Figuring out the ACC race

[EvilVodka]

...is like taking a class in calculus

It looks like the Miami-Georgia Tech game next week will be for the Coastal Division crown

In the Atlantic, Wake still plays Boston College, BC still plays Maryland, and Maryland still plays FSU...there's a whole host of scenarios that could happen

while this division borders on being mediocre, IMO you've gotta be impressed with the way Friedgen has Maryland in the hunt for a possible berth in the ACC Championship

Also, I swear Boston College has become a better program since joining the ACC....maybe its better access to southern recruits, but they just seem to be on a bit of a higher plateau now

[JamesHowell]

Maryland has beaten the last six ranked opponents they have played. They seem to win the games they are supposed to lose and seem to lose games they are supposed to win.

[Blue Hen]

BC , throughout, the BE years and even as an independent has always been, generally, underrated imo. I don't see a sudden change. As a BE member, BC was 8-4 in OOC games vs other BCS leagues .
Looking over BC's roster it must be one of the most geographically diverse in CF. There are players from 23 states...the most (18) being from Mass, followed by 12 from NJ.

[EvilVodka]

BC , throughout, the BE years and even as an independent has always been, generally, underrated imo. I don't see a sudden change. As a BE member, BC was 8-4 in OOC games vs other BCS leagues .
Looking over BC's roster it must be one of the most geographically diverse in CF. There are players from 23 states...the most (18) being from Mass, followed by 12 from NJ.

eh...they were pretty bad in the Big East for the most part...they would peak out at an 8 or 9 win season once in awhile...

http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/acc/boston_college/yearly_results.php?year=2005

Here are their records since joining the ACC:
2005 9-3
2006 10-3
2007 11-3 Atlantic Division Champs

they're 2-2 vs. Florida State, 3-2 vs. Virginia Tech, they completely dominate Notre Dame now, they were as high as #2 last year, and had a QB in the Heisman race

If they win out, they'll likely be in the ACC Championship for the second straight year, and under 2nd year head coach Jeff Jagodzinski...IMO, they've become a little more robust as a football program

IMO, they have a recruiting advantage over their old Big East brethren now that they have games in Florida, North Carolina, and South Carolina every year

[CJHawkeyes]

What does the winner get?

[GatorGrad]

What does the winner get?

A division title and a chance to play for an ACC Championship Ring.

[ZOOMBAG]

And the opportunity to lose to the nonBCS autobid in the BCS???

[Blue Hen]

BC was 41-43 vs BE competition as member but 7-2 in bowls. BC dominates ND 'Now" ? They beat ND 4 consecutive times in the final 5 BE years.

[EvilVodka]

Looks like Boston College goes to the ACC Championship with a win over Maryland this weekend...if BC loses, FSU plays Georgia Tech in a rematch

As a longtime Noles fan, this season couldn't end better with a win over the Gators and a BC loss :D

[copycat]

the Coastal isn't decided yet either.

If VT beats UVA, VT goes to the championship game. If UVA wins, GT goes!

[Blue Hen]

Hey Evil, as a long time Noles fan I'd like your opinion. I'm seriously considering a wager on FSU + 15 this week. I just have an instinct that it will be a competitive game. Ill advised ? ..a good play ?...or no opinion ?

[Blue Hen]

If VT makes it there is your best proof of what a tremendous defensive coordinator Bud Foster is. VT's offense would be mediocre in D1AA ( Imo ).

[HellYeahHokie]

If VT makes it there is your best proof of what a tremendous defensive coordinator Bud Foster is. VT's offense would be mediocre in D1AA ( Imo ).

While I won't defend VT's offense, which is woeful, you've just made another classic BlueHen Dumeth statement about VT. VT's offense did fine against Furman and Western Kentucky, so I hardly think they would be mediocre in D1AA.

I should keep a list of BlueHen's VT Mythology, like your SEC mythology.

Mythology #1 "If Frank Beamer wins 6 games this year, it will be a great coaching job" (I think I've heard that one 4 straight years)


(But it's no myth that Bryan Stinespring's playcalling is holding this team back from its full potential)

[Blue Hen]

First off , HYH, you need to get informed about WKU which you infer is D1AA.
Everybody(else) knows that WKU is playing the 2008 season as a D1A FBS independent and 10 of its 12 games are vs D1A teams.

In VT's only game vs D1AA the Hokies scored 3 offensive points in the entire first half and 24 for the game against 4-4, Southern Conf- Furman. Furman has given up 22.1 PPG vs its D1AA opponents and 24 points vs VT......not much difference. Tech had 14 1st downs and 329 total yards....OK, average might be better than mediocre to describe the offense in that game against an outmanned opponent.

BTW, against WKU, the Hokies produced 293 yds of offense....about 73 yds per quarter....and WKU is a 2-9 team.

Anyway, against the 16 teams in the FCS playoffs I still would project the Hokie offense to be mediocre and of course neither of us can prove or disprove that.

[HellYeahHokie]

I know WKU is not D1AA, but they aren't far removed from it, and I chose them as a frame of reference. VT ran for over 250 yards against Furman. No, it wasn't a blowout win, but we're not debating whether VT's offense is great. Just whether it would be mediocre in Div 1AA. Now you have qualified your position of comparing VT's offense against the 16 best teams in the FCS. This is a different case, but I've seen a lot of years when VT's offense has struggled at times, but games against 1AA teams are typically little test for the Hokies.

No, I can't prove my point, but like all my arguments in these mini-debates with you about the Hokies, I go by the past results Just like you go by the past results to debunk SEC myths. VT's offense would not be mediocre in Div1AA because history shows this not to be the case when they've played them. And VT is not going to win fewer than 7 games each year, because the same history suggests otherwise.

[Blue Hen]

..but HYH, I thought that we were discussing the 08 VT offense only. I've been a Hokie fan for a long time (believe it or not) and this is the weakest offense I can remember. My 'mediocre' comment applies only to the 2008 team.

[HellYeahHokie]

I agree, this is the weakest I've ever seen too.

But my argument is that the talent level at VT is so much better than Div1AA, that if this offense were to play a Div1AA schedule, exclusively, they would still do very well. When VT played Maryland, a team they clearly had a speed advantage over, their offense looked pretty good. I believe this offense would emerge if they played against foes with considerably less talent in Div1AA.

[Blue Hen]

Ok I see your point about general overall talent. IYO, are Taylor and Glennon average or solidly below average D1A QBs ?

[HellYeahHokie]

I think they are average at worst. They might even be above average.

But I also think our offensive line is below average, and our receivers are really below average. The receivers are all freshmen, and we began the season losing our best 2 freshmen receivers.

For these reasons, our QBs look worse than they are. Glennon, when given time, has a hell of an arm. And certainly Taylor has the wheels to make him an above average talent.

But the lack of supporting players, plus woeful playcalling from the OC, have all contributed to the offensive disaster this year.