Al Golden was the right choice at Miami

When word began to spread Sunday night that Miami had hired Al Golden to become its next football coach, it sent a simple message.

There is a new era at “The U”.

The school infamous for its off-field transgressions just canned its head coach despite a spotless disciplinary track record. Then they replaced him with someone of similar credentials.

Randy Shannon never proved he was a winner. Golden has.

School president Donna Shalala and Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt caught some flack for letting Shannon go despite the improbable strides he made in cleaning up the program. Hocutt called the decision to fire Shannon “the hardest I ever had to make.”

Miami brass pined hard for Jon Gruden and Mike Leach, two coaches who weren’t known for no-nonsense attitudes. But they would have signaled a push to return to the old Miami – a program that didn’t care what they did as long as they beat opponents to a pulp.

Golden will hold players to the same high moral standard that Shannon did, if not higher.

At Temple, he led the Owls through the greatest academic turnaround in the NCAA APR Reform Era. He makes sure his players read their textbooks just as much as they do their playbooks.

Don’t let his 26-32 career record fool you. He inherited one of the most abysmal programs in college football in the midst of a transition from a BCS conference to the unheralded Mid-American Conference.

He was in a recruiting hotbed, but if he wanted to compete for the best prospects, he had to do so against Penn State, Ohio State and Pitt, among others.

In the past two seasons, Temple went 17-8. For comparison, the Owls won three games in three seasons prior to his arrival.

By hiring Golden, Miami made it clear that they want results on the field in addition to a clean program.

In other words, they want to be Virginia Tech. The Hokies have been what Miami was supposed to be since joining the ACC in 2004, winning four conference titles including this year.

The biggest question about Golden is going to be if he is in it for the long haul. Miami coaches don’t have a track record of sticking around too long. The last time a Hurricanes’ coach lasted more than six years was Andy Gustafson, who coached from 1948-63.

It’s no secret that Golden was a virtual lock to succeed Joe Paterno at Penn State. He was a serious candidate for several high-profile vacancies over the last couple years (UCLA, Notre Dame, Tennessee), but it’s widely speculated that he didn’t pursue them as hard as he could have because he was holding out for the Nittany Lions.

Paterno is 84. It’s hard to believe, but he’s not going to last forever. Some might assume he’d leap at the chance to replace the sport’s all-time wins leader.

However, the assumption that Golden always had one eye on Happy Valley is probably overblown. Any good coach will tell you that you must always have both feet in your current job, and to never look down the road.

Golden put his heart and soul into making Temple a winner. He’ll undoubtedly do the same at Miami.

One thing that helps Golden is that nobody in Florida has a stranglehold on the state, a rarity throughout the history of college football. Jimbo Fisher has a slight head start at Florida State; he’s in the midst of his second straight top-five recruiting class and he just took Florida State to the ACC Championship Game in his first year at the helm.

Will Muschamp has yet to move into his office at Florida, nor has he ever been a head coach.

Golden’s Owls got jobbed out of a bowl bid this winter, which actually plays to his advantage now, because he can hit the road immediately to sell his new program.

He doesn’t have to re-invent the wheel. Shannon created a culture at Miami into which Golden can make a seamless transition. He’ll add his own “Philly-style” touch, of course, but he won’t have to make any radical moves to grab his players’ attention.

Miami didn’t upstage the Heisman Trophy Presentation or lure a “marquee” name to succeed Shannon.

Miami didn’t feel the need to grab the spotlight like in the days of old.

But by bringing in Golden, the ‘Canes are committed to find a new way to win.

Randy Shannon had to go

Randy Shannon looked like the perfect fit at Miami. For one reason or another, he just wasn’t.

He was a lifelong Hurricane player/assistant coach. The only time he spent away from the Hurricanes’ staff was a three-year stint with the Miami Dolphins.

He assembled some of the best defenses in college football history in the early 2000’s when the likes of Ed Reed, Dan Morgan and Sean Taylor helped Miami win 34 straight games and two national championships.

He recruited a large majority of the 67 former Hurricanes who were drafted by an NFL team since 1999.

When Shannon was hired in 2006, he was Miami football. That’s why the school took less than two weeks to name him as Larry Coker’s successor.

Four years and zero bowl wins and ACC championships later, Shannon is out as Miami’s head coach.

It was a move that had to be made.

Shannon was a master at keeping his players in line. His renowned ability to graduate players and keep them out of trouble was unprecedented for the program. The strides he made in that regard will never be matched.

Unfortunately for Shannon, it’s simply more important to win. Not just games, but championships. Miami never even threatened for the conference title under his watch.

He took the head coaching job and immediately instilled a level of respect from the players that was borderline frightening. He made the players so afraid to act up that it must have been impossible to concentrate on football.

He grew into the job as time wore on, and the players grew fonder of him every year. Yet the consistently paltry results make it hard to believe he ever really became the coach he needed to be.

