginia is #6, Maryland is #8, North Carolina is #9, and Syracuse is #14.

In the USILA Coaches Poll, Virginia is #4 with 4 of the 0 first place votes.  Duke is #7, Maryland is #8, North Carolina is #9, and Syracuse is #15.

Recent Scores:

Tuesday, April 10, 2012:

Cornell 12-Syracuse 6, Recap

Friday, April 13, 2012:

Duke 13-Virginia 5, Recap

Saturday, April 14, 2012:

Syracuse 19-Rutgers 6, Recap

North Carolina 12-Hofstra 9, Recap

Maryland 9-Johns Hopkins 6, Recap

Tuesday, April 17, 2012:

Syracuse 13-Hobart 12, Recap

Upcoming Games:

The 2012 ACC Men’s Lacrosse Championship Tournament:

Friday, April 20, 2012 (semifinals)

#4 Maryland v #1 Duke, 5:00 p.m.

#3 North Carolina v #2 Virginia, 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Championship, 3:00 p.m.

Other Games:

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Georgetown @ Syracuse, 3 p.m.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Maryland @ Mount Saint Mary’s, 7:00 p.m.

 

Records:

Virginia 10-2 (2-1 in conference).

Duke 11-3 (2-1 in conference)

North Carolina 9-4 (1-2 in conference)

Maryland 7-3 (1-2 in conference)

Syracuse 7-5

 

The Confidential’s ACC Lacrosse Rankings:

1.  Duke (11-3).  After a tough start, Duke has rebounded and dominated Virginia.

2.  Virginia (10-2).  After a great start, Virginia is fading a bit.  Collapsed against Duke.

3.  North Carolina (9-4).  With a win over Maryland and more wins, North Carolina gets the edge.

4.  Maryland (7-3).  Maryland has an extra few games to show it deserves an upgrade.

5.  Syracuse (7-5).  Too many losses.  And not enough impressive wins.

If you have any comments on the ACC Lacrosse season or this entry, please feel free to share!

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Lacrosse and tagged , , , , , , , ,
11 Apr 2012

Spring Break for The Confidential

With the revenue sports firmly in the offseason, the time has come for The Confidential to take a spring break.

Look for new entries on or about April 17, 2012.

 

Posted by acaffrey in Uncategorized
10 Apr 2012

The Confidential Misses One

Earlier this week, the Confidential took Dennis Dodd to task for suggesting that Bobby Petrino should be fired at Arkansas.  D’oh!  The reports are that Arkansas has gone ahead and relieved Petrino of his duties.  So it looks like Dodd was right to call for Petrino’s firing.  Or it just shows that the media can influence what happens at institutions.

Actually, the reports are that Petrinio could have avoided his firing if he accepted certain penalties.  Apparently, he declined that–resulting in his termination.  So, in a sense, Petrino controlled his own destiny.  In fact, Petrino was dumb three times.  The first time was getting on the motorcycle with the young lady.  The second time was lying about it.  The third time was refusing to cooperate with his generous employer.

In a new trend, there was a protest supporting Petrino today.  There is even a Facebook page.  Regardless of whether one thinks Petrino should be fired, it is a little pathetic that anyone felt the need to protest.  As set forth above, Petrino controlled his own destiny–even to the end.

And, after two years at Arkansas, it was probably time for him to move on anyway.  Maybe a school like Memphis would want to take a chance on Petrino down the road.

 

Posted by acaffrey in Football, Uncategorized
09 Apr 2012

Spring Game Primer

The ACC has a nice listing of the various spring games, several of which are being held this Saturday.  Here are this week’s games:

Miami Spring Game
Coral Gables, Fla.
2:00 PM

Watch Live TV: ESPN3

Virginia Spring Game
Charlottesville, Va.
2:00 PM

Florida State Spring Game
Tallahassee, Fla.
4:00 PM

Watch Live| TV: ESPN3

Clemson Spring Game
Clemson, SC
4:00 PM

Watch Live| TV: ESPN3

North Carolina Spring Game
Chapel Hill, NC
4:00 PM

TV: ESPN3

Wake Forest Spring Game
Winston-Salem, NC
TBA

As you can see, several of the games are being televised on ESPN3.   For more information, see http://www.theacc.com.

 

Posted by acaffrey in Uncategorized
09 Apr 2012

Boston College Wins Hockey National Championship

The Confidential does not cover many sports outside of football, basketball, and lacrosse–but it is always noteworthy when an ACC school wins a national title.  Thus, congratulations are in order for Boston College, who won its third national title in five years by defeating Ferris State University (of Michigan), 4-1.  It was the Eagles’ fifth national championship overall.

