ACC Football Divisions Set: Syracuse To Atlantic Division, Pittsburgh To Coastal
by Brian Favat on Feb 3, 2012 12:02 PM EST
in Conference Expansion
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The ACC announced today the future football and basketball scheduling formats, as well as the divisional placements of Syracuse and Pittsburgh. Eagles fans should be pleased.
"The Atlantic and Coastal divisions will remain the same with Syracuse joining the Atlantic and Pitt joining the Coastal. The current primary crossover partners will remain consistent with Syracuse and Pitt becoming primary crossover partners with each other.
When Pitt and Syracuse join the ACC, the league will play a nine-game conference schedule. The format will consist of each team playing all six in its division each year, plus its primary crossover partner each year and two rotating opponents from the opposite division. This six-year cycle allows each team to play each divisional opponent and its primary crossover partner six times (three home and three away) while also playing each rotating crossover opponent two times (one home and one away)."
Here are the new divisions:
Atlantic Division
Boston College Eagles
Clemson Tigers
Florida St. Seminoles
Maryland Terrapins
N.C. State Wolfpack
Syracuse Orange
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Coastal Division
Duke Blue Devils
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Miami Hurricanes
North Carolina Tar Heels
Pittsburgh Panthers
Virginia Cavaliers
Virginia Tech Hokies
As has been mentioned several times on this blog, this was the path of least resistance for the conference. This divisional alignment preserves an annual game with BC-Syracuse (46 games in the all-time series) and Syracuse-Pitt (67 games). Syracuse has more ties to the Atlantic Division in football, anyway (95 total games played, compared to 51 against Coastal teams), while Pitt has more in the Coastal (79 total games played, as compared to 58 against Atlantic teams). It will also allow the conference to set the BC-Syracuse game for the final weekend of the regular season as DeFilippo had planned for the Eagles and Oranges previously scheduled non-conference series from 2013-2021.
I was a bit surprised about the nine game conference football schedule, as I was starting to think with the SEC and Big Ten stating they would stay with an eight game schedule that the ACC would follow suit. That means that programs like Miami, Pittsburgh and Virginia will hit BC's annual football schedule at roughly the same clip as they do today (two times in six years). The downside, of course, is that this gives BC one less non-conference opponent each season. I'd imagine the priority will be to keep a non-conference series with Notre Dame, and the program will fill the rest of the schedule with a game against a I-AA team (Maine, New Hampshire, Stony Brook, Fordham, etc.) and a non-AQ program (UMass, MAC, Conference USA).
Don't expect too many changes to BC's future football schedules, either, as the ACC's new ninth football game will likely replace BC's annual non-conference game with Syracuse (scheduled for 2010, 2013-2021, with SU opting out of last season and this season).
Leave your thoughts on the new divisional alignment below.
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generally happy with this
only problem is with the 9 game conference schedule we are going to see a lot less of BC vs. “powerhouse” programs like the games we’ve already scheduled against USC, which is unfortunate because I really like the idea of gaining national exposure through more aggressive scheduling practices
Agreed
Say goodbye to non-conference games against USC, Northwestern, Stanford and Penn State.
Editor, BC Interruption
to me a well played loss against any of those programs (not named NW) is better for the long term well-being of the program than a win against any I-AA school we schedule
There are only 2-3 ADs in the country that feel the same way. They are currently employed by USC, UCLA and Notre Dame.
Editor, BC Interruption
... which is because there are zero poll voters that feel that way
… and absolute wins are what counts for bowl eligibility.
And there are even a few ADs out there that think 2 I-AAs in a season is acceptable.
Editor, BC Interruption
no one likes 2 FCS schools in a season
I’ve never seen it happen except as a result of someone backing out of a game on short notice (a lot of Big East or Big 12 teams will probably end up with two FCS games this year, unless the Boise-to-Big East early thing happens – which wouldn’t cause the same problem in the MWC, as they’re playing 8 conference games next fall and currently would have ten teams). They just think it’s better than playing only 11 games.
N.C. State did this in 2011 — Liberty and South Alabama — and will again in 2012 — South Alabama and The Citadel. Don’t think the Pack can blame this on conference realignment.
I’m sorry, but four I-AA opponents in two seasons is inexcusable.
Editor, BC Interruption
two years in a row? yikes.
I mean, when we did a few years ago after backing out of a series with Virginia Tech (because it would have meant playing both Virginia Tech and Southern California out of conference in the same season, which I don’t think is something 2010s Syracuse is up to, sadly), we couldn’t find another FBS team to take the spot on short notice.
When Hofstra dropped football in 2010 (or was it Northeastern?), we had to replace them last minute with Weber State. Yeah.
Editor, BC Interruption
What? Come On MAN!!!
Bloomer…a gem then a clunker?
Stoned Brooks?
Maine?
Really?
You drop the cupcake games (you cna do this in the contracts) and stick with the big teams below and the teams that popped up from Brian?
USC
ND
TEXAS
TCU
ALABAMA
MICHIGAN
OHIO STATE
GEORGIA
WEST VIRGINIA
9+3 = 12!! SOM1974!
