The Confidential

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22 Nov 2011

ACC Basketball Rankings: November 22, 2011

This is particularly complex with Pitt and Syracuse not yet in the ACC, but it can still be done.  Here is how we view the ACC basketball schools as of November 22, 2011:

1.  North Carolina–Despite only being 3-0, North Carolina has not shown anything that would cause them to drop from #1.

Looking forward to: Wisconsin on November 30; Kentucky on December 3.

2. Syracuse–At 4-0, and weathering the storm of the Bernie Fine scandal, this Syracuse team is winning in style.  Not many teams have a bench that outscores its starters.  Syracuse does.

Looking forward to: Virginia Tech on November 23; November 25 against Stanford or Oklahoma State;

3. Duke–At 5-0, with a win over Michigan State, Duke has a legitimate claim to be #1 or #2.  But North Carolina disposed of Michigan State a little more effectively.  And Syracuse has done nothing to deserve a drop from #2.

Looking forward to: Ohio State on November 29; Washington on December 10.

4. Florida State–At 4-0, Florida State has not beaten anyone.  However, unlike Pitt, they have not lost to an inferior foe.  Edge to the Seminoles.

Looking forward to: Michigan State on November 30; Florida on December 22.

5. Pittsburgh–Could have dropped the Panthers lower after that home loss to Long Beach State.  Time will tell.

Looking forward to: Tennessee on December 3; Oklahoma State on December 10.

6. Virginia Tech–Haven’t played anyone yet.  That will change soon as they face Syracuse in Madison Square Garden.

Looking forward to: Syracuse on November 23; November 25 against Stanford or Oklahoma State.

7.  North Carolina State– Losing to Vanderbilt is decent, the win over Texas moves the Wolfpack ahead of Wake Forest and Miami.

Looking forward to: Stanford on December 4; Syracuse on December 17.

8. Wake Forest– At 3-0, the Demon Deacons have yet to be tested.  Not much on the plate soon either.

Looking forward to: the conference schedule?

9.  Miami– At 3-0, the win over Rutgers is nice.  The schedule gets tougher–giving Miami a chance to leapfrog a few teams.

Looking forward to: Purdue on November 29; Memphis on December 6.

10. Virginia–at 4-1, the Cavaliers have no quality wins.  They also have a bad loss to TCU.

Looking forward to: Michigan on November 29; George Mason on December 6.

11. Georgia Tech–at 3-2, Georgia Tech doesn’t have a horrible loss yet.  St. Josephs and LSU are not exactly bottom 100 teams. Still, those are winnable games.

Looking forward to: Northwestern on November 29; Georgia on December 7.

12. Clemson– well, someone had to be #12.  Clemson’s loss to Charleston is inexplicable.  No good wins.  But that’s still better than #13 and #14.

Looking forward to: Iowa on November 29; Arizona on December 10.

13. Maryland– losing to Alabama is reasonable. Losing to Iona is not.  Losing by 26 is just terrible.

Looking forward to: Florida Gulf Coast on November 25.  This team cannot look forward to anyone.

14. Boston College– Wow.  Losing to Holy Cross is bad.  Losing to UMass is bad.  Losing by 22 to Holy Cross is awful.  Losing by 36 to UMass is incredible.

Looking forward to: St. Louis on November 24.  This team doesn’t deserve any pumpkin pie.

What do you think?  Do we have it right?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
22 Nov 2011
1 Comment

ACC Bowl Projections

With the 2011 football season coming to a close, the time is ripe to predict where the various ACC teams are headed for bowl purposes.  Here are The Confidential’s projections as of November 22, 2011:

ACC #1 goes to the Orange Bowl (BCS)-Miami, Florida to face another BCS team on January 4, 2012.

Last Year’s Matchup: Stanford 40, Virginia Tech 12

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Virginia Tech vs. West Virginia. 

Explanation: Clemson may have defeated Virginia Tech once, but Clemson has lost twice.  Virginia Tech has to avenge that loss and beat a very game Virginia team this week.  West Virginia is the class of the Big East.

ACC #2 goes to the Chick-Fil-A Bowl-Atlanta, Georgia to face the SEC #5 on December 31, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: Florida State 26, South Carolina 17

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Clemson vs. Georgia.   