This was supposed to be the year that he put everything together. The roster was finally comprised entirely of Shannon’s recruits, all of which were of the highest regard when they signed with the Hurricanes. Shannon had a returning quarterback in Jacory Harris who was a darkhorse Heisman Trophy candidate, to go with a wealth of talented players at running back and wide receiver. The defense was supposed to be on track to resemble Miami defenses of old, with future pros like Allen Bailey and Colin McCarthy leading the way.

It just never panned out, once again. Ohio State made Miami look silly in the second week of the season, exposing the same problems we’d seen from the ‘Canes for most of Shannon’s tenure.

Offensively, the receivers were clearly not on the same page with Harris. That’s a lack of preparation. It hardly improved the rest of the year, as Harris and backup Stephen Morris threw a combined 18 interceptions (to go with 19 touchdowns).

A 24-19 loss to Virginia was an absurdly confusing loss. The Cavaliers had yet to look competitive in an ACC game, let alone win one. Yet Virginia dominated for 50 minutes until Miami mounted a comeback that started much too late.

Shannon’s job may have been saved if he had beaten Virginia Tech on the next to last week of the season. Miami led in the second half before crumbling in the fourth quarter, handing the Coastal Division championship to the Hokies in the process.

If that loss wasn’t the final straw, it most certainly was a 23-20 overtime loss to South Florida at home on Saturday. The Bulls stunned the Hurricanes using mostly players whose high school profiles were used by Miami’s coaches to blow their noses on.

There was absolutely no reason the Hurricanes shouldn’t have won 10 games this season. Instead, they might be the worst team in Florida from a BCS conference, and we all know how Urban Meyer’s year has been.

With Shannon at the helm, whenever the ‘Canes strung together a loss or two within a few weeks, an already suspect fan base kept a safe distance from any Miami home game. A chronic optimist would describe the stadium as half-empty for the final three home games of this season.

Plain and simple, Shannon zapped the life out the Miami football program. The negatives clearly outweighed the positives in the eyes of the university’s brass, and now it’s about to be someone else’s chance to restore the glory at “The U.”

To fire, or not to fire? The Curious Case of Randy Shannon

There may be more than one way to skin a cat, but there isn’t more than one way to win big at Miami.

Randy Shannon may have to learn that the hard way.

After a flattening 24-19 loss at Virginia on Saturday that all but eliminated the Hurricanes from ACC title contention, I quickly thought that Shannon may be nearing the end of his days on the Miami sidelines.

Make no mistake about it, Shannon has been great for the players of the Miami program in his 19 years at the school, and even greater in his four as the head coach.

Just last week, a USA Today report showed that Miami’s graduation rate was second only to Stanford among teams in the top 25 of the BCS rankings.

Shannon has been instrumental in instilling discipline to the program. The program’s arrest numbers are way down from the early part of the decade and much better than in years before that.

School President Donna Shalala reportedly called Shannon this weekend to affirm her commitment to him as the head coach.

While it’s all well and good that Shannon has repaired Miami’s image, the past few weeks have proved that Shannon just can’t bridge the gap between running a clean program and a dominant one.

If you thought the wheels fell off in an uninspired blowout loss to Florida State on national television on Oct. 9, you’re right. The ‘Canes followed that up with a lackluster showing against Duke, winning 28-13.  A week later, they looked to have righted themselves in a 33-10 win against North Carolina, only to have that win lose all of its worth after the Tar Heels nearly lost to William and Mary over the weekend.

Miami was favored by 15 points against Virginia. The Cavaliers had registered just one win against an FBS team this season, and that came against Eastern Michigan, a 1-8 MAC team who has been outscored by an average of 44-19 this season.

Simply put, Saturday’s loss was unacceptable by the standard that Miami should uphold.

Miami, namely Shalala, has a tough decision to make. Does she sacrifice the disciplinary prowess Shannon has brought to the program for a coach who has the tools to build a champion?

Choosing wins over diplomas isn’t the most esteemed move, but Miami is known for winning football, and little else.

Basically, in keeping Shannon around, Miami runs the risk of falling into utter mediocrity in the state of Florida. Over history, rarely have Miami, Florida State and Florida all been among the elite teams in college football.

Jimbo Fisher seems poised to move the Seminoles back in that direction, and it’s more likely for Joe Paterno to coach until he’s 120 than for Urban Meyer to carry a three losses into November again any time soon.

Shannon has proven time and time again that he can not keep his team’s focus throughout the year. Even at the highest points of Shannon’s tenure, Miami has flopped when the spotlight falls on them.

When the going gets rough, he also has a tendency to let things get worse before they start to get better.

Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald brings up a good point that Miami isn’t in a place right now to open up its wallet for a new coach, which could mean Shannon sticks around another year or two. But the school would be foolish to not begin formulating his exit strategy should these struggles snowball.

