The Confidential

The ACC Sports Blog

Archive for the category “ACC only”

26 May 2013
3 Comments

Syracuse Orange: Comeback Kids beat Denver, Duke awaits

Go ahead, call it a comeback. For the second consecutive week, the Syracuse Orange men’s lacrosse team needed last minute heroics to overcome certain defeat against Yale and Denver, respectively. With their 9-8 win over the Denver Pioneers, the Orange will square off against future conference-mate, Duke, in the NCAA Division I Championship game on Monday. Yet for over 55 minutes on Saturday, it seemed that Denver fans’ Rocky Mountain High would continue on, instead it all came crashing down. Read more…

Posted by Vinnie Saltine in ACC only, Lacrosse, Syracuse correspondent and tagged , , , ,
25 May 2013

Duke defeats Cornell 16-14, secures spot in Finals

Duke The Duke Blue Devils’ offense delivered, and the defense held on to defeat Cornell in Philadelphia on Saturday. Duke will advance to the final game on Monday to take on the winner of Syracuse and Denver. Read more…

Posted by Vinnie Saltine in ACC only, Duke Correspondent, Lacrosse
20 May 2013
7 Comments

Revenue Sports Decade in Review

Last week, we analyzed the last decade of ACC performances in football and basketball.  There were some surprises.  For example, Boston College in football and Florida State in basketball.  But what does it mean overall?  How about a ranking of the performances of all schools in both sports?  Here you go.

Read more…

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Football, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
19 May 2013
1 Comment

Memorial Day Weekend is Orange

As much as I fear the worst for the Orange come the NCAA hoops tournament, the opposite is true for lacrosse.  For the first time since 2009 Syracuse returns to the Final Four on Memorial Day weekend.  This holiday has essentially been a Syracuse holiday.  With the growth of lacrosse across the country and schools adding it, the Orange can’t expect to dominate like it used to, so it’s nice to still be at the front of the pack.  The Orange advanced with another one goal victory over Yale yesterday to save the senior class from not having been to a Final Four.

Read more…

Posted by tjcuseacc in ACC only, Lacrosse, Results, Schedule, Syracuse correspondent and tagged , , ,
17 May 2013
2 Comments

State recruits Jr QB

Just scanning the Charlotte Observer website and came across this tidbit:  Charlotte West Mecklenburg Junior QB Jalan McClendon has commited to the Wolfpack.  Here’s the link:

http://prepinsiders.blogspot.com/2013/05/west-meck-qb-jalen-mcclendon-commits-to.html

Two things here interest me greatly; Jalan’s coach states that the Pack intends “to build a program around him”, and the fact that he was recruited by both Miami and UNC, two conference rivals including the in-state one that usually snaps up everybody locally.

Of course it will be some time before McClendon actually puts on red and white, so there is plenty of time for him to change his mind.  But for now this looks like at least a minor recruiting coup for Dave Doeren and his staff.

If any readers went to West Meck, please let me know more about this kid.  It would be interesting to hear from someone who has seen him first-hand.

Posted by mikemab2000 in ACC only, NC State Correspondent, Recruiting and tagged , , , ,
17 May 2013
16 Comments

ACC Should Add Johns Hopkins for Lacrosse

The Blue Ribbon panel appointed by Johns Hopkins University to evaluate the pros and cons of joining a conference for lacrosse as an associate member has issued its report.  The report recommends pursuing a conference affiliation.  The Confidential believes that the ACC should add Johns Hopkins as an associate member for lacrosse only.

First, the ACC needs a sixth team.  Duke, Syracuse, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Virginia, and it was going to be Maryland.  The loss of Maryland means the loss of the 6th program.

Second, in Johns Hopkins, the ACC gets a huge name in lacrosse, as well as solidifying the Maryland region.  The rivalries are there.

Third, this would be the premier conference in the history of… ever.  Imagine if Alabama, LSU, Florida, and Georgia left the SEC and joined a conference with Florida State and Miami.  Regional and dominant!   Or a basketball conference with Kentucky, Syracuse, Duke, North Carolina, Kansas, and Michigan State.  You get the picture.  If you are going six, go all the way.

Fourth, Johns Hopkins has a TV deal with ESPNU that it wants to keep.  The ACC’s rights are owned by–wait for it–ESPN.  This part of it works.  How would Johns Hopkins mesh with the Big Ten Network?  Not as easily.

Fifth, Notre Dame set the precedent here with a partial membership.  Not really breaking any new ground.  And other conferences have allowed members for just one sport under similar arrangements.

Finally, the Big 10 wants them too.  Perhaps.  Maybe.  Why be in a conference with Rutgers lacrosse, when you can be in a conference with 5 of the biggest names in, well, ever.  Johns Hopkins looks a lot more like Duke and Syracuse and Notre Dame, than it does a boring flagship state university with 50,000 members.

