The Confidential

The ACC Sports Blog

Archive for the category “Schedule”

02 Jul 2016

The Confidential’s 2016 Football Over-Under: Miami

Last year, the Confidential unveiled over-unders for each ACC school.  For Miami, the over-under was set at 6.5 regular season wins.  Ultimately, Miami ended up with 8 regular season wins.  But now it is on to 2016.  The Confidential sets the over-under for Miami at 8.5 regular season wins.

Here is the schedule for 2016, courtesy of a great college football website:

9/3 Sat vs. Florida A&M
9/10 Sat vs. Florida Atlantic
9/17 Sat @ Appalachian State
10/1 Sat @ *Georgia Tech
10/8 Sat vs. *Florida State
10/15 Sat vs. *North Carolina
10/20 Thu @ *Virginia Tech
10/29 Sat @ Notre Dame
11/5 Sat vs. *Pittsburgh
11/12 Sat @ *Virginia
11/19 Sat @ *North Carolina State
11/26 Sat vs. *Duke

Very likely wins: Florida Atlantic, @ App State

Very likely losses: Notre Dame, Florida State

Verdict: Miami had a good season last year relative to outsider expectations, but it was not enough to save Al Golden’s job.  Moreover, the team seemed to improve without him.  Enter the Mark Richt era.  Some new coaches immediately improve teams, others take a season to adjust.  Who knows with Miami?  It is difficult to see many “very likely wins,” as even a trip to Appalachian State can be dangerous.  The lighter conference foes on the schedule (Virginia, NC State, Georgia Tech) are all road games.  But there is not a game on the schedule that cannot be won–even FSU and Notre Dame–either.  This becomes a crap shoot.  Improvement is expected, but it might not yet result in more wins.  Or it might.  The Confidential goes with an over-under of 8.5 regular season wins.

What do you think?  Will Pitt go over or under 8.5 regular season wins?

Posted by acaffrey in Football, Opinion, Over/Under, Schedule and tagged , , , ,
19 Jun 2016

The Confidential’s 2016 Football Over-Under: Syracuse

Last year, the Confidential unveiled over-unders for each ACC school.  For Syracuse, the over-under was set at 5.5 regular season wins.  Ultimately, the Orange fell short of that, resulting in a coaching change.  This year, there is optimism with a new coaching staff and scheme–but concern regarding the defense and the ordinarily challenging OOC schedule.  The Confidential sets the over-under for Syracuse at 4.5 regular season wins.

Here is the schedule for 2016:

  • 9/2/16: Colgate
  • 9/9/16: Louisville
  • 9/17/16: South Florida
  • 9/24/16: @ UConn
  • 10/1/16: Notre Dame (neutral site)
  • 10/8/16: @ Wake Forest
  • 10/15/16: Virginia Tech
  • 10/22/16: @ Boston College
  • 11/5/16: @ Clemson
  • 11/12/16: NC State
  • 11/19/16: Florida State
  • 11/26/16: @ Pitt

Very likely wins: Colgate, UConn

Very likely losses: Notre Dame, Clemson, Florida State, Pitt

Verdict: Syracuse has struggled to beat Pitt on the road (since 2001) and is a long shot to beat Notre Dame, Clemson, or Florida State.  Still, it is not hard to believe that the team cannot find a few wins among USF, Wake Forest, Boston College, and North Carolina State.  Also, look for Dino Babers’ squad to pull at least one mild upset–perhaps Louisville or Virginia Tech.  A bowl game may be a year away though.  The Confidential sets the over-under at 4.5 wins.

What do you think?  Will Syracuse go over or under 4.5 regular season wins?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Opinion, Over/Under, Schedule and tagged , , ,
17 Jun 2016

The Confidential’s 2016 Football Over-Under: Pitt

Last year, the Confidential unveiled over-unders for each ACC school.  For Pitt, the over-under was set at 6.5 regular season wins.  Ultimately, Pitt ended up with 8 regular season wins.  But now it is on to 2016.  The Confidential sets the over-under for Pitt at 7.5 regular season wins.

