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10 Nov 2013
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The ACC School Mount Rushmores: Duke FINAL

Duke’s basketball history is not unlike Notre Dame’s football history–so many names.  Only the names are clustered into the past 30 or so years, reflecting the glory days of Duke hoops.  So picking the 4th is a challenge.

With so many names to choose from, it is hard to choose one.  Johnny Dawkins put up incredible points, all before the 3-point shot.  Shane Battier was the ultimate glue guy and winner.  Grant Hill was a dominant small forward.  JJ Reddick was a scorer deluxe, who turned into a great all-around player.

But the Confidential is going to go with Bobby Hurley.  Here is why:

  • Like Hill, won two National Championships
  • Still the all-time NCAA leader in assists, with 1,076
  • Was M.O.P. of the 1992 Final Four.
  • Was First-Team All-American in 1993.
  • Duke retired his jersey in 1993.

Hurley now continues the Duke tradition as a head coach for Buffalo.  He is one of many Coach K products to elevate to that level, joining Dawkins, Tommy Amaker, Mike Brey, and others.

So, with all due respect to the other great players at Duke, the final Duke Mount Rushmore is: Coach K, Christian Laettner, Art Heyman, and Bobby Hurley.

 

Other Mount Rushmores:

 

 

  1. Maryland Preliminary   Maryland Final
  2. Boston College    Boston College Final
  3. Wake Forest   Wake Forest Final
  4. Miami   Miami Final
  5. Virginia Tech   Virginia Tech Final
  6. Syracuse   Syracuse Final
  7. Virginia   Virginia Final
  8. Pittsburgh  Pittsburgh Final
  9. North Carolina State  North Carolina State Final
  10. Clemson   Clemson Final
  11. Georgia Tech  Georgia Tech Final
  12. Louisville  Lousiville Final
  13. Notre Dame  Notre Dame Final
  14. Duke
  15. North Carolina
  16. Florida State

 

For more on the Duke decisions, see the original discussion…

Read more…

Posted by acaffrey in Mount Rushmore, Opinion and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,
08 Nov 2013
3 Comments

2013-2014 ACC Basketball Preview: Ranking the Teams

Amazingly, another college basketball season is upon us.  This year, the ACC is joined by Syracuse, Pittsburgh, and Notre Dame.  Next year, Louisville replaces Maryland.  So we have 16 teams to rank!  And here is how they stack up:

  1. Read more…
Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Predictions and tagged , , ,
07 Nov 2013
1 Comment

The Confidential’s ACC Football Top 10 Poll: Week 10

Well, Florida State-Miami was interesting for a while.  But there is a clear #1 in the ACC right now: the Seminoles.  Here is the Confidential Correspondents Football top 10 Poll for Week 10.  Remember, we include Notre Dame and Louisville.  This year, we’ll start with team number 10 and work our way to #1.

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Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Correspondent Poll, Football, Opinion, Poll, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , ,
04 Nov 2013
7 Comments

Syracuse-Maryland, Race, and Quarterbacks

The Confidential is not a source for book reviews or history lessons.  And we are not about to get preachy.  But there was an interesting story in Deadspin about the history of a Syracuse-Maryland game in 1937.  See article: Deadspin.

The 20-word summary: In 1937, Syracuse had to bench its quarterback, Wilmeth Sidat-Singh, on a road trip to Maryland because he was not from India (as claimed), but an African-American.  This did not sit well with segregationists. With Syracuse traveling to Maryland this Saturday, it is interesting to read how much times have changed. Now, before casting a stone at Maryland, just remember that the NFL was not desegregated yet at that point either.  Times have changed in more places than just Maryland.  Society has come a long way.

And while one does not ordinarily think of Syracuse University as a racial trailblazer, it does bear mention that there were few African-American quarterbacks even as late as the Donovan McNabb era.  For every Warren Moon or Tony Rice, there were numerous other kids forced into different positions based solely on race.  Guys like Don McPherson, Marvin Graves, and Donovan McNabb were given the chance to fulfill their dreams of playing quarterback by Syracuse.  Under their leadership, Syracuse football was a consistent bowl team from 1987 to 1998.  And it was part of a change for college football.