ACC #3 goes to the Champ Sports Bowl-Orlando, Florida to face Big East #2 on December 29, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: North Carolina State 23, West Virginia 7

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Florida State v Notre Dame (eligible to take Big East spot here once every four years)

ACC #4 goes to the Sun Bowl- El Paso, Texas to face Pac-12 #4 on December 31, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: Notre Dame 33, Miami 17

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Virginia v Washington.

ACC #5 goes to the Belk Bowl-Charlotte, North Carolina to face Big East #3 on December 27, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: South Florida 31, Clemson 26

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Georgia Tech v Louisville.

ACC #6 goes to the Music City Bowl-Nashville, Tennessee to face SEC #7 on December 30, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: North Carolina 30, Tennessee 27

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Wake Forest v Florida

ACC #7 goes to the Independence Bowl-Shreveport, Louisiana to face MWC #3 on December 26, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: Air Force 14, Georgia Tech 7

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: North Carolina v San Diego State

ACC #8 goes to the Military Bowl-Washington, DC, to face Navy on December 28, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: Maryland 51, East Carolina 20

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: North Carolina State v Cincinnati (Navy fails to qualify)

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Predictions and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
21 Nov 2011

ACC Football Rankings: November 21, 2011

This is particularly complex with Pitt and Syracuse not yet in the ACC, but it can still be done.  Here is how we view the ACC football schools as of November 21, 2011:

1.  Virginia Tech–At 10-1, Virginia Tech has to slide ahead of 9-2 Clemson, despite the head-to-head result.  The Hokies have simply played better since that game.

2. Clemson–Had the Tigers lost in overtime, maybe they would have stuck at #1.  But Clemson had played with fire for too long to allow the head-to-head result keep them at #1.

3. Virginia--London has done a great job with this team.  Given that Virginia has beaten Georgia Tech, the nod goes to Virginia.  Huge game this week against rival Va Tech.

4. Georgia Tech–At 8-3, the Yellow Jackets have the advantage over 7-4 Florida State.  However, this may not last beyond the upcoming game against Georgia.

5. Florida State–Inexplicable collapse against Virginia.  Florida State certainly plays a tough schedule, but a few too many losses to get the benefit of the doubt.

6. Miami–the Florida tour continued with a win–albeit not entirely impressive offensively–over South Florida.  The Hurricanes are skipping a bowl this year, making this week’s game against Boston College the finale.

7 (tie). Wake Forest, North Carolina, North Carolina State– At 6-5, these teams are simply not distinguishable.  Perhaps this week will help clarify things.

10.  Pittsburgh–did not play this week, but gets the edge over reeling Syracuse.  Huge game this week against West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl.

11.  Syracuse–did not play this week, but managed to lose its starting free safety to suspension.  The Orange get injured Cincy this week, before Pitt next week.

12.  Duke—Played Georgia Tech tough.  Duke is far from an easy win for anyone. The Blue Devils still get the edge over Boston College based on the head-to-head.

13. Boston College–played Notre Dame very tough before falling.  Despite the record, Boston College finished pretty strong.

14. Maryland–has this team quit on its coach?  Does anyone even care?  Poor Maryland.


Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
20 Nov 2011
2 Comments

Post-Games Review of the ACC Football Predictions for this Past Week

ANYONE can make predictions… few are willing to face the music afterwards.  The Confidential turns directly towards the orchestra… and faces the fact that picking chalk in November is a dangerous game.  A woeful performance.

Prediction: Virginia Tech 20, North Carolina 10.

The Confidential started the week strong.  Sure, the margin was off significantly as Va Tech’s 24-7 lead was narrowed to a final of 24-21.  But the Hokies took care of business, as they were supposed to.  The Hokies control their own destiny now–they are two wins away from a BCS game.

Prediction: Clemson 35, North Carolina State 13.

The Hokies took care of business, but Clemson did not show up.  The score was actually close, but it was a Wolfpack blowout instead, as NC State defeated Clemson 37-13.  Any lingering shred of Clemson making it to the title game against LSU evaporated in less than 24 hours.  Losing narrowly, as several top 10 teams did, would have been bad enough. 

