Question: Predicting the ACC in 2017

uafanataum said:

If Dabo can keep them hungry and they win the ACC does that put him in the discussion as greater than Urban Meyer.

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My short answer; No. Lets see the consistent winning of ACC and playoff appearances and another National Championship or two then maybe. Dabo is definitely one of the best and brightest young head coaches in the game for sure. Just my opinion.

freefall said:

I think you guys are overlooking how much both Pitt and UNCheat lost from last year; IMO both take a step back. Unfortunately, I think VT does also, to the tune of 9-3 and 2nd place in the Coastal. And even though the thought makes me want to puke, don't count out GT this year. But in the end, E$PN finally gets their dream matchup in the ACCCG with FSU taking on Miami. In true Richt fashion, though, the canes come up just short, and the 'noles close it out the same way they started it, playing you guys for the golden lipstick trophy.

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What did you think of Jerrod Evans declaring for the draft? Seems like a huge mistake that hurt both him and the program.

B1GTide said:

Meyer has won 3 national championships, with 3 very different teams (including 3 different QBs) at 2 different schools. Dabo has won 1 national championship. Let's see him win 2 more to at least match Meyer's total before we start thinking that he might be better.

I mean, Meyer has accomplished a whole lot more than Saban had at this point in his career. Does that make him better than Saban?

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BamaGreek said:

My short answer; No. Lets see the consistent winning of ACC and playoff appearances and another National Championship or two then maybe. Dabo is definitely one of the best and brightest young head coaches in the game for sure. Just my opinion.

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Yea, Dabo isn't on the Meyer/Saban level yet. He looks like he is on his way into that conversation but he needs to have a longer track record first. This is a big moment for Dabo. Can he continue to push for the playoff each year without Watson? I actually think his biggest challenge will be replacing Brent Venables when he eventually leaves(which should be pretty soon I would think).

UntouchableCrew said:

What did you think of Jerrod Evans declaring for the draft? Seems like a huge mistake that hurt both him and the program.

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Personally, I think he got some bad advice, and unfortunately decided to ignore what he heard from his coaches and NFL advisors. From a football perspective he certainly would have benefitted from another year in college, and Fuente is no slouch when it comes to developing QBs. As for the program, it's almost always better to have a returning starter at QB, but it's not like the cupboard is bare, either. Josh Jackson is a redshirt freshman who was rumored to have nearly won the starting job last year, and Hendon Hooker is a highly regarded true freshman (4* on the 247 composite). One of them is almost certain to be the starter this year, and no disrespect to Evans, it's possible we'll be just as happy with one of them.

Disclaimer: I don't know Evans' personal situation and whether there were extenuating circumstances, such as needing to support a family, etc. As a fan, it's easy to say that he made the wrong decision, but at the end of the day it was his decision to make and none of us know all the factors that went in to it. I'm happy he came to VT, if only for a year, and wish him nothing but the best.

JBama_in_PCOLA said:

The ACC is the best conference ever, according to Jimbo Fisher.

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In fairness, over the last three years, the ACC has 2 national championships, 1 heisman winner, and a 20-13 record against the SEC, including going 7-5 in bowls. Unless I'm mistaken, the SEC has a winning record against every other conference in that same time period.
Obviously I'm cherry picking the dates here, you could clearly go back 10 years and the SEC would dominate, no argument. But based on the last few years, I think Jimbo's got a pretty strong case.

freefall said:

In fairness, over the last three years, the ACC has 2 national championships, 1 heisman winner, and a 20-13 record against the SEC, including going 7-5 in bowls. Unless I'm mistaken, the SEC has a winning record against every other conference in that same time period.
Obviously I'm cherry picking the dates here, you could clearly go back 10 years and the SEC would dominate, no argument. But based on the last few years, I think Jimbo's got a pretty strong case.

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Since Ohio State won it in 2014, Alabama in 2015, not sure how you have the ACC with 2 in the last 3 years. The ACC has 2 in the last 4, and that is picking a very selective window and set of criteria. Extend it to 5 years or shorten it to 3 years and the story looks very different.

I don't really care which conference is the best but here are my thoughts. The Big 10, SEC & ACC all have a decent argument for being the best depending on the criteria. The top 4 teams in the Big 10 are better than the top 4 of any other conference but their bottom 4 or so teams are probably worse than any other conference (see Rutgers). The ACC and SEC are much deeper but for the past 2 years or so the top few teams of the ACC have been better than the top few of the SEC. That said, Kentucky and LSU both beat Louisville so...

BamaMoon said:

Clemson has two major things going against them this year:

1. Breaking in a brand new qb doesn't always work the way it did for us last year.

2. Hunger! - This season will prove Dabo's maturity as a coach. If he can motivate a team that got to the mountain top the previous season to have the hunger to get back into the playoffs again this year IMO it'll be as good of job as last year even if they fall short.

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You are on to something there Moon. Saban himself said the fun part is building a program but maintaining championship caliber teams year in and year out is far more difficult. I partly credit that challenge as to the reason he has stayed. But Hunger also permeates a program. The days leading up to the championship game I kept hearing how many Clemson fans were in town. They were hungry just as we were in 92 and when Saban came to T-town to awaken a sleeping giant. But their SR QB is in the league now and that was the IT factor they had in their favor. They have good players but will have adversity this season. Yea, I can see a few loses for Clempson this year.

RollTide_HTTR said:

I don't really care which conference is the best but here are my thoughts. The Big 10, SEC & ACC all have a decent argument for being the best depending on the criteria. The top 4 teams in the Big 10 are better than the top 4 of any other conference but there bottom 4 or so teams are probably worse than any other conference (see Rutgers). The ACC and SEC are much deeper but for the past 2 years or so the top few teams of the ACC have been better than the top few of the SEC. That said, Kentucky and LSU both beat Louisville so...

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Along those lines I calculated the 24/7 recruiting ranks for the past five years. I threw out the top two and bottom two of each P5 conference and averaged the 'middle' teams. For example in the SEC I threw out Alabama, LSU, Missouri and Vandy. This way we get a little peek at which conference has the POTENTIAL to be the best ...... I guess?

SEC .......14.1 recruiting rank
ACC .......34.0 recruiting rank
B1G .......34.6 recruiting rank
Pac12......35.5 recruiting rank
B1g12.....41.0 recruiting rank

B1GTide said:

The ACC has 2 in the last 4, and that is picking a very selective window and set of criteria.

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Doh, my bad! I included the CY2014 BCS championship, which was obviously the conclusion of the 2013 season. Not sure how I could have forgotten tOSU's championship since that was the year VT beat them at the 'shoe. _razz: Updating the stats to include all of the 2013 season yields 2 national championships, 2 heisman winners, and a 24-20 record against the SEC, with a 7-7 bowl record. Still not bad against what was clearly the premier conference in college football.

And I did say I was cherry picking the dates; my point was that if you ONLY consider the period since F$U won the MNCG, Jimbo's got a pretty solid argument.

Personally I think it's stupid; the only reason people argue that their conference is better is so they can make (better) excuses for why they lost!

freefall said:

Personally I think it's stupid; the only reason people argue that their conference is better is so they can make (better) excuses for why they lost!

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Amen!