So there it is.  Everything works for this.  We just need the ACC to beat the Big 10 to the punch.

 

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Conference Realignment, Lacrosse, Recruiting and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,
16 May 2013
4 Comments

Billboard Demands Removal of Wake Forest Coach, AD

We all have a pet project that consumes our time and money.  Some of us take it too far and wind up ignoring our significant others or forgetting meaningful moments in our lives.  However, some us take it a little further.

Yahoo! Sports is reporting that a new roadside sight along U.S. 52 near Winston-Salem is showing just how far some fans will go to vent their frustrations about college athletics.  According to The Dagger’s Jeff Eisenberg, a group of Wake Forest University fans have spent a load of money to erect a billboard blasting men’s basketball head coach Jeff Bzdelik and athletic director Ron Wellman’s performance at the school.

(Credits: WXII12.com)

(Credits: WXII12.com)

Wow.  Talk about not holding back.  Tell me what you really think, Wake fans.

WXII12.com is reporting the group of fans raised over $4,500 to fulfill their wish of bringing more public attention to the disaster the basketball program has become under Bzdelik and Wellman’s watch.  But the billboard is only the next chapter of their group’s efforts – they’ve also taken out newspaper ads and created websites like firebz.com.

Among other notables, the website keeps a rolling tally of the basketball team’s ventures – the Demon Deacons are 34-60 overall and 11-42 against ACC opponents under Bzdelik.

One Wake Forest fan who hasn’t disguised his displeasure with the basketball program is Fire Jeff Bzdelik Group fan Brian Stratton.  Stratton is on record as saying the billboard was a necessary step to take because the fanbase has been alienated by the athletic director’s actions.  He also took to Facebook to further explain the erection of the billboard.

“All would have been forgiven had [Wellman] done the right thing and fired Bzdelik at the end of the year,” Stratton wrote via the popular social media site.  “However, he boxed us into a corner and we had to take the next step.  Ron Wellman has clearly brought this on himself and needs to be relieved of his duties.”

Although this recent news is fascinating, fans weren’t too keen on Bzdelik’s hire even in 2010.  He was chosen by Wellman after going 36-58 at Colorado after three seasons and never ended a Big 12 season ranked higher than eighth in the conference standings.

As a Louisville graduate, I can certainly identify with fan malcontent over a sports coach who hasn’t performed.  The Steve Kragthorpe Era at UofL really tested the Cardinal fanbase.  Of course, our athletic director realized the error in his ways and put into motion the process of replacing him with up-and-coming star Charlie Strong.

No one wants a cloud of negativity to surround an athletic program for too long.  Wake’s brass leadership may wake up one day soon and realize that Bzdelik and perhaps Wellman have to go, if not for the athletic program, for the university image and relationship with fans and alumni.

Demon Deacon fans, you simply have to believe that better things will come.  The one thing Wellman can do to revive your trust is to make a stellar choice as the next head coach to lead Wake back to relevance.

And we wait.

Posted by MBenjAdams in ACC only, Basketball and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
16 May 2013
1 Comment

ESPN’s Most-Talented Football Teams for 2013

The other day, the Confidential ran through the most successful ACC football teams for the past decade.  Today, ESPN’s Travis Haney has a list of the 10 most talented football teams for 2013.  Three of the top 10 teams in talent are in our very own ACC.  Moreover, Clemson is in the next five.

The top 10 is, itself, a whos-who of college football elite.  Obviously, one can find Alabama, Texas, and Ohio State on the list.  But where does the ACC stack up?

Well, Florida State is #4 on the list.  Here is some of the blurb on the Seminoles from the article:

Schlabach’s ranking: 14
Kiper’s top 50 prospects: 3
Kiper’s positional prospects: 14
Four-year recruiting class average rank: 4.5

Considering the above numbers/rankings, there is no reason for Florida State to lose games the way it did to NC State in 2012 or Virginia in 2011. Injuries and inexperience played a part in those losses and others, but the Seminoles are better on paper than any team in the ACC. At least FSU managed a BCS berth — and win — last season, but it should have been a bigger year.

Pretty fair, actually.  FSU has to stop losing to inferior opponents.

In a bit of a surprise, Miami is #8.  Here is some of Haney’s explanation:

Schlabach’s ranking: NR
Kiper’s top 50 prospects: 0
Kiper’s positional prospects: 11
Four-year recruiting class average rank: 16.5

Am I reaching here? Maybe, but there isn’t a whole lot to differentiate among programs such as Miami, Michigan, Clemson or the ones listed below. I just find the Hurricanes interesting because of how many players return, including the entire offense. They’re kind of easy to forget about, because of the self-imposed bowl ban, but they did win five of their seven games in the ACC — and no team has a hold on the league, not even the Seminoles.

