The Confidential

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Archive for the tag “Duke”

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 , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
13 May 2013
3 Comments

Lacrosse: Syracuse & Duke win, “Traitorpins” Lose

A great day for ACC lacrosse yesterday, as Syracuse and Duke both won… while the traitorous Maryland Terrapins Traitorpins were upset by Cornell.  As you can see from the official NCAA bracket, this means that four teams with ACC ties are still alive in the NCAA elite-eight: Duke, North Carolina, Notre Dame, and Syracuse.

It was not easy for Syracuse, who trailed Bryant, 4-0, before rallying to a 12-7 win.  Syracuse also had to overcome losing 22 of 23 faceoffs to Bryant’s Kevin Massa.  As Syracuse’s official press release noted, “Sophomore attackman Kevin Rice led the Orange with four points (two goals, two assists) and redshirt freshman Dylan Donahue scored a team-high three goals.”  Picking up the win in the crease was Dominic Lamolinara.  Syracuse will play Yale in Maryland next weekend.

Duke had it even tougher, as the #7 seeded Blue Devils needed two overtimes to dispatch reigning national champion, Loyola Maryland, 12-11.  The hero was freshman attackman Case Matheis, who scored with only 1:40 remaining in the second overtime.  But there were many heroes:

Brendan Fowler spearheaded the Blue Devil effort by winning 19 of 26 faceoffs and securing nine ground balls. Josh Dionne and Wolf added two goals apiece, while David Lawson chipped in one goal and three assists as the Blue Devils took 61 shots compared to Loyola’s total of 37. Kyle Turri posted 13 saves between the pipes.

Duke will move on to play Notre Dame in Indianapolis next weekend.

And let’s tall take a moment to laugh at the loss suffered by #6 seeded Maryland.  The traitors were not only upset by unseeded Cornell, they were thoroughly demolished–16-8.  At home.  Given Maryland’s inability to manage an athletic department, it is probably a good thing that they do not need to play any more games.  It costs a lot to keep the lights on, etc.  Oh well.  Those Big 10 partial revenue sharing checks will be coming soon enough.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Game Review, Lacrosse and tagged , , , , , , , ,
10 May 2013
4 Comments

Ranking the ACC-B1G Challenge Games

The ACC-B1G Challenge games were announced a few days ago.  After looking to see who your school played, the next thought was probably to check out whether any other games were intriguing.  And there are several.  So let’s just go ahead and rank them for interest.

Gold Medal Games:

1.  North Carolina @ Michigan State.  Tom Izzo v Roy Williams. That’s a lot of Final Four appearances.  MSU always reloads, and North Carolina never stays quiet for long.  This one should be a battle in Breslin.

2.  Michigan @ Duke.  Both teams had good seasons in 2012-2013, with Michigan exceeding expectations by making a run to the title game.  Both have a lot of production to replace.  Will be a great game though.

3.  Indiana @ Syracuse.  A rematch of a March Madness game that went for the Orange.  A lot of new faces in 2013-2014, but a lot of star power will be back and new to both campuses.

4.  Wisconsin @ Virginia.  The first one to 40 wins?  Don’t expect a lot of points in this one.  But this is still a darn good matchup.

Silver Medal Games:

5.  Notre Dame @ Iowa.  Any time ANY Fighting Irish team comes to town, it is a big deal.  A nice regional battle too.

6.  Penn State @ Pittsburgh.  A battle for Pennsylvania.  This one should be close too–Penn State has experience coming back.

7.  Miami @ Nebraska.  The Hurricanes invested in their program by hiring a dynamic coach.  Nebraska is investing in its facilities.  A better game on the gridiron, but one to keep an eye on anyway.

8.  Florida State @ Minnesota.  Both teams fell short of expectations last year.  A lot of new faces.

Bronze Medal Games:

9.  Northwestern @ North Carolina State.  This game might be underrated at #9.  But until the Wildcats make a Big Dance, it is hard to take them seriously on the hardcourt.

10. Illinois @ Georgia Tech.  Still waiting for that Georgia Tech team to turn the corner.  Illinois fans may feel the same way.

11.  Boston College @ Purdue.  Not exactly the old Patriots-Colts battles featuring Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.  It is what it is.