In fact, just look at the ACC Standings:

ACC Standings

ATLANTIC CONF OVERALL
Florida State 6-0 8-0
Clemson 6-1 8-1
Syracuse 2-2 4-4
Boston College 2-3 4-4
Wake Forest 2-4 4-5
Maryland 1-3 5-3
North Carolina State 0-5 3-5
COASTAL CONF OVERALL
Miami (FL) 3-1 7-1
Georgia Tech 5-2 6-3
Virginia Tech 3-2 6-3
Duke 2-2 6-2
Pittsburgh 2-3 4-4
North Carolina 2-3 3-5
Virginia 0-5 2-7

There are seven teams with conference records at .500 or better.  Want to know what they all have in common?  They all have African-American starting quarterbacks: Florida State (Jameis Winston), Clemson (Tajh Boyd), Virginia Tech (Logan Thomas), Miami (Stephen Morris), Georgia Tech (Vad Lee), Duke (Anthony Boone), and Terrel Hunt (Syracuse).  Needless to say, things have changed considerably between 1999 and 2013, much less 1937 and 2013.

The economy may have been better in the 1950s.  The world might have been more sociable and interactive, and less Facebooky and Twittery, in the 1980s.  But some things are better today.  While we often lament the days of yore–remember, we have made a lot of progress as a society just to get to a point where teams will finally play the QB that gives them the best chance of winning, without regard to the color of his skin.

Posted by acaffrey in Football, Opinion and tagged , ,
02 Nov 2013
23 Comments

ACC Saturday Football Game Day Thread: November 2, 2013

A big day for ACC football, culminating with the biggest game of the year so far: Florida State (7-0) vs. Miami (7-0).  The spread for this game is significant.  Miami will have its hands full.  But this Hurricane team beat Florida in a dogfight.  Miami has won ugly this year.

Other games:

  • Noon: Virginia Tech v Boston College
  • 12:30 pm: Syracuse v Wake Forest
  • 12:30 pm: North Carolina v North Carolina State
  • 3:30 pm: Clemson v Virginia
  • 7:00 pm: Georgia Tech v Pitt

In closing… take a look at this crazy image, courtesy of ESPN & FoxSportsCarolinas:

Really? This is the best image that they could use????

 

Posted by acaffrey in Gameday Open Thread and tagged , ,
02 Nov 2013
8 Comments

Big XII Expansion Thoughts

The folk over at Frank the Tank are having fun talking about Big XII expansion scenarios.  Assuming that the Big XII wants to add two schools… and cannot steal from the ACC, SEC, B1G, or Pac-12, where does the Big XII go?  Frank the Tank lists them in order as Cincinnati, BYU, San Diego State, Central Florida, South Florida, and then Tulane.  The question for ACC fans.  Which would we like to see?  Which would we hate to see?

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Posted by acaffrey in Conference Realignment and tagged , ,
30 Oct 2013
3 Comments

The Confidential’s ACC Football Top 10 Poll: Week 9

So much for October, it is now November and the Florida State-Clemson game of the week is a distant memory, as Florida State-Miami will be the contest everyone is still talking about.  With two 7-0 teams, it certainly should be.  Someone gets a huge strength of schedule boost with win.  Even the standings are starting to settle in the top 6.  We’ll see who is #1 next week.  Here is the Confidential Correspondents Football top 10 Poll for Week 9.  Remember, we include Notre Dame and Louisville.  This year, we’ll start with team number 10 and work our way to #1.

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Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Correspondent Poll, Football, Opinion, Poll, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , ,
28 Oct 2013
4 Comments

FANT-A.C.C. FOOTBALL UPDATE

As you may recall, the Confidential delved into fantasy football this year.  Specifically, the Confidential started a survivor pool including the 14 A.C.C. teams, as well as Louisville & Notre Dame.  After 9 weeks, only 13 teams are left.  Here are the current standings:

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Posted by acaffrey in ACC only and tagged ,
22 Oct 2013
1 Comment

The Confidential ACC Football Top 10 Poll: Week 8

We are well into October now… and the Florida State-Clemson game settled the rankings at the top.  It is still guesswork from #2 to #10 though.  So how do the ACC teams stack up according to the Confidential correspondents?  Well, here is the Confidential Correspondents Football top 10 Poll for Week 7.  Remember, we include Notre Dame and Louisville.  This year, we’ll start with team number 10 and work our way to #1.

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Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Correspondent Poll, Football, Opinion, Poll, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , ,
20 Oct 2013
1 Comment

ACC Recap, Weekend of October 19, 2013

If you doubt whether ACC football can be huge, the moments prior to kickoff of Clemson-Florida State should quickly disabuse you of that.  What a great job by the Clemson athletic department and fans to make the scene truly memorable.  Unfortunately, Clemson did not follow through on the field.  But let’s take a look across the ACC.

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Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Results and tagged , , , , , , ,

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