As of now, Shannon’s job should be timidly labeled as “safe”. If Miami can’t regroup for the final month of the season – a stretch of games that features Maryland (6-2), Georgia Tech (5-3) and Virginia Tech (6-2) – it’s going be much tougher for the higher-ups at the school to justify Shannon’s retention.

Doomsday

Whoever this guy Murphy is has some competition for the naming rights to his law.

Anything that could go wrong for the ACC did, and at the worst possible moment.

On a day when the two most prominent match-ups featured the most storied programs in the conference clamoring to reach the top of college football once more, both were annihilated.

Also, the conference favorite lost – to an FCS school, the second time a ranked team has lost such a game in the history of the sport.

So did the defending league champion – to school which failed to produce a touchdown in a loss to another FCS school the week before.

A season full of hope suddenly became one on the verge of disaster.

Five teams were ranked in the preseason AP top 25 poll, the most in six years. Only one remains, and not a single one has a winning record.

Look at it this way. Miami failed to score an offensive touchdown until the fourth quarter and threw four interceptions in a 36-24 loss at Ohio State, and they had the best day of the perceived “contenders” in the ACC.

Meanwhile, Florida State was getting beaten like a drum in Norman, Okla. by the Sooners.

Bob Stoops made mince meat of his brother’s defense at FSU, putting up 487 yards of total offense and 47 points on the Seminoles.

Entering the year, for Miami and Florida State to take the “next step” in rebuilding their respective programs, it was clear where they had to improve. Clearly neither has.

Miami is still undisciplined on offense. Head coach Randy Shannon admitted to several communication errors between the receivers and quarterback Jacory Harris on Saturday. That shouldn’t happen with an experienced group of pass-catchers and a seasoned veteran under center. That falls on not only the players, but the coaching staff as well. There is more than a simple problem down in Coral Gables.

Florida State had to revamp a defense that ranked at or near the bottom of the ACC in every category last season. A scheme that worked for three decades under Mickey Andrews suddenly failed for one year. Sounds like a personnel problem, rather than a coaching problem to me.

Mark Stoops clearly hasn’t made the impact head coach Jimbo Fisher thought he would as the new coordinator. Landry Jones torched the Seminole secondary for 380 yards and four touchdowns, succinctly shredding the supposed vaunted zone defense Stoops brought with him to Tallahassee.

Even Christian Ponder, the face of Florida State (and for that matter, ACC) football struggled mightily against a Sooner defense that is nothing remarkable. Ponder had perhaps the worst game of his career, completing just 11 of 28 passes and throwing two interceptions. It’s not going to be a fun week in Florida, that’s for sure.

Georgia Tech thought it could survive without the likes of Derrick Morgan, Morgan Burnett, Jonathan Dwyer, and Demaryius Thomas – all key components of last year’s ACC Championship team currently in the NFL. The Jacket’s can’t.

Joshua Nesbitt is still the same run-first quarterback with no ability to throw the football. He was bailed out time after time last year by Thomas catching deep balls like he was the world champion of “500″.

There is no such deep threat this year, rendering the Jackets so one-dimensional its criminal.

Kansas loaded the box and demolished the Jackets’ running game. When they had to play catch-up late in the game, Nesbitt was inept. He finished the game with five completions on fifteen attempts.

The Jackets’ did run for 291 yards, but most of that came between the 20-yard lines. They couldn’t cash in when it mattered most, in the red zone.

Georgia Tech is going to have a hard time winning games this year if they can’t grind it out near the end zone, or have some semblance of a passing game.

The most embarrassing loss of all came in Blacksburg, where Virginia Tech shockingly lost its first non-conference home game in its last 33 tries to FCS foe James Madison.

The Hokies struggled to tackle on a wet field, and the offensive line failed to open holes for its star running backs or protect Tyrod Taylor.

The Hokies succumbed to the hangover of the Boise State loss just five days earlier, and a drowsy environment inside Lane Stadium doomed the preseason sixth-ranked team in the coaches’ poll.

The most impressive game of the day came in the still of the night, when Virginia played inspired football in a 17-14 loss to USC. The Cavaliers were missing star cornerback Ras-I Dowling, yet still managed to keep the Trojans’ talented offense in check all night.

Mike London is doing wonders as Virginia’s new head coach. The spirit surrounding that program is at a level not felt in more than a decade. The Cavaliers have inferior talent to just about anyone in the ACC, yet they are playing better and more confidently than most of the league.

When the perennial cellar-dweller of your league carries the conference banner for the weekend, 99 percent of the time it’s a terrible thing. That’s the case this week, when the ACC didn’t just come to a standstill, but was launched backward in its climb to gain national respect.

Why Miami is the ACC’s best hope at a title in 2010

If you were among the 98% of the country that hated hearing “The U is back” everywhere you turned last September, this post is not for you.

For the record, I was in that 98%.

Miami was the center of the college football world after barely escaping Florida State (which finished 6-6) and beating eventual ACC champion Georgia Tech soundly on Thursday night.