12. Maryland @ Ohio State.  Big 10 fans will be rooting for Ohio State.  ACC fans will be rooting for Ohio State.  Not much of a “challenge.”

Participation Ribbons:

Clemson, Virginia Tech, and Wake Forest are left out of the challenge.  We’ll give them participation ribbons even though they are not, obviously, participating.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Opinion, Predictions and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
08 May 2013
1 Comment

ACC-Big 10 Challenge Schedule

Listening to ESPN Radio on the way home from work and heard that the schedule for next season’s ACC-Big 10 Challenge had been released.

Here’s the lineup:

Tuesday, December 3

Florida State at Minnesota

Illinois at Georgia Tech

Indiana at Syracuse

Michigan at Duke

Notre Dame at Iowa

Penn State at Pittsburgh

Wednesday, December 4

Boston College at Purdue

Maryland at Ohio State

Miami, FL at Nebraska

North Carolina at Michigan State

Northwestern at North Carolina State

Wisconsin at Virginia

Admittedly NC State does not have the most attractive draw.  This is only right after the debacle of 2012/13; however I do believe the coming year will see a less star-laden but more focused Pack. Meaning, of course, this game is winnable, especially at Raleigh.

However there are some great matchups here.  Duke/Michigan and UNC/Michigan State, of course, but also the Battle of Pennsylvania, Pitt/Penn State; Syracuse/Indiana looks huge; and the first Challenge appearance of the Irish, Notre Dame/Iowa.

There is even a game in which I might end up rooting for the B1G team; er, go Buckeyes?

Posted by mikemab2000 in ACC only, Basketball, NC State Correspondent, Schedule, Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
05 May 2013
3 Comments

L-ACC-rosse

Current and Future members of the ACC were well-represented at the Sunday selection show for the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse tournament, as 5 of the 16 teams in this year’s tourney can lay claims to the ACC.

The #1 Overall seed, Syracuse, will officially join the ACC in just a few short weeks, and will be sure to bring the Big East Championship trophy (the fourth in as many years) with them to the eastern seaboard.

Despite losing to Syracuse in the Big East Tournament Semis, Notre Dame claimed the #2 overall seed and was closely followed by ACC Champion, North Carolina (#5), Big Ten-bound Maryland (#6), and Duke (#7).  The tournament match-ups are after the jump. Read more…

Posted by Vinnie Saltine in Uncategorized and tagged , , , , ,
21 Apr 2013
2 Comments

2014 College Basketball: Overview of the Previews

It’s apparently NEVER too early to talk college basketball.  All of the pundits have their early–very early–predictions for 2013-2014 started up.  Even though it is not even clear who is staying and who is leaving (players have until April 28, 2013, to declare for the NBA), these projections are being made.  So we must analyze.

First, the Confidential is a huge fan of Jay Bilas.  Most of his opinions are fair and make a lot of sense.  Not all of them.  But most of them.  Here is the early Bilas index for 2013-2014, truncated to 25, rather than 68:

  1. Kentucky
  2. Louisville
  3. Duke
  4. Michigan State

Hmmm… four of the best college basketball coaches.  Not exactly reaching here.

Any other ACC schools in the mix?  Yep: #6 is North Carolina, #11 is Syracuse, #13 is Notre Dame, and #23 is Virginia.  Pittsburgh, Florida State, Miami, and North Carolina State did not make the list….but would likely be in his top 68, had he done one.

Second, if the start of the 2013-2014 is far away, how about the 2014 selection Sunday?  But that did not stop Bracketologist Joe Lunardi from taking an early look at the field.  He has Kentucky, Duke, Michigan State, and Arizona as the four #1 seeds.  For the ACC schools:

  • Duke is a #1 seed
  • Syracuse and Louisville are seeded at #2
  • North Carolina is a #3 seed
  • Virginia is a #4 seed
  • Notre Dame is a #6 seed

That, all in all, is not TOO different from the Bilas index.  And, although Lunardi goes out to 68 teams, no other ACC team cracks a top 68 where 30 teams are given automatic bids.  Joe also needs to update things to reflect that Notre Dame, Pitt, and Syracuse are part of the ACC.  But we’ll cut him some slack since the change is not implemented yet.