Here is the schedule for 2016:

  • 9/3/16: Villanova
  • 9/10/16: Penn State
  • 9/17/16: @ Oklahoma State
  • 9/24/16: @ North Carolina
  • 10/1/16: Marshall
  • 10/8/16: Georgia Tech
  • 10/15/16: @ Virginia
  • 10/27/16: Virginia Tech
  • 11/5/16: @ Miami
  • 11/12/16: @ Clemson
  • 11/19/16: Duke
  • 11/26/16: Syracuse

Very likely wins: Villanova, Marshall, Syracuse

Very likely losses: @ Oklahoma State, @ Clemson

Verdict: Pitt had a very good season last year, but the schedule is tougher in 2016.  Villanova will be a feisty FCS opponent (ask Syracuse), while Penn State returns to the schedule the following week creating a chance for a “look ahead” situation.  But you have to beat your FCS opponent and your non-P5 opponent (Marshall).  Meanwhile, Syracuse has not beaten Pitt in Pitt since… 2001… so that’s three wins.  Road trips to Oklahoma State and Clemson should be losses.  That leaves 7 middle-ground games.  Trips to Virginia, Miami,and North Carolina are far from certain losses, obviously.  Home games against Duke, Virginia Tech, and Georgia Tech are all winnable, obviously.  Would losses in any of them be shocking though?  Nope.  With a tough OOC, we’ll leave Pitt where it was last year–straddling the 7-8 win mark.

What do you think?  Will Pitt go over or under 7.5 regular season wins?

Posted by acaffrey in Football, Opinion, Over/Under, Schedule and tagged , , ,
13 Jun 2016

The Confidential’s 2016 Football Over-Under: Notre Dame

Last year, the Confidential unveiled over-unders for each ACC school.  For Notre Dame, the over-under was set at 9.5 regular season wins.  Ultimately, the Fighting Irish ended up with 10 regular season wins, with losses at Clemson and Stanford being the only regular season blemishes.  But now it is on to 2016.  The Confidential sets the over-under for Notre Dame at 10.5 regular season wins.

Here is the schedule for 2016:

  • 9/4/16: @ Texas
  • 9/10/16: Nevada
  • 9/17/16: Michigan State
  • 9/24/16: Duke
  • 10/1/16: Syracuse (neutral site)
  • 10/8/16: @ NC State
  • 10/15/16: Stanford
  • 10/29/16: Miami
  • 11/5/16: Army
  • 11/12/16: Navy
  • 11/19/16: Virginia Tech
  • 11/26/16: @ USC

Very likely wins: Nevada, Syracuse, @ NC State, Army, Navy

Very likely losses: Texas or USC

Verdict: Wow… pretty rare to see a football schedule with only three road games.  The neutral site game against Syracuse will likely be a de facto home game.  How can Notre Dame not have a great season?   Well, do not sleep on Michigan State, Duke, Miami, and Va Tech.  And Stanford is always a potential loss.  Meanwhile, one of Texas or USC–elite programs struggling recently–can pull off a home win over Notre Dame.  Still, this is a very favorable schedule.  The over/under, therefore, is set at 10.5 wins.

What do you think?  Will Notre Dame go over or under 10.5 regular season wins?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Opinion, Over/Under, Schedule and tagged , , ,
07 Jun 2016

The Confidential’s 2016 Football Over-Under: Louisville

Last year, the Confidential unveiled over-unders for each ACC school.  For Louisville, the over-under was set at 9.5 regular season wins.  Ultimately, Louisville ended up with 7 regular season wins, with the losses to Houston and Pittsburgh being relative “surprises.”  But now it is on to 2016.  The Confidential sets the over-under for Louisville at 7.5 regular season wins.

Here is the schedule for 2016:

  • 9/1/16: Charlotte
  • 9/9/16: @ Syracuse
  • 9/17/16: Florida State
  • 9/24/16: @ Marshall
  • 10/1/16: @ Clemson
  • 10/14/16: Duke
  • 10/22/16: NC State
  • 10/29/16: @ Virginia
  • 11/5/16: @ Boston College
  • 11/12/16: Wake Forest
  • 11/17/16: @ Houston
  • 11/26/16: Kentucky

Very likely wins: Charlotte, Wake Forest, Kentucky

Very likely losses: Florida State, @ Clemson

Verdict: With OOC trips to Marshall and Houston, Louisville has scheduled outside of the P5 conferences, but challenged itself significantly.  Throw in trips to Syracuse, Boston College, and Virginia, and three “very likely home wins” become three very challenging road conference games.  Duke and NC State will not be pushovers from the home slate either.  A sweep of all seven of those games is not impossible, but realistically not likely either.  In fact, it is certainly plausible for two or three of those games to be losses.  All in all, this is looking like a tough year for Louisville compared to the expectations of the fan base.  It is hard to envision wins over Florida State and Clemson.  Even assuming significant success beyond those two games, that does not give much cushion in an improving conference.  The over/under, therefore, is set at 7.5 wins.

What do you think?  Will Louisville go over or under 7.5 regular season wins?