That was all it took to make Miami a revived program.

The wheels began to wobble after that, and the Hurricanes finished 9-3.

Start quarterback Jacory Harris admitted that Miami was too flashy, too cocky, and it cost them. He says they won’t pull the rug out from under their own feet this year.

If they don’t, look out, because Miami is scary.

The ‘Canes recruiting class of 2008, which was rated number one by most services, are coming into their own as redshirt sophomores and juniors.

The volume of playmakers is incomparable in this league.

Take last week’s scrimmage for example. There were seven touchdowns, including four of 20 yards or more.

Last year’s Miami team was athletic and immature. This year’s team is, well, athletic.

The Hurricanes could honestly lose their top two running backs to injury and be fine. Then they could lose the third back to suspension, and be fine. They could even lose that fourth running back for personal reasons, and be OK.

The reason Miami is the ACC’s best hope for a national title starts with the schedule. The ‘Canes travel to Ohio State in week two. A win would likely vault them close to the top five in the polls. A loss would not cripple them, because the rest of the schedule is strong enough that a 1-loss season would keep them in the hunt.

Florida State, North Carolina and Virginia Tech all come to Coral Gables. Road trips include Pittsburgh, Clemson and Georgia Tech.

Miami faces six teams ranked in the top 25 of the preseason coaches’ poll, most in the country.

The ‘Canes could easily be favored in five of them.

If the baby-Canes have truly grown up like Harris says, they could actually hold serve as the favorite in those games, unlike last year, when Virginia Tech and Clemson stunned them.

Meanwhile, the other best hope for a championship lies in Blacksburg, but the schedule is not promising. The Hokies could very easily start 8-0 if they get by Boise State in week one, but not many folks think they can navigate a tough November schedule.

Georgia Tech at home, followed with North Carolina and Miami on the road is as tough a 3-game stretch at the end of the season as anyone. A single loss, and the Hokies’ title dreams can be kissed goodbye.

Miami does play Georgia Tech on the road the week before the Hokies, but they get Maryland and South Florida at the beginning and end of the month. It’s a tough, but not as imposing as Virginia Tech’s.

Who is the best team in the ACC? I think it’s the Hokies. I think the rebuilt defense will not be the question mark people expect it to be. But those two straight road contests right before the finish line will be too grueling.

Miami has one less stumbling block at the end of its season, meaning they can afford a slip-up in that early season gauntlet.

Even if Miami loses a game early, but responds by winning out, the pollsters will be all over the U again.

ACC Commissioner John Swofford acknowledged last month that the league needed Miami and Florida State to be strong again for the welfare of the conference.

If there’s one team to make him proud this year, it just might be the ‘Canes.

ESPN’s Bruce Feldman Talks ACC Football

The landscape of sports journalism is littered with, more or less, nerds and geeks who have a lifelong passion for whatever sport they cover.

Not so for one distinguished character in the college football sector. Bruce Feldman was an art major in college, before a part-time job covering high school sports at the Miami Herald turned him onto journalism.

Fast-forward to 2010, and Feldman is a senior college football writer for ESPN the magazine and also has a daily blog on ESPN.com Insider.

He’s the author of two books, Cane Mutiny and Meat Market: Inside the Smashmouth World of College Football Recruiting. Over the course a week earlier this summer, I read Meat Market, which Feldman wrote after spending one year with all-inclusive access to the Ole Miss coaching staff in 2006 under recruiting guru Ed Orgeron.

Feldman basically took the Hubble Telescope and pointed it at the Rebels’ program, specifically the aspect of recruiting. What it showed was a coach who gave up an addiction to alcohol for an addiction to recruiting (and Red Bull Energy Drink), while also depicting just how time-consuming, complicated, and out-of-this-world stressful recruiting in the Deep South can be.

Feldman was kind enough to speak with ACC Mania one evening last week, and he had plenty to opine about the current environment within the conference.

ACC Maniac: Between Jacory Harris, Ryan Williams, Christian Ponder and Joshua Nesbitt, who has the best shot at the Heisman Trophy?

Feldman: I’d say it’s probably Ponder over Harris. I think Ponder is more consistent. Quarterbacks always have the best shot, especially when they can put up good passing numbers. I think Nesbitt is as tough a guy as there is in college football, but I’m not a guy on that bandwagon.

I’ve seen Miami this spring, and I was really impressed by how they look. I think Ponder has been more consistent, but at this point I’d say him, but it wouldn’t shock me if Harris were in the Heisman hunt.

ACC: Do you place any value in Heisman campaigns at places like Florida State?

Feldman: Those programs are so big. I think it would help if you were the Maryland quarterback, or another school that feels like more of a mid-major level.

I’ll use Carson Palmer as an example. Palmer had been a pretty inconsistent quarterback for most of his career. People knew his name, but until his senior year, he really didn’t get cranked up. He really didn’t get mentioned as a Heisman guy until really about Halloween (in 2002). It helped that guys said he had NFL size and an NFL arm. Having the NFL Draft guru approval certainly doesn’t hurt.

