After spending most of the weekend glued to my TV overdosing on football games to a level that would put Charlie Sheen to shame, I'd like to take a few moments to sum up exactly what I saw.
Let's start will the college kids. I correctly picked both Clemson and Oklahoma to win (I also picked MD to win... at least they made it close right?). Those two games were probably tops on the watch list for the weekend. Clemson looked solid and now have a lot of us looking forward to an October 1st showdown with Virginia Tech (VT took care of business as well) in Lane Stadium. This could be a very likely ACC Championship preview. Florida put up a fight but was clearly outmatched by the country's number one team and I think the big test (bigger than this weekend's game) for the Noles will be how they handle next week. Has their bubble been completely popped or will they use the loss as motivation to finally make it back to a BCS game. The Hokies looked questionable at times during their win over the lowly Arkansas State Red Wolves (what the hell's a red wolf?) and Logan Thomas made several throws that left me chanting for Sean Glennon (oh wait, nvm). In fairness, he's a rookie and if he is going to have growing pains, better now than in October and November. There was improvement over the Hokies poor showing in Greenville but not enough to leave me feeling warm and fuzzy. Let's hope they look closer to mid season form in next week's tilt with Marshall because after that, the Tigers come calling in what I think could be the Hokie's toughest test of the year.
Before I move on to the NFL, I have to touch on the ACC expansion that took place over the weekend. I can't help but like the idea of growing the ACC (even if only to protect its future) to 14 or even 16 teams. The addition of Pittsburgh and Syracuse are a big step in the right direction. The ACC has to remember (and I think they did) that their bread and butter is basketball. Sadly the current mad dash of conference realignment may ultimately strengthen football schedules at the cost of the basketball program. Thankfully this will not be the case for the ACC. While Pitt brings a solid football tradition and a whole new state audience into the ACC family, Syracuse is much more of a one horse school (can you say Duke # 2?). The Orange may not serve as much help in beefing up the football resume but who can argue with Duke vs. Pitt and Syracuse vs. UNC twice a year? Not this guy. I do think the ACC will pursue two more teams to bring the final tally up to 16 for next season. This is where it gets fun. If I had to make a shopping list right now, West Virginia would be at the top of it, followed closely by Rutgers. Looking outside of the Big East (those poor bastards won't have a league left next year) I shy away from rumors of Texas, mostly because the shadow that Texas brings (the same shadow that has destroyed the Big 12) could have a very negative affect on the close knit fabric of the ACC. On top of that, I'm old fashioned and, last time I checked, Texas was no where near the Atlantic Coast. I'd love to see the ACC continue to make moves to strengthen it's football profile but they must take care not to forget who they are. Texas is the sexy actress... sure you want them to move in next door so you can finally use that telescope sitting in you attic but, at the end of the day, she's going to have a lot of loud and annoying parties that you will never be invited to. What I'm saying is Texas only cares about Texas. They don't care who they play or where they play as long as they are the star of the show. The ACC should take a good look at what is happening in the Big 12 right. Do we really want to turn our conference into the Longhorn Traveling Circus? The answer is a resounding NO. The ACC is itching for nation football attention but Texas is not the right way to get it.
Check back tomorrow for my NFL week 2 breakdowns. What I got right, what I got wrong and what I missed all together. There is a ton to talk about and I'm sure there will be even more by the end of the night. Time to get back to the Eagles-Falcons game (otherwise known as the Michael Vick Road Show).
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