ACC Preview:
Will have picks and/or opinions on the plays later
*some statistical info taken from Insiders and Covers
Virginia @ Temple: -15.5/(O/U 48)
Returning Starters: Uva: Offense 8 Defense 8
Virginia:
Last Season's Record: 8-5 (4-4, T-4th place in ACC)
Last Bowl Appearance: 2003 Continental Tire Bowl (23-16 win over Pittsburgh)
Offense: With Matt Schaub now in the NFL, Marques Hagans gets the honor of trying to lead a team with very high expectations. Hagans?s primary target will be All-American tight end Heath Miller. He is the best tight end in conference history after just two seasons. In 2003 Miller led UVa in every statistical receiving category and is quite possibly the ACC?s best receiving threat this year. The O-Line returns all its starters from last year to help the young QB and the talent in rushing corps.
Defense: Uva?s defense was young and raw last year. The scary part is they are all back and more experienced now! 6 of the 7 front-line players return with 2 in the secondary.
Summary:
IF QB Hagan?s can get comfortable leading this team, they have a very good chance to challenge for the ACC title this year! They start the season off with 4 great chances of wins while trying to gel as a team. The last leg of their year will not be a cakewalk, but many hurdles are in their future.
ACC prediction: (8-3) Tie 4th
2004 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE 09/04/04 @Temple 09/11/04 North Carolina 09/18/04 Akron 09/25/04 Syracuse 10/07/04 Clemson 10/16/04 @Florida State 10/23/04 @Duke 11/06/04 Maryland 11/13/04 Miami (Fla.) 11/20/04 @Georgia Tech 11/27/04 @Virginia Tech
Wake Forest @ Clemson: 11.5 (O/U 51.5)
Returning Starters: Wake: O 6 D 8
Clemson: O 7 D 7
Recent Meetings (Last 5):
11/01/2003 CLEM 17 WFRST 45
10/19/2002 WFRST 23 CLEM 31
10/27/2001 CLEM 21 WFRST 14
09/16/2000 WFRST 7 CLEM 55
10/30/1999 CLEM 12 WFRST 3
Clemson:
Last Season's Record: 9-4 (5-3, 3rd place in ACC, AP No. 22, ESPN/USA Today No. 22)
Last Bowl Appearance: 2003 Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl (27-14 win over No. 6 Tennessee)
Offense:
Junior QB Charlie Whitehurst returns to lead the Tigers for another season. There are some minor problems on this side of the team as parts of the line and receiving corps do not have the experience needed to contend for a title. RB Junior Coleman should have another good season, but will need to step it up this year to give Whitehurst more time to make great plays. Overall, the Offense should be good, but will need some key help to get some of the quality wins they will need this year.
Defense:
The defense has some holes in it, but overall is a strong unit. Holes that need to be filled will be at DT and DE?s. The secondary is as strong as the best in the ACC. They will have to step up to give the Tigers the chance to won on the offense.
Summary:
This is the year for the Tigers to return to the elite level that was evident of old. To achieve this, both sides of the ball will have to limit injuries and play well throughout the year. They will have some very tough road trips this year, but if they can conquer home field wins, they can have a very good year.
ACC Prediction: 8 ?3 (Tie 4th)
09/04/04 Wake Forest 09/11/04 Georgia Tech 09/18/04 @Texas A&M 09/25/04 @Florida State 10/07/04 @Virginia 10/16/04 Utah State 10/23/04 Maryland 10/30/04 North Carolina State 11/06/04 @Miami (Fla.) 11/13/04 @Duke 11/20/04 South Carolina
Wake Forest:
Last Season's Record: 5-7 (3-5, 7th place in ACC)
Last Bowl Appearance: 2002 Seattle Bowl (38-17 victory over Oregon
Offense:
The offense revolves around QB Randolph and RB Barclay. The rest of the offense HAS to step up this year to give these players more time to make the plays. The WR?s will have to start making a big impact if this team wants to win more than they did last year. The main weakness is on the O-Line. They play strong and it opens up the whole offensive package. This is a rushing team, deep down. They will have to open it up though.