I have a feeling if Boise State beats Virginia Tech and Oregon State, people may talk about Kellen Moore. But there is going to be another side that’s going to ask “how good can this guy be?” He’ll be a free agent in the NFL one day, and whatever. I don’t think that helps a Heisman candidacy, but you can spend all the money you want on posters and pins and whatever, but if your guy doesn’t win big games it’s not going to matter.

If Ponder’s team wins the ACC and plays for the BCS title, people are going to find out about his story; they’ll know. He’ll be in enough big games where he’ll be talked about on College Gameday all the time and featured in magazines. People will constantly be talking about him, and why FSU – a program that had dropped – all of a sudden is back up and look who is the reason why.

There is no elaborate Heisman campaign that got everyone fired up about Mark Ingram. It was just about playing well in big games on national TV that does it.

You don’t beat out a guy because your Heisman campaign was better orchestrated than his. It might help you win a Butkus…it’s too scrutinized

ACC: You wrote a book on recruiting; who do you think is the best recruiter in the ACC?

Feldman: I’m tempted to say Eddie Gran, The running back coach at Florida State. He pulled a lot of kids out of south Florida when he was at Auburn and Tennessee and definitely did the same when he got to FSU. I think he is a really, really good recruiter. He’s a fairly low-key guy.

(UNC defensive line coach) John Blake has a big reputation as a recruiter, too, but I just don’t know. I think Graham might be a bit of an upset, but I’ll say him.

ACC: Virginia Tech just lost two huge recruits to UNC in Landon Turner and Marquise Williams. Tech needed Williams a lot more than UNC. Also, with Mike London raising UVA’s profile in-state, Tech is losing some ground in the state quickly. Williams was from North Carolina, but Turner was from Harrisonburg. Butch Davis is doing a good job.

Feldman: He’s a good evaluator. Let’s see how this NCAA probe may impact them. One of the little side cushions of the USC hit is that I wonder how much recruits will be gunshy when they hear “NCAA probe” than they were a while back.

ACC: What is the best stadium you’ve been to in the conference?

Feldman: I’m going to sound like I’m pandering, but I’m going to say Lane Stadium. I‘ve been there for a lot of games. I don’t like heavy metal or anything like that, but even when you just start hearing Enter Sandman that whole place rocks.

Every year, ESPN has a preseason seminar where everyone that works with college football comes in. One year they were playing the open to Virginia Tech-Miami in 2005. I remember just sitting there getting goosebumps. I remember being at that game. There is something there that is great.

It’s a really scenic part of the country. I’m kind of partial to that place. I have not been to Clemson for a game and I’ve heard great things about there. Otherwise I’ve been to pretty much every place in the ACC.

There is just something at Virginia Tech that I am in to.

ACC: Are you surprised that Tom O’Brien has not had more success at NC State?

Feldman: A little, given his track record. For as much as people take shots at the league, it’s not that easy to all of a sudden (improve). He has a good quarterback. Chuck Amato recruited pretty well, and he didn’t really win either. I’m not saying NC State is as tough as Duke to win at.

In a way, at Boston College you’re little more on an island and it has its charms to it. NC State is a little trickier spot. I’m not saying you can’t win there. I didn’t go in thinking oh he’s going to turn that place into the next Virginia Tech seasons. I expected 7-5 and the occasional 8-4 season. But I thought he’d be more along the lines of what Al Groh was able to do at Virginia.

I think people underestimate BC a little bit. They always have good offensive linemen. They also recruit New Jersey very well. New Jersey football is actually very good, and that is the Eagles’ lifeblood. As long as you have a really good line and mix in some other good players, you’re going to be good. It’s always been a well-coached program. They’ve never been bad. I don’t think you all of a sudden go to a different league and just fall apart.

ACC: Who is the best coach in the ACC?

Feldman: I think a lot of people would say Jim Grobe (at Wake Forest). Paul Johnson has done a lot at Georgia Tech. Beamer has obviously elevated Virginia Tech to an unthinkable level. I’d say it’s one of those three. I feel like Grobe probably gets the most out of the least, and Beamer takes it to another level. He’s had guys on his staff for a long time, there’s a lot of loyalty there.

ACC: Not a lot of people expected Paul Johnson’s offense to succeed in the ACC. I think a lot of his success predicates on how unique it is and how different it is to prepare for. When facing it, you have to completely change everything. Do you think Tech can maintain this, and do you think the triple option could show up at more schools in the future?

Feldman: I think they can maintain it. I don’t think it’s going to show up at so many other places, because coaches coach what they know. That is such a radical departure from places like the Big 12 where there are all these variations of the spread, but are pass-happy offenses.

