ACC so-so, so far

Halfway through the 2009 college football season, some ACC teams are better than expected -- take a step forward, Miami and Wake Forest -- and others are not as good -- not so fast, Florida State, N.C. State and North Carolina.

Virginia Tech has lived up to its preseason billing as the ACC favorite, ranked No. 4 in the AP poll and in control of the Coastal Division race as the conference's only 3-0 team.

Unpredictability is the only predictable part of the Atlantic Division where Florida State, the media's choice to meet the Hokies in the title game in Tampa, Fla., on Dec. 5, is the ACC's only 0-3 team.

The second- (Clemson) and third-place (N.C. State) picks in the Atlantic have one conference win between them.

Wake Forest, after starting the season with a home loss to perennial Big 12 welcome mat, Baylor, controls the Atlantic Division with a 2-1 record. Not that the footing isn't tenuous for the Demon Deacons, who have three road games and home dates with the two Florida schools left on the docket.

"You know better than that; I don't feel comfortable at all," said Wake coach Jim Grobe, who's trying lead the Deacs to their second division title in four years.

Wake could create more room in the Atlantic with a win over Clemson today. A portion of the Tigers' fan base has already jumped off the bandwagon of rookie coach Dabo Swinney, after a 2-3 start and 1-2 record in the ACC. A win today would swing the popular vote back in Swinney's favor, and turn the Atlantic into a free-for-all.

"It's a long season," Swinney said. "These guys are smart kids, they're not living in a cave somewhere, they understand the division that we're in. It is wide open, it's anybody's division."

Duke (3-3, 1-1) and UNC (4-2, 0-2), both on a bye this week, have the misfortune of sharing a division with Virginia Tech and the ACC's other two ranked teams, No. 9 Miami and No. 19 Georgia Tech.

The disappointing Wolfpack, 0-2 in the ACC, will look to put a 49-28 home loss to the Blue Devils behind it with a road trip to an equally surprising Boston College team. Picked to finish last in the division, BC is 2-2 in the ACC and has a chance to take the Atlantic for a third straight year, despite its offensive struggles on the road.

"Anybody can win this thing, and we're probably going to be saying the same thing four or five weeks from now," Grobe said.

Atlantic Division

Wake Forest

4-2, 2-1 ACC

Preseason: Picked fourth, the Deacs were expected to struggle on defense without drafted stars linebacker Aaron Curry and cornerback Alphonso Smith. In quarterback Riley Skinner, a four-year starter, the offense was in capable hands, but would a good quarterback be enough?

Reality check: The opening ACC loss at Boston College reinforced the questions about the Deacs, but they rebounded nicely to beat N.C. State and Maryland at home in a pair of high-scoring games.

The defense will have to add some starch to keep a grip on the division lead because the schedule picks up considerably in the next month.

Still, with a veteran QB and a smart coach, the Deacs have a leg up on the division.

Boston College

4-2, 2-2 ACC

Preseason: A new coach, the third in four years, and a new quarterback, third in as many years, were enough to lead the media to pick the Eagles last in the division.

Reality check: Despite heavy personnel losses on defense and a tendency for the offensive line to go AWOL in road games, the Eagles are 2-2 and smack dab in the middle of the Atlantic race.

They'll have to win a road game, and have two good options at Virginia and Maryland, to win the division, but at this point if they can beat N.C. State and UNC at home, and steal one road game, they'll win the division for the third straight year. The tiebreaker over Wake helps.

Maryland

2-4, 1-1 ACC

Preseason: With a new offensive line and wholesale changes on defense, the Terps would struggle to a fifth-place finish in the division.

Reality check: True to form, the Terps got run over by BCS foes Cal (52-13) and Rutgers (34-13) and split with patsies James Madison and Middle Tennessee out of the conference.

Then ACC play starts and their defense stymies Clemson, 24-21, and they lose a shootout at Wake, 42-32.

Their defense would eliminate them from every other conference race in the country, save for maybe C-USA, but in the ACC they're still alive. The schedule is kind, too.