And Notre Dame finished #10.  Haney listed Clemson at #12, meaning 25% of the top 12 is in the ACC, while 33% of the top 12 is ACC or ACC-affiliated.  Niot bad!

Here is the full list:

  1. Alabama
  2. Texas
  3. LSU
  4. Florida State
  5. Georgia
  6. Oregon
  7. Ohio State
  8. Miami
  9. Stanford
  10. Notre Dame
  11. Michigan
  12. Clemson
  13. Florida
  14. Auburn
  15. Texas A&M

So… that’s 6 SEC schools, 3/4 ACC schools, 2 SEC schools, 2 Pac-12 schools, and 1 Big XII school.

An argument could be made for Nebraska, Wisconsin, USC, Virginia Tech, and Louisville to be on this list.  But, alas, such is not the case.

What do you think… is ESPN stretching for the ACC now that they have a long-term partnership or is this a legit ranking?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , ,
15 May 2013
14 Comments

ACC Football: Decade in Review

Most sports fans are willing to make fun of a school based on its perceived on-field or on-court performance.  Sometimes it is accurate; other times it is not.  So, what we set out to do was look at the records of ACC schools in football over the past decade.  Who do YOU think had the best record in conference games between 2003 and 2012?   Worst?  Courtesy of stassen.com, we were able to easily make the calculations.

  1. Virginia Tech had the best record in ACC conference games this past decade, going 64-20.
  2. Florida State was #2, albeit significantly behind the Hokies in win total, going 54-29.
  3. Clemson narrowly edged Georgia Tech for the #3 spot, with a 51-31 record.
  4. Georgia Tech misses out because of that ACC-CG appearance last year to finish #4 at 51-32.
  5. Miami comes in at #5 with a 44-35 overall record.
  6. Boston College has to be a surprise at #6, making it 3 out of the top 6 as former Big East schools, with a 41-38 record.
  7. North Carolina & Virginia tie at 35-45.
  8. see above.
  9. Wake Forest went 35-46.
  10. North Carolina State went 34-46.
  11. Maryland went 33-47.
  12. Duke was 12-68.

So, Big 10 fans, you are getting a Maryland team that was 11th in conference wins the past decade.  While Maryland has had financial troubles, they were operating under the same system as the rest of its ACC peers.  So, good luck with that.

What do you think the rankings would be for hoops?  Would it be Duke, North Carolina, or someone else at the top?  Who would be at the bottom?

 

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
14 May 2013
2 Comments

Seminole Territory: ACC Meetings and Andrew Wiggins

The ACC ‘s annual meetings began in earnest yesterday and there are several topics of interest for Florida State fans:

1.  Bowl tie-ins for football:  We should learn the bowl lineup for the post BCS era this week.  Here’s hoping the addition of Notre Dame results in an appealing slate.  After the first day of meetings ESPN’s Brett Murphy has mentioned the potential for the Russell Athletic Bowl to host the #2 ACC team.  Most FSU fans would be disappointed with this result.

2. ACC Network:  Can the ACC really generate enough interest at ESPN to support another college oriented network?  If the answer is yes, then how much money will it bring to the conference?  FSU fans are anxious to fill the conference money gap as soon as possible.

3. Basketball Tournament Sites:  Will the ACC  consider a geographic rotation of sites for the ACC basketball tournament to better represent the geographic foot print of the conference?  Can the new ACC programs influence the other non Carolina schools to become less Carolina centric?  The selection of future sites for the ACC tournament could shed some light on the future direction of the conference.

Other potential topics of interest:

4. Geographic Division Alignment:  it’s time to make North and South divisions to create meaningful geographic rivalries.  Surely, FSU was able to work a deal “under the table” to enhance their ACC slate by adding Georgia Tech to their division in exchange for the Grant of Rights.  I can’t imagine the Seminoles signing themselves over for a 15 year commitment to the conference without some assurance of immediate benefit for the football program.

FSU fans are mostly tired of hearing about Swofford’s endless amount of promises for an improved revenue and an enhanced league.  It would be nice if the ACC could start to flex it’s muscle regarding the topics above so we can all sleep better at night.

Andrew Wiggins

The most disappointing part of Andrew Wiggins’ recruitment is also the most endearing.  He does not like the spotlight.  Unfortunately, there is no “inside information” available for fans to debate and dispute.  FSU fans are hoping for the best.  This could become the biggest day in the modern era of Florida State basketball.

Posted by wtnoleacc in ACC Network, ACC only, Basketball, Football, FSU Correspondent and tagged , , , ,

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