Johnson is a good coach. Whatever system you run, it’s about how well you execute it. I just don’t think you’re all of a sudden going to see Norm Chow say, “I’m going to become an option guy,” or Mark Whipple or Jimbo Fisher either.

I think watching what Navy has done over the few years, what they’ve done is good. I just don’t think it’s going to be widespread, it’s not a part of other coaches’ DNA right now, offensively.

ACC: Who wins the ACC this year?

Feldman: There are four schools in the mix: Virginia Tech, Miami, North Carolina and Florida State. The more this investigation talk starts to bubble up, it doesn’t help UNC. You worry about chemistry.

I think Virginia Tech is a proven commodity, which definitely helps them.

FSU and Miami are both similar to me. Both programs have been really good, and now are trying to get rebuilt under new leadership. They have a lot of firepower. I think Miami has more talent on defense.

I feel like it comes down to Virginia Tech having to go to Miami this year. I think that game is going to determine the best team in the league.

The five most important games for the ACC this year

In 2004, ACC Commissioner John Swofford offered up a half-century of basketball dominance as a sacrificial lamb in favor of the more financially rewarding football supreme conference. He never could have imagined that the very conference he pillaged for expansion (The Big East) would be viewed by some as a better football conference (and basketball, for that matter) today.

Whether or not you concur with opines like Brian Bennett’s (go figure, ESPN’s Big East blogger) or not, the fact that there is even a debate over whether or not the ACC is the worst of the BCS conferences is certifiably depressing.

In a league that boasts longtime powers Miami, Florida State as well as Virginia Tech, a newcomer to elite program status, the ACC should be at the forefront of college football.

Since expansion, the Hokies’ 2009 Orange Bowl win over Cincinnati (from the Big East, for what it’s worth) is the league’s only BCS bowl win since expanding – and only its second since the BCS’ inception in 1998.

Last year saw the ACC suffer embarrassing losses in the non-conference slate, as well as another group of good-but-not-great teams knock each other off week after week.

If you don’t include the Hokies, no ACC team has finished in the Associated Press’ Top 25 rankings since 2004 (the Hokies have four times). There have been 10 double-digit win totals between the teams since expansion. Compare that to the rest of the BCS conferences in that same time span:

CONFERENCE	DOUBLE-DIGIT WIN TEAMS SINCE 2004
SEC	18
BIG 12	15
BIG 10	14
PAC 10	13
ACC	10
BIG EAST*	9

*(It should be noted that in 2004 the Big East had Boston College, but had yet to add Louisville, Cincinnati, and South Florida – Louisville went 11-1 in 2004).

2010 is put up-or-shut up time for the ACC.

The Hokies have their best offense in a decade or more, Miami has its best combination of talent, experience and discipline under Randy Shannon, Florida State has a Heisman Trophy candidate at quarterback, and Butch Davis has more future Pro Bowlers on its defense than the Carolina Panthers.

ACC backers are cautiously optimistic about the upcoming season. There are some heeeeeeyuge games throughout the year, and the conference needs to make a name for itself this year or risk earning the uncontested label as biggest underachieving conference in the nation.

Here’s a look at the five most important games for the ACC this year, where the very reputation of the league will hang most treacherously in the balance.

1. Florida at Florida State, November 27

Seminole fans need not be reminded that it has been seven years since they beat the mighty Gators (that even includes once in the Ron Zook era…yikes). In the past three seasons, the ‘Noles have been outscored by a combined 90 points.

This game used to be THE one to watch on the season’s final weekend. There was Michigan-Ohio State the week before in a top-10 clash, followed by the battle for supremacy in the Sunshine state. Quite frankly, this game hasn’t been a match of true titans in a decade.

Jimbo Fisher has a lot of pressure on him to return the program to greatness, and that consists of two not-so-simple tasks: winning the ACC and beating the Gators.

Make no mistake about it, Florida still has plenty of separation in terms of overall depth and talent, but the Seminoles are closing that gap.

It’s very likely this will be Florida State’s last tune-up before the ACC Championship Game. It will also definitely be Christian Ponder’s final game in Doak Campbell Stadium, and perhaps his best chance to cement his legacy in Tallahassee and his chances at the Heisman.

If Florida State is in fact still in the hunt for a BCS bowl heading into this game, a win over Urban Meyer and one of the giants of college football would be a huge step for a conference that has no marquee wins in November or later in years.

2. Miami at Ohio State, September 11

There are a few reasons why this game is more important for the ACC than the Virginia Tech-Boise State matchup five days earlier. For one, this is a road game for Miami, not to mention beating Ohio State has more cache than beating the Broncos. Also, despite its hot start last season, a win over the Buckeyes would be the biggest in the Randy Shannon era.

There is a lot of hype surrounding Ohio State, mainly because people believe it is finally quarterback Terrelle Pryor’s time to shine. The Hurricanes have the fastest defense Pryor will see all season.

