ACC Football Kickoff Rap

The ACC Football Kickoff ended rather quietly at Reynolds Plantation, Georgia. No surprises in the pre-season. Clemson is picked to win the Atlantic Division and Virginia Tech the Coastal Division. The Tiger Paws at the pre-season favorite to hoist the ACC Championship Trophy in Tampa Bay this December.

No Margin Of Error For Clemson

Clemson Head Coach Tommy Bowden feels there is no margin of error for the Tiger Paws.

“Anything other than a championship would be a failure.” Bowden said. It’s a feeling shared in Tigertown this year. Clemson’s opener against Alabama is critical. If they win that game in the Georgia Dome than look out, this Clemson team could be on a roll to a high BCS finish. If they stumble against the Tide, the natives would get very restless.

Papa Bowden Still Has The Itch To Coach

Florida State Head Coach Bobby Bowden isn’t leaving the sidelines anytime soon. Bowden still has the fire in his belly to coach football. What Bowden hasn’t liked has been the results on the field the last 2 years.

“Back to back 7-6 years, yes that’s unacceptable at Florida State. It was ok when I first got there but not today.” Bowden said. “We haven’t dropped all that much no, but the league has come up to us.”

Offensive Questions

I was lucky to be the last person to interview new Georgia Tech Head Coach Paul Johnson. Of course I was the one millionth person to asked coach Johnson about his triple option offense. Johnson is a very straight up and classy individual and answered my question, probably his standard answer. Yes the Yellow Jacket fans will see something different this year but they will be exciting.

Duke Has Hope

Perhaps the most refreshing aspect of ACC Football Kickoff was the demeanor of the Duke Blue Devils. The past few years the players weren’t all the enthused about facing the media answering questions about turning the program around. Not this year. Eron Riley and Vince Oghobasse, who represented the Blue Devils, felt genuinely excited about the upcoming season.

New Head Coach David Cutcliffe has been the reason. He’s brought hope to Durham. One statement he made impressed me. “I want the seniors on this team to enjoy themselves and have fun because they haven’t won many games.” They may not win many games this year but coach Cutcliffe just wants his team to work hard, execute and have fun playing the game.

Here’s your ACC Pre-Season Media Poll

Atlantic Division

Clemson
Wake Forest
Florida State
Boston College
Maryland
NC State

Coastal Division

Virginia Tech
North Carolina
Miami
Georgia Tech
Virginia
Duke

ACC Champion: Clemson