Third, the Big Lead has a top 25.  The top 4 teams are–surprise–Kentucky, Duke, Michigan State, and Ohio State.  North Carolina, Syracuse, Virginia, and Notre Dame–and no others (except Louisville, obviously)–crack the top 25.

So there you have it.  There is a consensus that Kentucky, Duke, and Michigan State are the top 3 teams heading into 2013-2014.  For the ACC, five teams (plus Louisville) will be ranked.  Hard to disagree with any of those projections.

Can you?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Predictions and tagged , , , , , , ,
20 Apr 2013
1 Comment

NC State Spring Football Game

Just finished watching the Kay Yow Spring Game on ESPN3. Not sure why Duke gets an HD broadcast on ESPNU and we Pack fans have to watch blocky streaming video, but we will have to wait for the ACC Network to correct that one.

This was definitely a game of two halves.  Both the Red (first string) and White (everybody else) looked sluggish through thirty minutes, with only Nick Sade scoring as the teams were tied 3-3 at the break.

In the second, though, the switch to a running clock brought out the no-huddle and this is definitely the way for the Pack to go.  Both squads had their moments on both sides of the ball with the Red ending up winning 20-10.

The QB battle wasn’t really very close.  Don’t have official stats, but Pete Thomas looked much more comfortable than Manny Stocker. Thomas reminded me of Erik Kramer; not fiery like Phillip Rivers, but cool and calm in the pocket.  Stocker, however, was handicapped as he is more of a mobile guy in a game of touch where quarterbacks are concerned, so it may yet turn out to be a horse race.

The best of the batch was Florida transfer Jacoby Brissett.  Even with the no-tackle restriction, his speed allowed him to get outside once and get a few yards, and he was the most accurate of the group.  Of course, he cannot play this season and will have to wait until 2014 to be a factor.

In this kind of game, you look for the unexpected player.  In this one, it was Jr running back Milton Hall.  The White squad went down the field in the second half largely on his shoulders. It was Hall up the middle and Hall up the middle again until they moved inside the Red five yard line.  There Stocker rushed a throw into the end zone and the drive ended in a pick.  One more handoff and the White team would likely have scored.

The coaches must have felt the same way.  When the Red team moved downfield deep into White territory on the ensuing drive, they were joined by Hall in a red mesh covering the white jersey and he got his TD after all.  He has a strong ability to find the holes combined with speed and should give Shadrach Thornton and Tony Creecy a run for their money once the season starts.

On defense Freshman CB Cole Burroughs was impressive.  Every time Thomas tried to throw the deep ball to Quintin Payton, Burroughs was there, as he was on several other occasions.  The defense as a whole looked good, but Burroughs was the bright spot.

Another thing that impressed me was the sideline interviews with several members of the new staff, particularly DCoordinator Dave Huxtable.  They were energetic and enthusiastic, and not in a Chuck Amato kind of way.  Of course we will need to see them in adverse situations before we can really judge, but frankly, first impressions were…wow.
So that’s it.  This correspondent has gone from cautious optimism about the 2013 season to the feeling that if this team does manage to claw their way up the Atlantic Division standings, they might not fall back down like other recent Pack teams.

Posted by mikemab2000 in ACC Network, ACC only, Football, Game Review, NC State Correspondent, Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
20 Apr 2013
3 Comments

Notre Dame’s ACC Football Schedule Announced

Several months ago, the ACC and Notre Dame announced a football partnership, with Notre Dame agreeing to play 5 games against ACC opponents each year.  With these games set to begin in 2014, the parties have now announced the games that will be played during the first three years.

Without further ado, here is the schedule for the first three years:

2014

Notre Dame at Florida State

Louisville at Notre Dame

North Carolina at Notre Dame

Notre Dame at Syracuse

Wake Forest at Notre Dame

2015

Boston College at Notre Dame

Notre Dame at Clemson

Georgia Tech at Notre Dame

Notre Dame at Pittsburgh

Notre Dame at Virginia

2016

Duke at Notre Dame

Miami at Notre Dame

Notre Dame at NC State

Notre Dame at Syracuse

Virginia Tech at Notre Dame

All those who thought Syracuse would be the team to get two games with Notre Dame in the first three-year period, raise your hands!  Of course, Syracuse had games slated for all three years, so it was a logical plan to keep in place.

