ACC Best of the Blogs: Week 6

BOSTON COLLEGE

BC Interruption: NCSU Tailgating, Game Recap and Virginia Tech
"Jeff: That's Mr. ACC Player of the Week to you. But seriously, I think Crane needs to send thank you notes to everyone on the NC State defense, the offensive line and Steve Logan. BC didn't throw the ball over and over on Saturday because they couldn't run the ball. They threw because it was working so why not stick with it? But the running game worked fine between the 20s as well and BC could've moved the ball either way. BC still has a big problem putting the ball in the end zone. Crane had to run for three of our touchdowns. The two passing touchdowns came from the 41 and the 12. When BC gets into the red zone against Virginia Tech, it is not going to be as easy and those 4 red zone touchdowns are going to be some field goals unless the Eagles accomplish a lot during the bye week."

Eagle in Atlanta: Bowl predictions update
"Chickfila (Peach)
Path: We have to finish in the top of the conference yet not win the ACCCG.
Outlook: Not this year. As an Atlanta resident, I keep holding out hope that the Peach will select us knowing that the SEC team will sell the game out regardless of the ACC team. We have one problem though this year...Georgia Tech is looking good. Local politics dictate that the Peach selects the Jackets every once in a while. Now -- with a new coach that has folks fired up -- is as good a time as any. Even if the Jackets struggle down the stretch we would be the 6th or 7th preferred choice for this bowl."

CLEMSON

Block-C: Wake Forest Preview
"Willy Mac: Given the way things have gone this season, I think we’re gonna lay a big goose egg. But thinking back to how we punked them last year, I’m not sure. We’re historically terrible on Thursday night games under Bowden. Also, we don’t do well when we travel up to the state of North Carolina under Tommy either. I don’t know if it’s harder to get a team pumped up or what, but it’s an oddity. If we run the ball, and I mean run… the… ball… we’ll be fine. We did great first half against Maryland and the Wake defense had terrible trouble stopping the run last week. Davis and Spiller will lead us to victory if Bowden gives them the reins. He probably won’t, or for some reason we’ll start throwing screens once the run starts working and it’ll be downhill from there. I hope I’m wrong."

Sporting Gnomes: WF Commentary
"Don’t click more. Seriously. Don’t."

DUKE

FanHouse: Confessions of a Duke Football Fan
"At best, you might get a courageous cheer of encouragement in the face of long odds, as though you'd just told someone you were leading Lichtenstein on an offensive against Russia. More generally, people look at you like you just put $100 on the Royals to win the playoffs. The Stanley Cup playoffs."

FLORIDA STATE

Scalp 'Em: Capriciously Random and Vapidly Meaningless Thoughts
"3. You know, maybe they should have torn down that dadgum Orange Bowl years ago. If we all knew that FSU was finally going to catch a break against Miami in Miami we could have taken up a collection and helped them move to Dolphin Stadium long ago."

Tomahawk Nation: Overrated?
"So by my figures that gives FSU 17 Booms, and 8 Busts (with one push). Doesn’t seem to me that FSU has a problem with busts in the NFL, and to that point, may have one of the best ratios of Booms to Busts in NFL history."

GEORGIA TECH

GT Sports: Jackets Smother Duke
"Jaybo Shaw completes 9 balls for 230 yards today. BeBe Thomas catches 9 balls for 230 yards. I would say you can call that a "go to guy". He runs right by his incredibly overmatched defender for an eye-opening 88 yard bomb and takes it to the house. BeBe was just a warrior today. Between the blocking and the "baby Calvin" type catches, he clearly was the standout. He got a nice ovation when he came out at the end of the game, and it was well deserved."

The Legacyx4: On this day...
"Another interesting note is that Tech never attempted a single pass the entire game. After the game was over the team amassed 978 rushing yards, 220 yards on kick returns and 220 yards on punt returns. The story goes that Heisman divided his team into separate squads and offered a steak dinner to whatever squad scored the most points. By the end, every player on the team ate steak that night." (ed. note - We would put GT on probation for this, but the courts have roundly rejected prior restraint.)

MARYLAND

Turtle Soup: Is Ralph Still A Good Coach?
"So, while Ralph deserves some blame by being head coach (and he’ll take that blame), I think it’s up to the players to get themselves going at this point. They have a good team, they have proven that. They are 4-2 with a week off to get themselves going. I’m sure they’ll be up for the Wake Forest game in two weeks and I’m sure they’ll come out and play well. I bet they win that game. It’s a big one. I guess the only good news is that there are no more “cupcakes” on the schedule for us to take lightly."

Turtle Waxing: Virginia, really?
"Just when you thought it was safe to start believing in this enigmatic group they come up with a debacle of historic proportions. It is true that Maryland has been shut out by Virginia recently (16-0 in 2004) and has lost by 30+ points in the not to distant past (48-13 in 2003) but those losses don't measure up to this catastrophe in sheer magnitude of embarrassment. The 2004 Virginia team was vastly superior and to keep the score that close was a testament to the valiant efforts the defense put forth week after week as the Joel Statham lead offense floundered. In 2003 wide receiver Scooter Monroe dropped a sure touchdown pass that turned the game from a probable Maryland victory into a Virginia rout."

MIAMI

All Canes: Florida State 41, Miami 39
"This one goes beyond losing. Failure has become commonplace for the Canes, now 2-3 on the season and 7-10 in the Randy Shannon era. Some young talent has stepped up and given fans a glimmer of what could be for Miami in the future, which the morning after feels a lifetime from now."