The ACC had this to say about the game:

Top-seed Boston College scored twice in the first period and sealed the fifth national championship in program history, 4-1, with two more goals in the third. Junior goaltender Parker Milner recorded 27 saves en route to being named the 2012 Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player on Saturday night at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.

* * *

Steven Whitney led the Eagles with two goals, scoring the first on a put-back at 3:18 in the first. Senior forward Barry Almeida won a loose puck near the crease and put a shot on net. The puck deflected off a Bulldog skate, landing in front of the Reading, Mass. native.

While Boston College is the ACC’s only hockey team, it is nevertheless a source of pride that the ACC now has the best team.  Let’s hope that starts carrying over to the revenue sports.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Hockey and tagged , , ,
08 Apr 2012

ACC Lacrosse Weekly Report 7, April 8, 2012

The ACC Lacrosse season continues to progress…

News/Rankings:

The big news this week was North Carolina defeating John Hopkins 13-9, allowing Virginia to return to #1.

The Inside Lacrosse poll has Virginia #1, again–receiving 11 of the 20 first place votes.  Duke is #8 and North Carolina is #9.  Maryland is #12 and Syracuse has dropped all the way to #17.

In the USILA Coaches Poll, Virginia is #1 with 4 of the 10 first place votes.  The rest is the same as the Inside Lacrosse Poll, except that North Carolina and Syracuse are tied in their rankings.

Recent Scores:

Saturday, March 31, 2012:

Virginia 12-Maryland 8.  Recap.

Sunday, April 1, 2012:

Duke 12-Syracuse 10.  Recap.

North Carolina 13-Johns Hopkins 9.  Recap.

Friday, April 6, 2012:

Maryland 13-Navy 6.  Recap.

Saturday, April 7, 2012:

Virginia 15-North Carolina 10.  Recap.

Duke 11-Marist 10.  Recap.

Syracuse 10-Princeton 9.  Recap.

Upcoming Games:

Tuesday, April 10, 2012:

Syracuse @ Cornell, 7:00 p.m.

Friday, April 13, 2012:

Duke @ Virginia, 6:00 p.m.

Saturday, April 14, 2012:

Rutgers @ Syracuse, 11:00 a.m.

Hofstra @ North Carolina, 1;30 p.m.

Maryland @ Johns Hopkins, 6:00 p.m.

Tuesday, April 17, 2012:

Syracuse @ Hobart, 7:00 p.m.

Records:

Virginia 10-1 (2-0 in conference).

Duke 10-3 (1-1 in conference)

North Carolina 8-4 (1-2 in conference)

Maryland 6-3 (1-2 in conference)

Syracuse 5-4

The Confidential’s ACC Lacrosse Rankings:

1.  Virginia (10-1).  Rebounded nicely with wins over Maryland and North Carolina.

2.  Duke (10-3).  Duke just keeps on winning.  Took care of Syracuse and Marist.

3.  North Carolina (8-4).  With a win over Maryland and more wins, North Carolina gets the edge.

4.  Maryland (6-3).  See above.

5.  Syracuse (5-4).  Syracuse has not looked good when winning and played poorly in losing.

If you have any comments on the ACC Lacrosse season or this entry, please feel free to share!

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Lacrosse and tagged , , , , , , , ,
07 Apr 2012

Mel Kiper’s Latest Mock Draft

ESPN’s NFL Draft guru, Mel Kiper, has issued a mock draft that goes two rounds deep–63 projected selections.  The draft is very heavy on ACC players.

Kiper has the first ACC player off the board in pick #11, with Luke Kuechly, LB, Boston College to Kansas City:

Kuechly is a rare talent at linebacker — instinctive, explosive, able to make plays from sideline to sideline, but very sound in reading plays into the backfield and making stops. Kansas City has a need here, and Kuechly is a safe pick, a guy who can get on the field early and pick up the nuances of the NFL game right away. A tackling machine at linebacker, he’ll make any defense better.

At #12, Kiper goes right back to the ACC with Quinton Coples, DE, North Carolina, to Seattle:

Even if Kuechly is still on the board, it would be tough for Seattle to pass on perhaps the safest 4-3 DE option available. Coples has prototypical size, can play every down as a pass-rusher and has a solid arsenal of moves to get to opposing quarterbacks, but with the size and discipline to be a force against the run. Seattle can’t go wrong here with either the top LB or DE available. This defense is close to being considered among the NFL’s finest.