This will also be the biggest road test of any team in the ACC this season (with a slight edge over Florida State at Oklahoma the same day). The league has not fared particularly well in that department recently, and this is a golden opportunity for Miami to stamp itself as a national contender. If Florida State also knocks off the Sooners, it will be a banner day for the ACC.

3. UNC vs. LSU (in Atlanta), September 4

This game became a lot less attractive once the news of the NCAA probe in Chapel Hill broke late last week. If the Tar Heels lose a couple starters and key back-ups for the year, especially on defense, the Tigers should take this game.

However, the SEC is the league against which all others are measured, and LSU should be a top-15 team this year. The Tigers have their fair share of concerns, primarily at quarterback, where Jordan Jefferson has been wildly inconsistent the past two years.

North Carolina has come out of nowhere to become the trendy pick to win the ACC (those dreams may fade depending on the NCAA findings), and Butch Davis’ program would explode if they knocked off LSU in Atlanta. The SEC has yet to lose in this Chick-fil-A kickoff game.

If the Tar Heels lose this game, it would take quite a bit of wind out of their sails very quickly. They follow that game up with a date with Georgia Tech two weeks later, and would be staring a 0-2 start right down the nose. The league could use another 10-win-caliber team.

Right now, the ACC’s calling card is depth, but the lack of a dominant team. The Heels may not be far from becoming one.

4. Florida State at Miami, October 9

This is without a doubt the best intraconference rivalry in the ACC. Even during the pair of once-dominant programs dark ages of late, the game has provided some memorable moments. Last year’s season opener on Labor Day came down to a Christian Ponder incompletion in the end zone on the final play giving Miami the win.

There is a very good chance both teams will be hovering around the top 10 when they meet, which would give the league its first marquee conference game with national implications in who knows how long.

If by god’s grace both teams are unbeaten when this game come around, make no mistake about it – Chris, Kirk, Lee, (sigh) Desmond and (YES!) Erin will be in South Beach for College GameDay. The eyes of America will be on a prime-time ACC showdown that will all but eliminate at least one team from the national title race. As far as the winner? They just might find themselves partying like it’s 2000, in the Top 5.

5. Georgia Tech at Virginia Tech, November 4 (Thursday night)

This is one of the best-kept secretly budding rivalries in college football. Hokie fans were afraid when Jeff Jagodzinski left Boston College that they no longer had an ACC coach to despise. Paul Johnson made the transition into that role seamlessly.

Johnson drew the ire of Hokie fans when, after Virginia Tech complained to ACC officials over what they believed were illegal chop blocks in the Jackets’ win over the Hokies last year, went public saying “they didn’t complain about this last year when they won”. There was more where that came from, too.

This game will take center stage on Thursday night in Blacksburg, which is an all-too-familiar stage to college football this decade. This begins a treacherous month for the Hokies, who should enter this game with at most one loss, therefore very highly ranked.

Georgia Tech will likely be a top 25 team as well at the very least, and it’s hard to believe this won’t be a tight game.

This will be a chance for the nation to see one of the league’s fiercest rivalries, not to mention some hard-hittin, slobber-knockin’ football under the lights at Lane Stadium. As long as this game doesn’t get away from either team, and fans are still tuned in during the fourth quarter, it will be a victory for the ACC.

So what do you think? There’s plenty of room for argument; this is just one man’s list. Keep in mind, these are the game I think will have the biggest impact on the ACC – not the best games, or most important for the teams, per se. Feel free to nit-pick away in the comments.

Two thoughts 7/13/10: The next Miami QB and the impact of Quan Sturdivant’s arrest

There’s a volcano ready to erupt in college football, and it comes in the form of 7-on-7 tournaments. The concept has been around for years now, with camps hosting high schools for day-long showcases. In the past, they have mostly served as extra practice for schools that can’t otherwise officially work on football-related activities on the field during the summer.

Thanks to Nike, ESPN, and Title Sports Drink, these tournaments are the next big thing in college football recruiting, and it’s about time.

Sports Illustrated’s Andy Staples followed the South Florida Express, a travel team consisting of players from the Miami area, as they made their way on a trip to the national championship in Tuscaloosa. His five-part series covering the team concluded Tuesday, and it is well worth the read. Very eye-opening.

ESPNU also recently televised Nike’s 7ON series, showcasing teams from Miami and Dallas in the championship game.

The biggest star of the tournament circuit has clearly been Teddy Bridgewater, a Miami commitment and elite quarterback prospect in the class of 2011. He was mentioned in all five parts of Staples’ series, not to mention taking as much screen time during an ESPN football broadcast that only Jesse Palmer can relate to.

Bridgewater represents the next era in Miami football. He could frequently be seen on television brandishing the “U” symbol after completing touchdown passes, and didn’t hold anything back in the way of cockyness to Staples.

