By now, we all know about ESPN’s hype machine. For the last few years, “no one” has been as good as the Big Ten in basketball (despite zero national championships in over 10 years). “No one” has been worse than Tim Tebow (despite him having a better playoff record than many current starters). It is what it is. As fans, we’re used to it. But last night, ESPN’s “excuse machine” was in full motion. I’ve never heard them try so hard.
I can hear the comments now from the four letter network’s talking heads: “The ACC loses more BCS conference match ups….” The presumption is that the ACC is a weak football conference if they lose lopsided match ups like unranked Virginia Tech vs. #1 Alabama. I’m not convinced. Conferences should not be judged by the performance of middle or bottom tier teams. Would an Illinois victory over Kentucky indicate that the Big 10 is a better conference than the SEC? No way.
The biggest game this weekend for the ACC is Clemson vs. Georgia. As a matter of fact, it is the only game that really matters on the national front.
A Clemson victory would likely catapult them into the Top 5, put them in the national title conversation, and set up a nationally relevant game against Florida State on October 18th. Florida State, the other ranked ACC team, has it’s own responsibility for carrying the ACC flag. The Noles need to win their games against inferior competition and continue their presence near the Top 10 for a majority of the season.
How many years has it been since an ACC football team has been in the national title conversation in November? It’s up to you Clemson and Florida State to buck the trend.
Non-Conference Schedule
How many non-conference ranked opponents will be played by conferences this year?
ACC: 11
Big 12: 2
Big 10: 4
Pac 12: 8
SEC: who cares
Winston Debut
As Florida State finishes up preparations for the Pittsburgh Panthers, most fans are eagerly anticipating the debut of freshman QB Jameis Winston. Winston has generated a significant amount of hype since his MVP winning Elite 11 camp in 2011. The hype reached epic proportions after Winston’s spring game performance highlighted by a 58 yd strike against All-ACC conference corner Lamarcus Joyner.
It is being reported that ESPN News is going to broadcast the amnesty selection of highly-recruited leaker/traitor, Edward Snowden, the former government contractor that leaked confidential information from the NSA. Read more…
In a season full of extra innings, postponed contests and 57 wins (so far), the North Carolina Tar Heels have always found a way to come out on top. After torrential rain caused Game 3 of the Chapel Hill Super Regional to be moved to Tuesday afternoon, the boys in blue showed their neighbors down south who the real Carolina is (recognized by 49 states), defeating border rival South Carolina 5-4 at Boshamer Stadium.
But what’s so amazing isn’t that the team’s postseason hopes are still alive. After all, they’ve been ranked #1 in the country almost the entire year and were the #1 seed in the tournament. No, most remarkable is the streak that the Tar Heels take with them as they set off for their sixth College World Series since 2006, and tenth overall- they haven’t lost two games in a row all season. That’s not just tough to do, it’s nearly impossible.
Several months ago, there was a discussion in the comments of the Confidential regarding the profitability of broadcasting sports over the internet. Specifically that conferences who rely solely on airing sports content on TV via cable subscriptions, cough**B1G**cough, may be selling themselves short as more-and-more viewers are ditching the big screen for their handheld devices.
It seems that ESPN may be exploring the same topic. ESPN has been at the forefront for developing the infrastructure for watching content over the internet, with the creation of ESPN3 (nee ESPN360) as well as the development of the ESPN App which allows you to watch live games on your handheld device.
But, this becomes problematic as more-and-more carriers are no longer allowing unlimited data packages on your phone. Read more…
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