Notably, Notre Dame visits three of the more football-oriented programs each year, with trips to Florida State, Clemson, and North Carolina State scheduled.  The following three years will involve travels to Louisville, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, and Miami.

On Thursday, Notre Dame announced an extension of its television deal with NBC.  The ten-year extension is reported to be worth $15 million a year.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Schedule and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
18 Apr 2013

NBA Draft & The ACC

The April 16, 2013, deadline has come and gone, meaning that anyone who decides to go pro between now and April 28, 2013, will make that decision as a point-of-no-return.  That will not stop folks from doing so, but the consequences will be a bit sharper.  At this point, those eligible for the NBA draft are what they are.  There are a number of ACC players that will be among the players drafted.  Who are they?

First of all, who are the early entries from ACC schools so far?  CBS Sportsline has a nice list going.  Here are the players from the ACC schools on the list:

  • Steven Adams, Pitt
  • Lorenzo Brown, NC State
  • Reggie Bullock, North Carolina
  • Michael Carter-Williams, Syracuse
  • Gorgui Dieng, Louisville
  • Alex Len, Maryland
  • CJ Leslie, NC State

Second, where will these kids go?  Well, here is where Chad Ford slots these guys, and other ACC draft-eligibles, in terms of overall NBA talent:

  • Len, #8
  • Carter-Williams, #10
  • Dieng, #17
  • Mason Plumlee, Duke, #18
  • Adams, #26
  • Brown, #42
  • Bullock, #45
  • Russ Smith, Louisville, #53
  • Leslie, #61
  • James Southerland, Syracuse, #81
  • Richard Howell, NC State, #82
  • Ryan Kelly, Duke, #88
  • Michael Snaer, Florida State, #92

A few other players to note.  These guys are all still undecided: Shane Larkin of Miami is at #30; Rasheed Sulaimon of Duke is at #48; and CJ Fair of Syracuse is at 71.  The decision should be tough for Larkin, but fairly easy for Fair.  You want to be pretty certain you get a first round contract if you are going to leave.

 

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
31 Mar 2013
4 Comments

The ACC Has At Least Two Final Four Teams to Root For

As the march to Georgia Tech’s hometown of Atlanta continues, fans of the ACC can be certain that they will have at least two teams to root for.  By beating Marquette handily in yesterday’s Elite 8 game, Syracuse ensured that there will be someone from on that side of the bracket to root for.  Meanwhile, there is no doubt that one of Duke or Louisville will be heading to Atlanta too.  So ACC fans can be certain that they will have a rooting interest for two of the teams next weekend.  But that just leads to two more questions.

#1.  Who are you rooting for in today’s game between the Blue Devils and the Cardinals?

For Duke fans, that is easy.  For Louisville fans, that is easy.  But if you are a fan of one of the other thirteen schools, who are you going to be cheering for?  Is the Duke hatred so strong that you are leaning Louisville?  As a future ACC member, it would be fine to root for Louisville anyway.  Then again, they currently represent the Big East (or the leftovers, or whatever they are being called right now)?  And then there is the coaches–some people have strong feelings about Coach K and Rick Pitino.  The one thing that is clear is that both are excellent coaches.  Should be a great game today.

#2. A similar question arises out of the Michigan-Florida matchup.

The Big 10 is becoming the New York Yankees of college sports–throwing their money around without any regard for making sound decisions or the “Butterfly Effect” impact on the rest of college sports.  If that is not bad enough, how can anyone root for the Michigan Wolverines?  The cockiest of all the Big 10 fanbases, the program brought us the Fab 5, and then sanctions for apparently having bought the Fab 5.  And the football team is full of self-worth and entitlement, despite once thinking that hiring Greg Robinson was a step in the right direction for a defense.  But the other option is Florida–rival to Florida State and Miami.  Not exactly the most modest of fan bases either.  And Billy Donovan had his own core of players that, much like the Fab 5, provided two years of outstanding play.  At the very least, it is difficult to dislike Billy Donovan and his Michigan counterpart, John Beilein.

So, you tell us, who are you rooting for in today’s Elite 8 matchups?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, March Madness and tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

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