Prediction: Georgia Tech 27, Duke 17

Georgia Tech also took care of business.  More surprising, however, is that Duke’s offense was able to put up 31 points on Georgia Tech.  But, again, at one point the score was 31-17.  Ultimately, the Blue Devils rallied but came up short in a 38-31 loss.  With the win, Georgia Tech moved to 8-3.

Prediction: Wake Forest 30, Maryland 12.

When The Confidential is on, the Confidential is on.  Prediction the win over collapsing Maryland was not hard.  But Wake Forest beat Maryland 31-10, making this an almost perfect prediction.

Prediction: Notre Dame 38, Boston College 14.

While Maryland is busy collapsing, Boston College is busy showing that it has life.  The Eagles’ defense came to play against Notre Dame, holding them to 16 points.  Unfortunately, the offense did about what was expected–only putting up 14 points.  In the end, that makes this a Notre Dame win, 16-14.

Prediction: South Florida 27, Miami 13.  

The Confidential had expected these teams to play football.  Instead, they played international football–what we know as soccer.  How else to explain a 6-3 final score in a 60 minute college football game?  Kudos to Miami for being the Florida team to win and become bowl eligible.  Al Golden is doing good things in Miami.

Prediction: Florida State 24, Virginia 14.

Wow.  One of the most amazing finishes to a football game that anyone will ever see.  And not because of good things.  First, Florida State throws an ill-advised pass to the sideline–but not out-of-bounds–that allows time to run out before a FG can be attempted.  Second, after review determines that the pass was incomplete (a correct ruling, by the way), Florida State gets to try that field goal.  Third, as they are lining up for the field goal, the offensive line moves.  Fourth, the referees rule that the Virginia defensive line caused them to move–meaning the kick moves five yards closer.  At that point, it was as if both teams were trying to lose.  Fifth, and finally, Florida State “won” the battle of the quest to lose by missing the field goal.  Final score–Virginia 14, Florida State 13.

Final tally: The Confidential missed 3 games (NC State, Virginia, Miami).  That’s a 4-3 result.  Not nearly good enough.


Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Predictions and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
17 Nov 2011

ACC Basketball Recap: Games of November 16, 2011

The ACC was undefeated on the season heading into the games of November 16, 2011.  The Confidential analyzed same at length.  Now it is debatable whether the ACC remains undefeated.

To be sure, the 12 teams currently in the ACC are undefeated at 26-0.  However, we have waffled as to whether to include the future teams, Syracuse and Pittsburgh.  With all the conference realignment, schools and conferences should be looking out for long-term interests, not the present.

And then Pitt had to go and lose to Long Beach State last night, 86-76.  In fact, CBS reports as follows regarding Pitt’s dominance at home in recent years:

Casper Ware scored a career-high 28 points, James Ennis added 19, and Larry Anderson had 12 points and seven assists for the 49ers (2-0), who emphatically ended Pitt’s 58-game nonconference home winning streak.

* * *

Pitt drew within six points on a few occasions but each time the 49ers answered to become the first non-Big East team to beat the Panthers at home since Bucknell in 2005.

* * *

Pitt came in unbeaten in 80 home nonconference games in November and December at “the Pete.”

In fact, the article did not even bother to analyze just how dominant Pitt has been at the Petersen Events Center in conference games.  Few Big East schools have been successful in that venue.  All in all, a very impressive win for Long Beach State.  Conversely, Pitt’s top 10 ranking is now seriously in jeopardy.

As noted above, the current ACC teams “held serve” though:

  • North Carolina State moved to 3-0 by holding off always-pesky Princeton, 60-58.  NC State held Princeton to under 40% from the field and outrebounded the Tigers 40-24.  And yet they trailed at the half and won by 2 points.  Still, a win is a win.
  • Florida State also moved to 3-0, defeating visiting Stetson, 79-66.  The Confidential predicted good things from Florida State this year.  Taking care of business in November is a great way to start.
  • In other games, Wake Forest moved to 2-0 by beating Georgia Southern, 81-72.  And Clemson defeated The Citadel by a comfortable 73-50 margin.

