ACC 2009 Preview

The ACC, the country's biggest cluster of a conference, should be wide open again this year with lots of good teams - but probably not any great ones.

I can never remember which is the coastal and which is the other one...so I'll go with my names: The FSU side and the Miami side.

FSU DIVISION

#1 FSU PR - 7.5
Ponder returns at QB, 5 OL are back, only 3 of the front 7 return on D...but there's tons of talent so no worries. I think this club will be about the same as 2008, which should be good enough to win the FSU Division...(9-3).

#2 NCST PR - 7
A surprise #2 for this division, I like the Wolfpack and put them above Clemson based on schedule alone. Wilson returns at QB, All-ACC last year...he's $. 3 OL are back, enough to keep this unit stable. 5 of 7 return on the D...they should continue to improve. O'Brien enters his 3rd year with the program as head coach - I think they put it all together and have a breakout this season. A ton of their toss up games are at home, so I only see a few losses...(8-4).

#3 CLEMSON PR - 7
Dabo enters technically year 2, but it will be his first full year as head man. He has a lot coming back - 5 OL, 5 of front 7 on D...but his QB is Willy Korn, and unproven Sophomore who is hyped up to be solid...but you never know. He did pull a new DC from ALA to take over a talented D...I think they could be even better than the 17 ppg they allowed in 2008. Offense may sputter a little bit, but overall I see a year very similar to last season...(8-4).

#4 BC PR - 6
This looks like a tough one for BC. New coach Spaziani has a lot of the WV Bill Stewart feel to me. A life-time DC, and a great one, but there's a reason he never had the head job before now. He pulled his new OC from the NFL and his DC from within - probably a good call. Then their all-world LB gets diagnised with cancer before we even hit July, your projected starting QB is no longer on the team, you bring back only 3 of your front 7 on a nice defense from last year...what does it all mean, a rare season without a bowl game in BC...(5-7).

#5 WF PR - 6
How did this club go 7-5 in 2008? The outscored opponents 20-18, yep, they only averaged 20 ppg...pathetic. This year that number has to go up with senior Riley Skinner back at QB and 5 OL returning. The defense, that made them a +16 in TO last year, will only return 3 DL's and 0 LB's...ouch. This unit is in for a drop-off, but overall the Deacons will be close every week - just like almost everyone else in this conference! (5-7)

#6 MARYLAND PR - 5.5
So if you're wondering how WF went 7-5, how in the hell did Maryland go 7-5 with a 20-21 ppg average last season! Yes - they were negative in ptdiff, but made it to a bowl game. The offense should remain terrible, senior returning at QB, but only 2 OL make this a poor unit once again. 1 DL and 1 LB return from what was a nice defense in 2008. This group will likely be a little worse, which brings Maryland down to the cellar in the FSU Division...(3-9).

MIAMI DIVISION

#1 VT PR - 7.5
Once again, the cardinal rule in the ACC, never underestimate the Hokies. They were my call as conference champ last year, and I nailed it. So I have to stick with them again. Tyrod Taylor will have the full time QB job this year and 3 OL return. This team won 8 games while averaging only 22 ppg last year, so I'm saying this has to improve in 2009. The defense is ridiculuosly good every year, 17 ppg in 2008 - 4 of the front 7 are back - I'll say they are = to last year. The schedule isn't terrible (ALA and NEB are tough non-conf games, but could kick start a big season for the Hokies). They won't lose more than 1 in ACC play, so I'll say (10-2).

#2 GT PR - 7.5
People, including myself, were very skeptical last year with the Paul Johnson hiring. "Look at me now, look at me now..." I think everyone is on board for 2009. He went 9-3 with a team that had minimal talent and a complete 180 system change on offense...imagine what this guy could do with some of his own players and an upgrade in talent...scary. Nesbitt is back at QB, 4 OL return, 4 of the front 7 are back, year 2 of the Triple option attack....all this means another great year for Tech. The scheulde is not the easiest (at MIA, at FSU) so I'll say they finish just behind VT, who they'll probably beat head to head. (9-3).

