ACC Championship excitement

by BirdGT on Nov 16, 2009 4:00 PM EST Comment 7 comments

I'm gonna go ahead and count my chickens before they're hatched and call Clemson the Atlantic winner. I don't care if it jinxes them into another Tommy Bowden-esque loss because it's really not my loss... I think there's a great deal of excitement leading up to this ACCCG. We finally have two regionally proximate teams going into the ACCCG. Looking at past ACCCG, we see a steady decline in attendance:
2005 - 74,749
2006 - 62,850
2007 - 53,212
2008 - 53,927.

Now, we've got two teams within an 8 hour drive of Tampa with season finales that SHOULD (knock on wood) invigorate their respective fan bases' fervor. I know Swofford's semi-happy that BC is 90% out of his ACC Title Game pie. He's only semi-happy though 'cause his Miami-FSU dream matchup punched him in the throat after both teams shot their proverbial wads on Labor Day. He and the rest of the Atlantic Coast will have to deal with two older members of the conference playing for it all on December 2.

I don't mind playing Clemson, if it means drawing more attention to ACC football. I think we're better than we were when the season started and I think Clemson has played at about the same level all season.

I think the cherry on top would be if the ACCCG was played by two teams that went a collective 4-0 against SEC opponents this season (albeit four mediocre to average SEC teams).

Also, I'd like to check back on some preseason guarantees I made. Four of the five have come true so far. They weren't really that bold of predictions but I think it's slick to look back on stuff like that. I've also found that my methodology for predicting the ACC Champions based on media predictions semi-worked this season. I predicted a Clemson-Wake tie for the Atlantic. Note the Margin of Excellence for GT is gonna go up this year along with Duke's. What are your thoughts?

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Team Hotel

Anybody know what hotel the team is staying at? I went to book the Grand Hyatt where I always stay at in Tampa and it is sold out. I assume that one team is staying there then.

Championship Sports, the tour company, is booking at the Intercontinental, but only says it is the Alumni/Fan hotel.

It’s always more fun to stay at the team hotel so you can run into players in the lobby.

by FuzzyB17 on Nov 16, 2009 4:25 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

One small disagreement

I don’t mind playing Clemson, if it means drawing more attention to ACC football. I think we’re better than we were when the season started and I think Clemson has played at about the same level all season.

Completely agree that Tech is better now than they were. They started fairly strong and only got stronger week to week.

Clemson righted their ship during their post-Maryland bye week and has had a completely different season since that point.

Same level all season? Starting 2-3, losing to Maryland, averaging 24 points a game through the first five games to winning 5 straight, averaging 42 points a game with increased use of Spiller and better working Xavier Dye and Michael Palmer into the passing game is certainly not the same level all season.

by DannyFordisGod on Nov 16, 2009 6:05 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Have to agree on this one

I have not seen the 2nd half of the season tommy bowden stereotypical collapse this year

The college football season is so fragile. It's like a glass ball being pushed around from stadium to stadium by a rhinoceros.

by Winfield Featherston on Nov 16, 2009 9:47 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

give it time

Clemson, over-hyped preseason, and late season failings is like clockwork.

Corey Zickefoose: I think they should still be able to play football, regardless. Tennessee is my place. You know, it's my football team.

Reporter: Even after they put a gun in your face, you say let them play football?

Corey Zickefoose: Yeah. It's Tennessee. That's the way it is sometimes.

Welcome to the SEC!

by Jesse28 on Nov 16, 2009 10:23 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, you know, all the preseason hype we got this year... yeah...

I made a valid point to which you replied with a stereotype of our team under the previous administration. Congrats.

by DannyFordisGod on Nov 17, 2009 2:33 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Don't get mad at me because it's true

It’s the same with your basketball program. Every year you guys run off a long string of wins to get everyone all hyped up then completely fall off a cliff. Every year the football program is picked to win the ACC or push for winning the ACC and every year it never happens. Past administration or not doesn’t matter, the collapse is just as much a part of your program as is the early hype.

But hey, who knows, maybe this is the year for you guys. Hmm, now where have I heard that before…

Corey Zickefoose: I think they should still be able to play football, regardless. Tennessee is my place. You know, it's my football team.

Reporter: Even after they put a gun in your face, you say let them play football?

Corey Zickefoose: Yeah. It's Tennessee. That's the way it is sometimes.

Welcome to the SEC!

by Jesse28 on Nov 17, 2009 8:23 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Wrong

We have improved since the beginning of the year, but so has Clemson. They’ve got a more efficient passing game and though much of their offensive production comes from only two players, they still get the job done. Their defense is also now much more together, and given the previous game I just plain old think they’ll want it. This rematch is bound to be one hell of a game.

by GTNate on Nov 17, 2009 7:54 AM EST reply actions 0 recs