Defense:
The defense will implement the new 4-3 scheme this year. This will be a major challenge for them this year. Containing the opposing teams firepower with the newly structured scheme. The good thing is that they will have 8 returning starters from last year. They will have a big task ahead of them.
Summary:
The Demon Deacons will have some very tough games this year, both at home and on the road. They have a strong team, but are a year away of making a run at the upper tier of the ACC.
Prediction: 3-8 (10th)
Schedule:
09/04/04 @Clemson 09/11/04 @East Carolina 09/18/04 North Carolina A&T 09/25/04 Boston College 10/02/04 @North Carolina State 10/09/04 Virginia Tech 10/23/04 Florida State 10/30/04 Duke 11/13/04 North Carolina 11/20/04 @Miami (Fla.) 11/27/04 @Maryland
Northern Illinois @ Maryland ?14.5
Returning Starters:
Md O 5 D 4
Recent Meetings:
08/28/2003 MD 13 NOILL 20
08/31/1996 NOILL 6 MD 30
Maryland:
Last Season's Record: 10-3 (6-2, 1st in ACC, AP No. 17, ESPN/USA Today No. 20)
Last Bowl Appearance: 2004 Gator Bowl (41-7 victory over #20 West Virginia Mountaineers)
Offense:
The team lost RB Perry and QB McBrien to graduation. That would be tough for any team to get over. They will be breaking in a new QB this year and will have a lot to handle with the schedule they must play. They are still a strong team, but will have to start off the season well. Coach Friedgen leads a very balanced attack to his plays, so I expect nothing less than good solid play from his team.
Defense:
The LB?s lead the defense. Only 4 returning starters will be a problem early on in the season. It will help that the first couple of games will be home for them to get unified as a team. The key weakness in this defense is the secondary.
Summary:
The Terps have a pretty tough schedule this year. The one benefit is the early home games to get them started off in the right direction. Tough road games will either be the reason for a great season or the excuse for and average season. I think the loss of a quality QB is gonna hurt them a lot this year.
Prediction: 7-4 (8th in ACC)
09/04/04 Northern Illinois 09/11/04 Temple 09/18/04 @West Virginia 09/25/04 @Duke 10/09/04 Georgia Tech 10/16/04 North Carolina State 10/23/04 @Clemson 10/30/04 Florida State 11/06/04 @Virginia 11/18/04 @Virginia Tech 11/27/04 Wake Forest
Duke @ Navy +7.5
Returning Starters:
Duke: O 5 D 8
Recent Meetings:
09/28/2002 DUK 43 NAVY 17
09/27/1997 NAVY 17 DUK 26
10/05/1996 DUK 27 NAVY 64
09/30/1995 NAVY 30 DUK 9
10/01/1994 DUK 47 NAVY 14
Duke:
Last Season's Record: 4-8 (2-6)
Last Bowl Appearance: 1995 (34-20 loss to Wisconsin)
Offense:
There continues to be problems on this side of the ball. QB Schneider will have control of the ball and he will be doing a lot of scrambling this year if the line does not step up. There are many gaps, but they can be filled with quality play from the TE?s (where they are strong at).
Defense:
This defense this year will be one of the better ones in recent years. They will have to be if they want to upset a few teams this year. The strength seems to lie in the LB where the weakness in the secondary.
Summary:
This Duke team is a gritty team. They will surprise quite a few teams this season and be in a lot of games. If the Offense can get some good production, they have a good chance to upset quite a few teams.
Prediction: 4-7 (9th)
2004 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE 09/04/04 @Navy 09/11/04 @Connecticut 09/18/04 @Virginia Tech 09/25/04 Maryland 10/02/04 The Citadel 10/16/04 @Georgia Tech 10/23/04 Virginia 10/30/04 @Wake Forest 11/06/04 @Florida State 11/13/04 Clemson 11/20/04 North Carolina