At #18, rapidly rising Chander Jones, DE, Syracuse, is projected to go to San Diego:

Listed as a defensive end at Syracuse, Jones has the talent, upside and a great frame to make the move to OLB in a pass-rushing role. He’s still a little raw, but the instincts are there and offensive linemen have a really tough time getting their hands on him. Could blossom into a star for the Chargers.

At #30, San Francisco goes for offense with Stephen Hill, WR, Georgia Tech:

Hill is the biggest home run threat in the draft when you combine his speed and size, and it’s no secret the 49ers need some help at wide receiver, even with the additions of Randy Moss and Mario Manningham. He’ll need an adjustment period as he gets used to doing more in terms of scheme than he was asked at Georgia Tech, but he’s the kind of weapon this offense needs to expand.

Pretty interesting first round–not a single player from Miami, Florida State, Clemson, or Virginia Tech.

Here are Kiper’s second round projections:

Round 2
Pick Team Player Position School

42 Miami Andre Branch DE Clemson
A great fit in Miami’s adjusted scheme, Branch offers late-first-round value at this spot.

46 Philadelphia Zach Brown LB North Carolina
A great athlete who can fill a big need at linebacker for the Eagles. Even with DeMeco Ryans, they need help.

51 Philadelphia (from Ariz) Dwayne Allen TE Clemson
My top tight end for much of the year, Allen didn’t test well, but he’s there on tape.

60 Baltimore Terrell Manning LB N.C. State
They lost another good OLB this offseason, and Manning makes sense as a reinforcement.

63 New York Giants David Wilson RB Virginia Tech
They lose Brandon Jacobs, but Wilson will bring some power of his own, with a lot more explosiveness.

So Kiper sees nine ACC players going in the first two rounds.  Still nobody from Miami or Florida State though.  That is pretty shocking really.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , ,
06 Apr 2012
1 Comment

Dennis Dodd–Pandering for Attention

It just gets old.  EVERY time there is any error by a public figure, the sensationalist new media rushes into to see who can be the first to mandate the worst punishment possible.  It really crystallized with the Joe Paterno matter.  And then Jim Boeheim.  And now Bobby Petrino is the whipping boy.  For CBS’s Dennis Dodd, he quickly joined the Petrino must be fired camp. Only it is obvious that his position is simply to seek attention.

Dodd opines that the “only choice” is to fire Petrino.  Really?  For what?  For crashing his motorcycle?  For having an extra-marital affair?  For not being forthright about it?  Dodd opines as follows:

If you can’t bring yourself to be indignant over those episodes, what occurred Thursday was enough to push Petrino out the door. He can’t recruit from here forward. He can’t recruit because every rival from Gainesville to Knoxville will open their living-room pitch with news accounts of what occurred Thursday night. And what is sure to be fallout in subsequent days.

Petrino can’t recruit because every mama who does let him in the door will be shooting him the stink eye. They are wives and mothers too, just like his wife and his children’s mother, Becky.

In a fit of hubris and arrogance Petrino just lost his ability to recruit. At least recruit well. His misdeeds occurred in the Bible Belt where such things matter. Maybe matter more.

Petrino isn’t the first coach to have an “inappropriate relationship”. He is one of the few to get caught.

So, apparently,  Petrino will not be able to recruit because of a publicized affair.  It does not matter what he did, all that matters is how it will impact his ability to recruit.

That is internally inconsistent.  Dodd stops well short of stating that Petrino should be fired for his moral failings.  Instead, it is only about wins and losses.  Given how well Petrino can coach, that should be the reason that Arkansas looks behind these transgressions, places Petrino on double-secret probation, and lets wins/losses continue to define Petrino’s future.  If Petrino keeps winning, Dodd can just admit he is wrong.  If Petrino starts losing, Dodd will be vindicated.  Either way, what Petrino did is irrelevant.  All that matters is the results.  Dodd would prefer to have Arkansas speculate.

Even worse, Dodd just got done opining about how Rick Pitino proved that he belonged in the Hall of Fame.  An article written on March 24, 2012.  This is the same Rick Pitino who apparently had a sexual rendezvous with a woman and allegedly paid for her to get an abortion.  Three years later, Dodd considers him a Hall of Famer.  Granted, Pitino was in the Final Four.  But it would certainly seem that the “wives and mothers” of Louisville recruits looked past the transgressions.  If Dodd can look past them and focus on recruiting, the recruits can certainly do the same.  As will their families.  All the more reason not to guess about how any scandal will impact job performance.

It’s bad enough when the sensationalist media piles on to a beleaguered individual, but at least TRY to be consistent.  Otherwise, it is apparent that you are just looking for attention.  Mission accomplished.

Posted by acaffrey in Football, Uncategorized and tagged , , ,

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