NORTH CAROLINA

Tar Heel Fan: Heather Dinich hates UNC
"Going beyond that the greatest folly in Dinich’s stat loving analysis is she ignores that certain elements of UNC’s team such as the fact they are 3rd in turnover margin. Granted she mentions the interceptions lead but misses the point that the offense sees less time on the field because they are set up in great field position by the defense and special teams. UNC is 11th in time of possession but 2nd in scoring offense because they strike quick in some cases and in others geting the ball on a short field. The same is true because UNC is 2nd in kickoff and punt returns. On average UNC starts six yards better than GT off kickoffs and 14 yards better off punts. You can also factor in UNC blocking three punts against UConn and the fact Brandon Tate is so dangerous it entices opponents into shorter kicks or kicks out of bounds resulting in better field position."

Tar Heel Mania: A Brief Primer: Proper Use of Blackouts in College Football
"You put on shirts. WE turn the goddamn lights off. THAT is how you strike the fear of God into your opponent. THAT is why we can powder blue and not be the least bit concerned about our machismo."

NC STATE

Section Six: Drag Days
"South Florida and Boston College have made the recipe for steamrolling the Wolfpack defense painfully clear, and the question now is how can we counter? When you make Chris Crane look that good, it's time to start mixing up the scheme a bit, and I'm confident we will. Whether it makes any difference, well, I have doubts. A smart plan of attack can only go so far."

StateFans Nation: They Say That First You Lose By A Little
"NC State finally has a decent quarterback, and at times the offensive line blocks for him long enough to let a receiver break wide open and get a big gain. Russell Wilson makes freshman mistakes once in a while, but he is the best thing under center since some guy who wore #17 played for NC State. Let’s hope he doesn’t pursue a baseball career immediately, because it would be nice to have to put Mike Glennon under the gun as the only quality QB on the roster next season."

Yet Another... How to meet women and get famous, the Eddie Goines way
"After paying his dues playing bit parts in television shows and B-movies (who could ever forget his riveting role as "Military Guy" on the NBC soap "Passions"?), Goines is taking a big leap forward as the love interest of none other than Beyonce Knowles in her latest video."

VIRGINIA

The Good Ol' Blog: A reasonable dissenter
"Well, we can point to other quarterbacks as examples of bad QB development, but we have had some success stories as well. I’m not sure how much of the success of Hagans and the sorta success of Sewell can be attributed to Mike Groh, since both relied heavily on their athletic abilities. But maybe if was Mike that fostered such athletic success? In fact, now that another athletic quarterback is potentially blossoming, should we start wondering if the younger Groh is more suited to coach mobile QBs rather than the pocket passers?"

From Old Virginia: It's because of the signs
"No, Maryland fans are what make wins like this so completely enjoyable. Their Scout board has some particular gems. Granted, Scout boards tend to be just one level of evolution above ESPN comments, which themselves are not far above YouTube comments. No matter; the people there at the TSR (Turtle Sports Report) are still Maryland fans, and thus, their anger and hatred is my beautiful weekend."

VIRGINIA TECH

College Game Balls: GameDay Signs - Nashville, TN
"That’s a tough one. One thing is for certain, I’m glad Tony Franklin isn’t in charge of our economy."

TSL Blog: Your mid-season football 1-10 rankings and trend analysis
"Better. That’s a good word to describe Bud Foster’s 2008 defense as it just keeps getting better. (as if any non-2003 Bud Foster defense could do anything else). The DLine has had three guys come on of late. Graves is finally showcasing his potential to be out next bell-cow upfront,Great kid, but so-so vs. the Pass. Worilds is getting healthy and his play is following suit, and “Taco” is not easily displaced as a run-stuffer goes. Depth is very thin here, but those who are playing are at least D-1 C+ quality guys. Linebacking is better vs. the run than it is vs. the pass. Not surprisingly, the front-7 on the whole is better vs. the run than it is vs. the pass. This is no small part of our suspect 84th passing efficiency ranking. The secondary may just have 3 next level guys playing full time (Kam, Macho and Virgil). But the hind-4 has been susceptible to the big-play all year."

Virginia Tech Fan: Hokie Offense in Need of a Redskins Type Revival?
"I put most of my football emotional energy into college and the Virginia Tech football, and less into pro football. But living in northern Virginia, I casually follow the Washington Redskins and catch their games when I can. In recent years, watching Hokies and Redskins games on consecutive days has had its similarities. Obviously its completely different leagues and teams, but its interesting that both have had their struggles on offense, and more specifically an overall lack of ingenuity that to fans makes them look stale."

Wild Turkey CFR: A Sun Belt caliber blog
"It was a day of discontent in home sweet Section 1. All of the regulars in our section decided to skip the game and our section was filled with people who evidently have no legs. We were yelled at for standing, as we do, and everyone in our section does, every game. I wish Tech fans were as nice to me as Nebraska fans. Allright, let's get one thing straight. Just because we are playing a team aspiring to join the Sun Belt Conference doesn't mean we have to aspire to be Sun Belt caliber fans. I hope none of these folks show up for the Maryland game, or they won't see very much of it."

WAKE FOREST

Old Gold and Blog: 5 Good Questions: Clemson
"1. Losing to Navy has definitely put Wake fans in a bad mood, and I think it's affecting our attitudes about this week's matchup with Clemson. Still, I'm guessing we're handling things a little bit better than Clemson fans. Give us a little bit of insight into the minds of Clemson fans right now. Is there much excitement for this week's game?"