Clemson

2-3, 1-2 ACC

Preseason: Addition by subtracting coach Tommy Bowden would lift the Tigers, with a dangerous defense and talented burner C.J. Spiller, to second place in the division.

Reality check: The defense has been solid, Spiller's been better on special teams than as a running back and Dabo Swinney, Bowden's replacement, is under siege after a road loss to Maryland.

Despite the inclination of Clemson fans to panic and overreact to their own unrealistic expectations, the Tigers are a win over Wake today shy of first place.

Rookie quarterback Kyle Parker has to play better, and Spiller needs to do more from the backfield, but the opportunity is still there, despite the start.

N.C. State

3-3, 0-2 ACC

Preseason pick: Combine the best quarterback in the conference with a proven veteran coach in his third season and home-friendly schedule and the Wolfpack, tabbed third by the media, could contend for the division title.

Reality check: The defense, especially against the pass, has taken a step back from 2008, even though it was ranked last in the ACC against the pass, to the point that Duke ended a 20-game ACC road losing streak with a 21-point win and 502 yards of offense.

Quarterback Russell Wilson, All-ACC in '08, has been prolific against weaker teams but has not shown the same big-play ability with his feet.

At 0-2, coach Tom O'Brien will need another second-half turnaround just to qualify for a bowl.

Florida State

2-4, 0-3 ACC

Preseason: Picked first, FSU is back, baby!

Reality check: Former safety Chris Hope, currently of the Tennessee Titans, identified himself on "Sunday Night Football" as "Chris Hope ... Florida State of the '90s."

Nobody wants to be affiliated with a winless ACC team that barely beats Jacksonville State and is ranked 108th in total defense

Coastal Division

Virginia Tech

5-1, 3-0 ACC

Preseason: Start engraving the fourth ACC title in six years.

Reality check: Don't forget to add to the T-E-C-H. The Hokies remain the class of the conference, especially with the addition of running back Ryan Williams (734 rushing yards) and the maturation of quarterback Tyrod Taylor.

Miami

4-1, 2-1 ACC

Preseason: A tough schedule would relegate the youthful but talented Canes to fourth in the division.

Reality check: Sophomore Jacory Harris has emerged as the conference's best quarterback in first-year coordinator Mark Whipple's system, and the Canes have scored big wins over FSU, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma.

A loss to Virginia Tech will likely keep them out of the ACC title game, though.

Georgia Tech

5-1, 3-1 ACC

Preseason: The Jackets will take another step forward, picked second, after winning nine games in coach Paul Johnson's first season.

Reality check: The offense is better but the defense isn't, as evidenced by a 49-44 win over Florida State. Still, it's a win, and Tech has beaten everyone but Miami. A showdown with Virginia Tech today will tell us more about the Jackets, who have a real shot at their first 10-win season since 1998.

Virginia

2-3, 1-0 ACC

Preseason: A new offense and a tough schedule will keep the Cavaliers, picked fifth, behind the division powers and ahead of Duke.

Reality check: Since a disastrous season-opening loss to William & Mary, the Cavs are 2-2 with their usual win over North Carolina.

It remains to be seen if they're the team that squashed Indiana, 47-7, or the one that lost at home to the Tribe.

Duke

3-3, 1-1 ACC

Preseason: Despite coach David Cutcliffe's bowl talk, the Blue Devils were picked last ... again.

Reality check: The opening loss to Richmond didn't inspire confidence but a 49-28 win over N.C. State gives the Blue Devils hope in the second half of the season.

Being in the Coastal Division doesn't help, but a .500 finish is possible for the first time since 1994.

UNC

4-2, 0-2 ACC

Preseason: Ranked in the Top 25, the Heels, picked third, would overcome key losses on offense and push the Hokies for the Coastal title.

Reality check: Depth issues on the line have hamstrung the offense and there's not another Hakeem Nicks, or Brandon Tate, on the roster.

By virtue of the home loss to a previously winless Virginia team, the Heels essentially enter the second half of the season with no chance in the division and in need of a 3-3 finish to qualify for a bowl.

Latest Comment View all comments

Images

Related Content

• Story:
  Best and worst of the ACC's first half
• Story:
  Three ACC games to watch