With these four wins, the ACC remains the only conference whose current teams are undefeated.  With Pitt’s loss, the Big East drops to 33-3.  The Big XII and the Big 10 still have only two conference losses.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Game Review and tagged , , , , , , ,
16 Nov 2011
2 Comments

ACC Football Predictions for November 19, 2011

After a 5-1  week last week, here are The Confidential’s football predictions for this week’s games featuring ACC teams:

Virginia Tech (9-1) hosting North Carolina (6-4)

The easy pick here is Virginia Tech.  Look at where the game is being played.  Look at the records.  Look at the general directions the teams are headed.  Ignore the fact that North Carolina beat Virginia Tech the last time the teams met in Blacksburg.  That last one is bit scary.  But this is game that Virginia Tech needs to control its destiny.  And the Confidential does not see this North Carolina team pulling off the upset.  Virginia Tech 20, North Carolina 10.

North Carolina State (5-5) hosting Clemson (9-1)

Clemson has been making it interesting lately.  And they are surely riding high with their berth in the ACC Championship game now assured.  There is certainly a risk of Clemson looking past the team that just lost to Boston College.  And then there is “any given Saturday.”  But the visitors just have too much talent.  Clemson 35, North Carolina State 13.

Duke (3-7) hosting Georgia Tech (7-3)

Georgia Tech is a hard team to figure out.  They have lost 3 of 4 games.  But that is sandwiched around giving Clemson its only loss.  Georgia Tech is only 2-2 on the road.  Meanwhile, in Duke’s last two home games, they lost to Wake Forest and Virginia Tech by a combined 5 points.  Of course, Florida State and Stanford had their way in that same location.  This is a game where nobody should be shocked if Duke pulls the upset, but The Confidential does not see it.  Georgia Tech 27, Duke 17.

Wake Forest (5-5) hosting Maryland (2-8)

Wake Forest is a team that is two bounces away from being 7-3.  And they have struggled at home against superior foes, such as Virginia Tech and Notre Dame.  Maryland, of course, is not a superior foe.  In fact, Maryland’s season seems to be spiraling out of control.  While nothing is impossible, a Maryland win here would be simply shocking.  Wake Forest 30, Maryland 12.

Notre Dame (7-3) hosting Boston College (3-7)

The Notre Dame ACC tour continues.  So far, Notre Dame has beaten Wake Forest and Maryland in ACC country.  For this one, Notre Dame gets to host it.  While Boston College has won 2 out of 3, this one still looks like a game that Notre Dame will have to lose for itself.  While it has certainly shown the ability to lose games by untimely turnovers in great quantity, it seems unlikely here.  Notre Dame 38, Boston College 14.

South Florida (5-4) hosting Miami (5-5)

This is a battle for bowl eligibility.  Miami does have the benefit of hosting Boston College next week, while South Florida has two conference games remaining.  Miami is likely to be down after a tough loss on the road at Florida State.  Meanwhile, South Florida has some momentum back after righting the ship at Syracuse.  BJ Daniels has not been the problem this year.  This is bigger than a bowl game for the Bulls.   South Florida 27, Miami 13.  

GAME OF THE WEEK

Florida State (7-3) hosting Virginia (7-3).  Virginia has already won at Miami.  But if you look a little deeper, you’ll see that Virginia’s wins are not overly impressive.  Sure, the win over Georgia Tech was impressive.  But this game is, by far, Virginia’s toughest challenge.  At least until next week.  Meanwhile, Florida State seems to have righted the ship.  These are the games that will dictate whether Florida State returns to being football elite or will continue to be mired in mediocrity.  The old Florida State would see 10-3 as the only possible way to salvage the season and prepare for a 14-0 run next year.  Florida State 24, Virginia 14.

The Confidential apologizes in advance for not picking your team.  There is also a lot of chalk here.  However, predictions are made to be accurate, not controversial.  Feel free to share why we are wrong. 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Predictions and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
15 Nov 2011
2 Comments

ACC Bowl Projections

With the 2011 football season coming to a close, the time is ripe to predict where the various ACC teams are headed for bowl purposes.  Here are The Confidential’s projections as of November 15, 2011:

ACC #1 goes to the Orange Bowl (BCS)-Miami, Florida to face another BCS team on January 4, 2012.