For instance, Staples wrote of Bridgewater’s experience on the campus of Florida State:

Ole Miss coaches should hope Holliman and Johnson treat other suitors the same way Miami Northwestern quarterback Teddy Bridgewater does. Bridgewater, who is committed to Miami, preaches the gospel of The U wherever he goes. He also doesn’t entertain many calls from other suitors. “I have a button on my phone that says Ignore,” Bridgewater said. “And I do use it.” When the Express visited Florida State on June 29, Bridgewater laughed when tour guides shooed Express players off the grass at Doak Campbell Stadium. “I’m going to tear up this field in a few years,” Bridgewater said.

While almost every other prospect could be seen donned head-to-toe in Nike apparel, Bridgewater could hardly ever be found without a Miami cap on his head. The demeanor of a kid that still has approximately 15 games and four dances left in high school is remarkably arrogant, but that’s why he’s heading to play for Randy Shannon.

For anyone who thinks Jacory Harris brought back the swagger to the “U”, just wait until this Bridgewater kid gets on campus.

Meanwhile, I caught most of the 7ON championship, where Bridgewater’s team, Vapor Trail, won in double overtime. I thought Bridgewater’s delivery was lazy; he tends to drop his elbow which leads to his passes floating in the air. He’s got plenty of time to fix that of course, and there are only a handful of rising high school senior quarterbacks that are have anywhere close to polished mechanics, in a good year. He did demonstrate good touch and the ability to place his throws away from defenders.

When he finally gets to Miami next fall, he’ll begin a career that I think could be one of the more polarizing we’ve seen in recent memory. In terms of notoriety, think of a cocky, showboating version of Tim Tebow.

——

Quan Sturdivant, North Carolina’s leading tackler in 2009 and one of many leaders on a loaded Tar Heel defense, was arrested and charged Monday with misdemeanor possession of marijuana.

In order to save space, I’m going to skip right over the “How dumb can you be?” rant and talk about how this impact’s Butch Davis’ team.

The North Carolina coach has not announced whether he will suspend Sturdivant or not, but odds are a ban is coming. The charges are relatively light, but any run-in with drugs warrants at least one game on the bench.

That one game would be against LSU, easily the biggest game in the Carolina program in over a decade.

Sturdivant’s would-be replacement is junior Zach Brown. While Brown has a bright future ahead of him, would likely start for just about any other team in the ACC, and is stupid fast, you can not replace a three-year starter and future first round pick without a sizable drop-off in production.

It’s completely ridiculous that Sturdivant jeopardize his team’s chances against the Tigers in Atlanta. I won’t go so far as to say the Heels must win that game, but they have to put up a good fight. Their performance on opening night will dictate how the rest of the season plays out.

If Sturdivant is indeed out for the LSU game, it won’t destroy the Heels’ hopes. There’s still plenty of leadership and talent on the defense to survive. But in a game that means so much to the team, they can’t afford losing key players because of foolish mistakes away from the field.

Going for two: Monday July 12, 2010

For the sake of avoiding being too repetitive with these team-by-team previews , I’m going to post a couple thoughts of mine on anything relevant to the ACC at least a few times a week (not sure if I can keep up with it daily). Anything that’s on my mind, I’m going to say. Some of them may spark debates, others may be fairly blatant, I don’t really know.

THOUGHT ONE

I think the idea that Darren Evans and Ryan Williams should split the carries in the Virginia Tech backfield is insane. Williams proved last year he is the quintessential every-down back.

He ran harder as the game wore on, and was equally adept at running between the tackles as he was at turning the corner on the perimeter. Evans is a north-south back who averaged 37 yards fewer per game in 2008 than Williams did in 2009. Evans also scored 10 fewer touchdowns.

Evans was starting to turn the corner in the final month of his freshman season in terms of his vision and physicality. The biggest difference between November Darren Evans and September Darren Evans was his confidence with the ball.

Will that confidence be there after ACL reconstruction? Not immediately. Either way, there isn’t anything Evans does that Williams doesn’t do better. If Williams gets less than 65 percent of the carries this fall, “Fire Bryan Stinespring”  will return as the battle cry in Blacksburg.

THOUGHT TWO

I think that the SuperHeat may or may not help Randy Shannon recruit at Miami, and it’s up to Randy Shannon.

In a city like Los Angeles, where former USC coach Pete Carroll made the celebrity-infused culture of the city is as much of a sell as the program itself, it can be a big advantage when recruiting blue-chip prospects.

That theory could soon apply to Miami, which is on the cusp of exploding after LeBron James announced he was moving to South Beach. I think for the next year or two, it will give Miami a boost in “street cred”. The scary thing about that is they are one of the two or three schools with the most already.

Randy Shannon, masterful recruiter that he is, is no Pete Carroll. Shannon is much more straight-laced, and I don’t know how much he’s going to sell the entertainment value of the city to his prospects.Recruits already come to Miami for that aspect without Shannon having to emphasize it.

He’s much more concerned about the football field to use LeBron James and Dwayne Wade as serious recruiting tools.

Agree/Disagree? Posts your thoughts in the comments section.