Come on ACC!!

So I'm sitting here watchin the Rose Bowl, and I'm pissed off. Why? The ACC. I was happy when we got 10 of the conference's 12 teams into bowls this season. But now I'm just disgusted when those teams have gone 3-6 so far, and if Virginia Tech loses to Cincinnati tonight in the Orange Bowl it will be the icing on the cake. WHat happened? How did this go wrong? And How do we fix this??

In 2003, the ACC was dubbed, "Super Conference" when Boston College, Miami, and Virginia Tech joined the ACC. With Miami, Virginia Tech, and Florida State all in the same conference, many thought the ACC would produce a National Championship contender every year. Lets fast forward to 2009, where NO ACC school has even been in the title game, NO ACC school has produced a Heisman Trophy winner, and NO ACC school has won the Orange Bowl in a decade. IN fact, the last ACC school to win its BCS Bowl was FSU in 1999 when they beat Virginia Tech in the SUgar Bowl to win the National Championship. SO who is to blame for this failure? It's not Virginia Tech, who's been 51-15 since joining the ACC, But losses to Kansas and LSU on the big stage last year don't help the ACC's image. It's not Boston College either, who's gone 39-14 since joining and has produce Matt Ryan, the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. That only leaves Florida State and Miami. IT IS FLORIDA STATE AND MIAMI'S FAULT THE ACC SUCKS.

There's no other way to put it. Miami has been 37-25 since joining the ACC. The previous 3 years before joining the ACC, Miami was 46-3 and went to 2 National Championship games. Miami averages just 7 wins a season since 2003 and their best record was 9-3 in 2004 and the best bowl they've gone to was the Peach Bowl in '04 and '05. To sum it up, The Canes have basically just underacheived every single year as a member of the ACC. Before every season, they get hyped up and people say "This is the Year! Miami's gonna make a comeback!" What happens? They go 7-6 and lose to California in the Emerald Bowl. Florida State was one of the ACC's most dominant teams from 1992-2000, winning the ACC Title every single year and winning the National Championship in 1999. SO what have they done for the ACC lately? Since 2003, the Noles have been 50-27, including back-to-back 7-6 seasons in '05 and '06, and have only one the ACC once. Florida State hasn't been as bad as Miami, but Noles fans and ACC fans expect better.

But there is still HOPE for the ACC, as crazy as that sounds. Miami and Florida State seem to be resurging, as both teams were very young this year and did mediocre. If they can keep bringing in the big recruits, maybe they can return to dominance. Now lets not forget about the other ACC schools either. North Carolina went 8-4 under second-year coach Butch Davis and looks to be a team to recon with for years to come. The same goes for Georgia Tech, who went 9-4 under first year coach Paul Johnson. Even Duke, one of the worst football programs in the country went 4-8 in its first season under David Cutliffe (A good year for them, trust me.) Boston College, Miami, Georgia Tech, Duke, North Carolina, and NC State all have first or second year coaches. ANd they haven't done that bad either. As crazy as this sounds, the ACC is showing improvement. So the ACC will be "The Super Conference", just 10 years late.