Last Year’s Matchup: Stanford 40, Virginia Tech 12

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Clemson vs. West Virginia. 

Explanation: Clemson has already defeated Virginia Tech once.  At Virginia Tech.  While the knee-jerk reaction is to think that Virginia Tech gets the better of Clemson a second-time around, The Confidential does not believe that Virginia Tech has the offense to keep up with Clemson.  As for the Big East Champion, Cincinnati without Zach Collaros is a lot different than Cincinnati with him.  They may not lose out, but they will lose one or two.  West Virginia is primed to step in–and they have the head-to-head edge over Rutgers.

 

ACC #2 goes to the Chick-Fil-A Bowl-Atlanta, Georgia to face the SEC #5 on December 31, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: Florida State 26, South Carolina 17

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Virginia Tech vs. Georgia.   

 

ACC #3 goes to the Champ Sports Bowl-Orlando, Florida to face Big East #2 on December 29, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: North Carolina State 23, West Virginia 7

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Florida State v Notre Dame (eligible to take Big East spot here once every four years)

 

ACC #4 goes to the Sun Bowl- El Paso, Texas to face Pac-12 #4 on December 31, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: Notre Dame 33, Miami 17

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Georgia Tech v Arizona State.

ACC #5 goes to the Belk Bowl-Charlotte, North Carolina to face Big East #3 on December 27, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: South Florida 31, Clemson 26

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Virginia v Louisville.

 

ACC #6 goes to the Music City Bowl-Nashville, Tennessee to face SEC #7 on December 30, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: North Carolina 30, Tennessee 27

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Wake Forest v Vanderbilt

 

ACC #7 goes to the Independence Bowl-Shreveport, Louisiana to face MWC #3 on December 26, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: Air Force 14, Georgia Tech 7

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: North Carolina v San Diego State

 

ACC #8 goes to the Military Bowl-Washington, DC, to face Navy on December 28, 2011.

Last Year’s Matchup: Maryland 51, East Carolina 20

Projected 2011-2012 Matchup: Miami v Cincinnati (Navy fails to qualify)

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Predictions and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
14 Nov 2011

ACC Football Rankings: November 14, 2011

This is particularly complex with Pitt and Syracuse not yet in the ACC, but it can still be done.  Here is how we view the ACC football schools as of November 14, 2011:

1.  Clemson–At 9-1 with a victory over Wake Forest, Clemson guaranteed itself a spot in the conference championship game.  From here, Clemson needs to win out to show that it deserves the top 10 ranking.  The conference NEEDS Clemson at 11-1.

2. Virginia Tech–In beating Georgia Tech, Va Tech has solidified itself of #2.  With games remaining against talented North Carolina and rival/rolling Virginia, it will not be easy for the Hokies to finish 11-1.  The dream matchup of 11-1 Clemson vs. 11-1 Va Tech is still alive though.  While a rematch, this would capture attention.

3. Georgia Tech–Of the three 7-3 teams, The Confidential will give Georgia Tech the nod here.  It beat Clemson… giving it the best win of the bunch.  While Virginia has the head-to-head advantage, Virginia also has the head scratching losses to NC State and Southern Mississippi.

4. Florida State–This young team is rolling now.  With the 3-game losing streak a mere blip in the rear-view mirror, these kids appear to be coming together at the right time.  Head-to-head matchup with Virginia will tell us a lot.

5. Virginia–At 7-3, Virginia could fairly be ranked #3 or #4 here.  But The Confidential will require Virginia to prove it on the field first.  As noted above, the win over Georgia Tech is offset by some poor losses.  A win over Florida State would vault them to #3.

6. Miami–held their own against a hot Florida State team.  On the road.  While an argument could be made for North Carolina here, Miami showed that it belonged here by beating North Carolina on the road.

7. North Carolina– At 6-4, North Carolina gets a huge test against Virginia Tech this week.  Winning at the Hokies is rarely expected, but the Tarheels need to show that they can compete to maintain this slot.

8.  Wake Forest– So many close games for Wake Forest.  Playing Clemson to the wire is just another example of same.

9.  Syracuse–after three losses in a row, it is tempting to drop Syracuse to double-digits.  However, they still have wins over West Virginia and Wake Forest.  The latter is something that North Carolina State could not do.  A week off before taking on Cincinnati.