#3 MIAMI PR - 7
The Miami Kobows, I mean Hurricanes might finally climbing there way back to respectability. I know 3rd in the division isn't quite what they have in mind, but they are getting back to prominance...slowly. Harris will be the full-time QB, showed flashes of greatness last season. 3 OL return, but the talent is outstanding. 5 of the front 7 are back on D as well. It's only Shannon's 3rd year (doesn't it seem longer?) but he's got new coordinators on each side of the ball again this year. Whipple is the new OC from the Eagles, not sure how this will play out. Lovett is the new DC from the Tar Heels - I like that hire. Overall, the team is getting older, the great recruits are starting to play up to their potential and both units should improve...but not enough to get over the hump of VT and GT. How about this to open the season: at FSU, bye, GT, at VT, OK...nobody has a tougher stretch to open the year. If they can go .500 through that stretch they could win the conference...but I think they might lose them all. New systems on both sides typically struggle early in the year, so to open with your 4 biggest games all in a row is a bad sign for the U. (8-4) is my prediction simply because of the brutal schedule.

#4 NC PR - 6.5
The Heels are another up and comer, but this division is too stacked for them to make a lot of progress this season. Yates is back at QB, only 2 OL return...offense should be about the same. 6 of the front 7 are back on D, which should make the D even stronger than the 20 ppg they allowed last season. The schedule is a little difficult so I'm going with (7-5).

#5 VIRGINIA PR - 6.5
Never, ever, ever underestimate Al Groh. Seriously, I thought this was going to be one of the worst teams ever last season and he pulled them together to go 5-7 while only scoring 16 ppg! Ridiculous. Sewell returns at QB, and 4 OL are back - they have to be better than 16 ppg, right? The D might not be as good this year, 3 of the front 7 are back - they also have new OC and a new DC. Brandon comes from BGSU to run the offense, like I said, it can't be any worse. Trott comes from within to run the defense with Groh. I'll say they score a few more, give up a few more and end a little better than 2008...(6-6).

#6 DUKE PR - 5.5
This team has permanently cemented this #6 position for the Miami Division since the ACC expanded to 12 teams, and I don't really see that changing any time soon. I have to admit, David Cutcliffe did a helluva job in his 1st year here - so maybe there's a glimmer of hope. They went 4-8 and had a lot of near misses, which gave them a PR of 6.5 for last year (same as the Gophers). But that team had a ton of experience, which is now all gone. Lewis does return as the Sr. leader at QB...but that's about it. 2OL, 2DL, 1LB are all the other players that come back...not so good for the Dookies. I think the offense will break the 20 ppg barrier for the first time in a long time, because Cutcliffe is a offensive guru. The D will probably be a trainwreck, and get back to the 30 ppg allowed range that the Devils are used to. I say they drop a bit from last year, but Cutcliffe has this thing moving the right direction...(4-8).


So I'm calling for 8 of the 12 to be bowl eligible - not necessarily any elite teams, but it will be crazy competitve once again just like 2008.

VT vs. FSU in the championship game could be a great one. It all comes down to the QB's in this one, which guy will show up and emerge as a team leader for 2009...I like VT.

That's all I got for today...4 of the Big 6 down, 2 to go. Then we get into the nitty gritty with the always popular non-BCS conferences...fun times.

Before I close, I have to comment on the Jewel Hampton situation and the bizarro world of Hogeye football. So reports circulate that the guy hrt his knee - possibly out for the year, possibly missing a few games, possibly nothing at all. He had an MRI on Monday, and still nobody knows anything or isn't telling anyone. WHY?!? Does Cap. Kirk think something is going to change or letting the cat out of the bag that he is or isn't going to play this year is going to have any kind of advantage for their opponents? The best was the report in the Des Moines paper stating that when they went to Hampton's apartment to ask him he ran up the stairs to answer the door, so he must be okay. Well, for all the doctors in Iowa, if the report is correct that he tore his ACL he should have no problem running up the stairs...but see what happens when he tries to shuffle sideways or move laterally...his leg might fall off. I just think it's so ridiculous that this injury has been confirmed that it happened last week, but it's almost been an entire week and they still don't knwo exactly what's wrong with the guy? God I hate Iowa.

I never am one to hope for injuries, but I am hoping this one is true. That eliminates the only sure thing in their backfield and leaves more pressure on Stanzi. If he would go down early this year, the dillusional B10 title dreams of the Hogeyes will quickly turn to (6-6) or worse. These are the kind of things I hope for in 2009.

As always, let me know what you think - KOBS are the Cane's gonna make it happen this year? JG will the Noles be in the National Title picture? When they meet in week 1 will they combine for more than 20 points?!?!