Posted by acaffrey in Football, Opinion, Over/Under, Schedule and tagged , , ,
27 Jan 2016
3 Comments

2016 ACC Football: Games of the Week

The ACC released the football schedules for all schools earlier this week.  By now, fans have had their first thoughts on how positive and negative the specific schedule will be.  From an ACC fan perspective, the schedule analysis is broader–for example, what is the “must see” game of the week.  Here is the Confidential’s early prediction on what will be the games to watch each week:

  1. Week 1… with all due respect to Florida State and UNC, who are coming off great 2015 seasons, it was Clemson that carried the ACC in 2015 and the Tigers open Week 1 against Auburn.  If they can pull of that road win against a tough SEC foe, it will be a good omen.
  2. Week 2… with apologies to Virginia Tech and Syracuse/Louisville… Pitt hosting Penn State gets the nod.  These two Pennsylvania rivals have not faced each other often of late, but it will be ACC vs Big 10 in week 2.
  3. Week 3… no real contest here… if Louisville and Florida State are both 2-0 at this point, it will be all the more important to the Atlantic/ACC race.  And if either school has lost heading into this one, there could be desperation.
  4. Week 4… Duke vs. Notre Dame has historically been more interesting in basketball, but these are different times and the Blue Devils are quite competent.  They will give the Fighting Irish something to think about.
  5. Week 5…  a fair amount of good conference games, but the slight edge goes to Clemson-Louisville.  If Clemson is a top ranked team, the Cardinals will either be rolling or desperate.
  6. Week 6… Florida State traveling to Miami should be interesting.  Miami under a new coaching staff needs to start taking advantage of its talent.  An upset win over FSU would be a big momentum boost.
  7. Week 7… Virginia Tech and Syracuse used to play annually in the Big East.  While Frank Beamer coached all of those games for the Hokies, these two former rivals play as ACC foes in 2016, in the Dome, with Syracuse under a new coaching staff as well.
  8. Week 8… Speaking of new coaching staffs, Virginia has one as well.  In Week 8, rival North Carolina will come to Charlottesville.  Keep an eye on this one.
  9. Week 9… The biggest ACC game of the year in recent years has not been the conference championship game, but Clemson-FSU.  This year, Clemson will travel to Florida State.  Circle this one on your calendar for sure.
  10. Week 10… a difficult week to know which game will be the most important.  Will Clemson have looked past Syracuse in a post-FSU matchup?  Florida State has struggled at NC State recently.  Pitt-Miami is a Coastal clash, as is Georgia Tech-North Carolina.
  11. Week 11… with apologies to Duke-UNC, the Confidential ponders whether Pitt traveling to Clemson may feature the top teams in each division.
  12. Week 12… while many teams are slowing down to prepare for ACC/SEC rivalry games, a Northeast rivalry between BC and UConn will resume.  This game may feature less than 10 total points, but both schools detest each other.  Tune in.
  13. Week 13… of all the rivalry games, chances are that Florida State/Florida will be the best combination of high ranked teams and great teams.  South Carolina should struggle this year.

What do you think?  How do you rank the games of the week for each week?  Let us know.

Posted by acaffrey in Football, Predictions, Schedule and tagged , , ,
27 Aug 2015
1 Comment

ACC Fantasy Football: The Survivor-League Schedule Guide

As the Confidential embarks on yet another ACC Survivor League season (details here), here is a helpful guide on all of the games taking place each week of the season.  This will help you determine when to use the (ahem) lesser teams.

Week 1:

North Carolina @ South Carolina

Elon @ Wake Forest

Alcorn State @ Georgia Tech

Duke @ Tulane

Rhode Island @ Syracuse

Wofford @ Clemson

Maine @ Boston College

Youngstown State @ Pitt

Virginia @ UCLA

Louisville @ Auburn

Bethune-Cookman @ Miami

Troy @ NC State

Texas State @ Florida State

Texas @ Notre Dame

Ohio State @ Virginia Tech

Week 2:

Miami @ Florida Atlantic

South Florida @ Florida State

Houston @ Louisville

Wake Forest @ Syracuse

Appalachian State @ Clemson

Howard @ Boston College

Tulane @ Georgia Tech

Notre Dame @ Virginia

Furman @ Virginia Tech

NC Central @ Duke

NC A&T @ North Carolina

Eastern Kentucky @ NC State

Pitt @ Akron

Week 3:

Clemson @ Lousville

Florida State @ Boston College

Illinois @ North Carolina

Wake Forest @ Army

Central Michigan @ Syracuse

Northwestern @ Duke

Georgia Tech @ Notre Dame

Nebraska @ Miami

William & Mary @ Virginia

Virginia Tech @ Purdue

NC State @ Old Dominion

Pitt @ Iowa

Week 4:

Boise State @ Virginia

Northern Illinois @ Boston College

Georgia Tech @ Duke

Samford @ Louisville

Delaware @ North Carolina

NC State @ South Alabama

Virginia Tech @ East Carolina

Indiana @ Wake Forest

LSU @ Syracuse

UMass @ Notre Dame

Week 5:

Miami @ Cincinnati

Boston College @ Duke

Notre Dame @ Clemson

Florida State @ Wake Forest

North Carolina @ Georgia Tech

Louisville @ NC State

Pitt @ Virginia Tech

Week 6:

NC State @ Virginia Tech

Wake Forest @ Boston College

Georgia Tech @ Clemson

Miami @ Florida State

Virginia @ Pitt

Syracuse @ South Florida

Duke @ Army

Navy @ Notre Dame

Week 7:

Boston College @ Clemson

Louisville @ Florida State

Pitt @ Georgia Tech

Virginia Tech @ Miami

Wake Forest @ North Carolina

Syracuse @ Virginia

USC @ Notre Dame

Week 8:

Boston College @ Louisville

Clemson @ Miami

Duke @ Virginia Tech

Florida State @ Georgia Tech

Virginia @ North Carolina

NC State @ Wake Forest

Pitt @ Syracuse

Week 9:

North Carolina @ Pitt

Louisville @ Wake Forest

Virginia Tech @ Boston College

Clemson @ NC State

Miami @ Duke

Syracuse @ Florida State

Georgia Tech @ Virginia

Notre Dame @ Temple

Week 10:

NC State @ Boston College

Florida State @ Clemson

Duke @ North Carolina

Syracuse @ Louisville

Virginia @ Miami

Notre Dame @ Pittsburgh

Week 11:

Virginia Tech @ Georgia Tech

Clemson @ Syracuse

Pitt @ Duke

NC State @ Florida State

Virginia @ Louisville

Miami @ North Carolina

Wake Forest @ Notre Dame

Week 12:

Wake Forest @ Clemson

Duke @ Virginia

Chattanooga @ Florida State

Georgia Tech @ Miami

Louisville @ Pitt

North Carolina @ Virginia Tech

Syracuse @ NC State

Boston College @ Notre Dame

Week 13:

Miami @ Pitt

Boston College @ Syracuse

Duke @ Wake Forest

North Carolina @ NC State

Virginia Tech @ Virginia

Florida State @ Florida

Georgia @ Georgia Tech

Louisville @ Kentucky

Clemson @ South Carolina

Notre Dame @ Stanford

Hopefully, this helps!  Good luck in the league this year!

 

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC Fantasy Football, Schedule and tagged , , , , ,
08 Oct 2014

Cards struggle to 5-1 start

Midway through the season schedule the Louisville Cardinals are still looking for answers. With just four returning starters on defense they were the unit that was expected to struggle while installing the new 3-4 scheme but it has been the offense that has been disappointing. The Cards have started 2 rookie QB’s due to injury, So Will Gardner & true freshman Reggie Bonnafon. Both have struggled settling into the position. To add to their struggles the OL has played poorly while the WR’s have struggled in running the correct routs or plays. Bonnafon was informed of his starting against Wake Forest just two days after returning to practice after attending his fathers funeral.
Read more…

Posted by lenvillecards in ACC only, Football, Louisville Correspondent, Opinion, Schedule and tagged , , ,
24 Aug 2014

Louisville Football 2014- Answering the Questons

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Cardinals fans are ready for ACC football. Its a new era for Louisville as 2014 ushers in a season like no other. The Cards welcome in a new conference, a new coaching staff and a new quarterback. Add all of this together and who knows what’s in store for this football team this season. I will break down their roster and schedule and hopefully come up with some answers.

Read more…

Posted by lenvillecards in ACC only, Football, Louisville Correspondent, Predictions, Schedule and tagged , , , ,
23 Aug 2014
3 Comments

Wolfpack Football 2014 – Better Days

Well it’s almost time, so your Uncle Mikey is going to share with you his thoughts on the NC State Wolfpack’s chances for 2014.

First a look back.  Last year was not bad. It was horrible, devastating, a catastrophe, a waste, a pile of steaming filth of unknown substances. 3-9, including zero conference wins.  Defeat snatched from the jaws of victory vs UNC.  Loathsome quarterback play, little or no defense, and a bunch of players trying desperately to adapt to a new coach’s system with no success.

So, not much to look forward to, right?

Wrong!!! Click through and I’ll tell you why there are plenty of reasons for optimism in the upcoming season! Read more…

Posted by mikemab2000 in ACC only, NC State Correspondent, Opinion, Predictions, Schedule, Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

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