10.  North Carolina State– Losing to Boston College pretty much sums up this enigma of a team.  With Maryland coming up after the Clemson game, NC State can still get bowl eligible.

11. Pittsburgh— Beating Louisville to get to 5-5 made it tempting to slide Pittsburgh up a few notches.  With games @ West Virginia and hosting Syracuse to finish the regular season, this will be resolved on the field.

12.  Duke—Played Virginia tough before fading.  The Blue Devils get the edge over Boston College based on the head-to-head.

13. Boston College–the win over NC State provided some good news for the fan base.  Upcoming games against Notre Dame and Miami may not make continued good news a safe bet.

14. Maryland- as if it couldn’t get worse, the drubbing by Notre Dame also featured a season-ending injury to Danny O’Brien.  At 2-8, it is difficult to see this team winning either of its two remaining games–both of which are on the road.

What do you think?  Do we have it right?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
12 Nov 2011

And here comes HOOPS!

The 2011-2012 basketball season is officially underway and the ACC is off to a good start.

North Carolina shook of a slow start against Michigan State and took step one towards what everyone expects to be a Final Four appearance.  In the (sorta) inaugural Carrier Classic, the Tarheels defeated the game Michigan State Spartans, 67-55.  With the national spotlight, including a Super Bowl-esque pregame show featuring President Barack Obama, North Carolina did what it was supposed to do.  And you can never take a Tom Izzo coached team lightly.  As usual, the Spartans worked hard on the boards and defensive end.  All in all, a huge win for North Carolina.  They look like they are prepared to live up to the hype.

At the other end of the spectrum, Duke barely defeated Belmont at home, winning 76-77.  Belmont is always one of those teams that you are tempted to pick in March to pull an upset.  Looks like we’ll be seeing them in that spot again this year.  If you watched the game, you know that the dagger was a long three pointer by Andre Dawkins to give Duke a 75-71 edge.  With the shot clock winding down, to make it a 2-possession game with 20 seconds to go is huge.  While it makes you wonder whether Duke is top 10 material at this point, the bottom line is that they won.

And the rest of the ACC held serve as Florida State, North Carolina State, Clemson, Wake Forest, Miami, and Georgia Tech all won.  Even future Big East member Pittsburgh won.

You cannot ask for anything more than 9-0.

 

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only and tagged , , , , , , , , , ,
07 Nov 2011

ACC Football Rankings: November 7, 2011

This is particularly complex with Pitt and Syracuse not yet in the ACC, but it can still be done.  Here is how we view the ACC football schools as of November 7, 2011:

1.  Clemson–With the week off, no reason to demote.  Need to be focused against Wake Forest this week.

2. Virginia Tech–The fact that Miami handled Duke easily makes that narrow victory look a bit worse… but not enough to drop in the standings.

3. Georgia Tech–Florida State appears back on track.  Going to need to play well to hold them out of the #3 spot.  But with a game against the Hokies coming up, the focus is on rising to #2.

4. Florida State–Another dominant win, this time over hapless Boston College.  These are important wins for re-establishing the brand though.  A win over Miami would be huge.

5. Miami–A dismantling of Duke is nice, but let’s see how they do against Florida State.

6. Virginia–At 6-3, the Cavs are now bowl-eligible and looking good.

7. North Carolina State– Everyone else lost.  Not sure anyone deserved to be the #7 team. 

8.  Wake Forest– Played Notre Dame tough, but still a winnable game.   Needs just one win for bowl eligibility.

9.  Syracuse–two road losses in a row have Syracuse still a win away from bowl eligibility.

10.  North Carolina–no excuse for getting shutout.  This team has more talent than that.

11. Pittsburgh— Played Cincinnati tough, but in the end the loss of Ray Graham was too much to overcome.

12.  Duke—After taking the Hokies to the final minutes, Duke did not show up against Miami.  At 3-6, the bowl dreams are down to a flicker.

13. Boston College–they caught Florida State at a bad time, as the Seminoles are on a roll right now.

14. Maryland- dark days in College Park.  

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

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