There is zero chance that BC ever drops the I-AA game. One more win to get to the Potato Bowl. Gene’s master plan.
Editor, BC Interruption
shoot
Yes, it all makes sense, I understand the reasons why, but I was really hoping BC could drop the annual crossover game v. Va Tech. Bottom line: it creates an unfair scheduling imbalance when we have to play the team who has proven to be over the years the best in the Atlantic, and a top 10, if not top 5 program. I understand Flas St is coming on, but it’s been Va Tech for yrs, and to have to play them every year gives other teams in the Atlantic a hard-start on us every year.
I’d also prefer an 8 game ACC slate. But if 9, and we keep ND, or an ND equivalent (a top 10-20 type program), after that we’re going to schedule an FCS and a very winnable FBS, either MAC, Conf USA, or a lower tier AQ. It would be absurd and suicide to have ND/USC, another top AQS (Penn St/Michigan/Texas), Va Tech and 8 ACC Conf opponents, and 1 nobody. Other teams don’t do it, why should we?
Virginia Tech will not stay on top of the Coastal Division forever. Virginia, Miami, North Carolina and Georgia Tech should all challenge for the division title more often going forward.
While I’d obviously love to see BC play Duke every year (Wake Forest) instead of Virginia Tech (us), there’s really no point in complaining about this. (I also don’t get why Hokies fans wanted to ditch BC for Pitt as a cross-divisonal rival).
If BC beats the teams it needs to beat from the Atlantic, they’ll find their way to the ACC Championship Game (since wins and losses against Coastal Division opponents don’t carry the same weight as Atlantic Division games with the head-to-head).
Editor, BC Interruption
Because We Are BC!
Other teams don’t do it, why should we?
I would hit you with would you jump off a cliff, but you may be too young for that! LOL!
We had a huge window to schedule all the big teams when the conferences played musical chairs and we get squadouche schlock slugs the last few years.
Sad! Pathetic!
Is that our BC?
Is that what we strive to be, or to schedule 3 monsters or BCS teams and recruit to that beastly schedule and be get tough and be National Champions?
Case in point posted many times…
The Greatest Coach in College sports in all 31 sports, Jerry York, and how every year he schedules the biggest, nastiest and former National champions on their pond to prep the team and give him freshman and ALL….a baptism of fire and ice.
Last time I checked, that genius is sitting right down the freaking hallway??
….and we did schedule like that in the past and when GDF’up turned down Texas for a long term home and home series and maybe some games in Arlington as a season opener on National TV!!! ….. I heard it for 7 hours and 15 minutes when BC lost to UT in hardball!
Never gonna convince me.
ND
Northewestern
Pick another BCS team!
When they go to a 4 team National Playoff in conjunction with the bowl dictators and School Presidents, I would rather be 11-2, with an ACC Title and losses at USC and VT, then 12-1, and miss out since we beat Maine and the dreaded Sea Wolves?
Come on MAN!
One more huge Point
That is how TCU go so great!
Schedules with no returns or 1 for 2, Clemson, Oklahoma, and lost of tough teams.
You play pansies, you beat panises like old Tom Blunders O’Brien, Dana Nemo Bible and Frank Spazoo Spaziani did in the Big East…. and you get…
ZERO TITLES.
NO BUNNIES.
Quiz time Eagle Nation:
Ok, if I am wrong….
What was BC’s record versus it’s Big East Peer teams in its last 23 games versus Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Miami, Virginia Tech and West Virginia?
THIS IS WHAT SCHEDULING PANSIES GETS YOU:
CAREER TOB/BIBLE/SPAZOO HIGHLIGHTS:
>>TOB NEVER WON 5 Big East Games in any season.
>>TOB NEVER WON a Conference Championship 0-9.
(The 4 way 2004 Tie Title and BCS went to Pittsburgh)
>>TOB NEVER had more than 1 win over .500 in any season with Miami or Virginia Tech in the Big East.
>>TOB LOST HIS LAST 17 out of his last 23 versus the TOP 5 peer teams in the Big East, Miami, VT, Pitt, Syr, and VT. — 26% — 7-16
>>TOB HAS NEVER BEAT MIAMI. -0-8-
>>TOB was an overall 12-26 32% versus Big East Peer Teams.
>>Clemson was the first TOP 25 Home win in 10 years in 2006.
>>TOB is 3-16 versus VT, FSU and Miami; including Penn State and ND, 10-19.
Agree about VT...
It would be more fair if the Atlantic standings were based solely on games within the Atlantic.
by grebek on Feb 3, 2012 1:42 PM EST via iPhone app reply actions 1 recs
I agree, but then there’s no point to playing games against the Coastal Division.
MUST PROTECT THE SANCTITY OF THE REGULAR SEASON! – bowl apologists everywhere
Editor, BC Interruption
Like this mostly
For the reason of having the season end with the same opponent every year. That’s how a really strong rivalry can develop with Syracuse.
Agreed. Also makes the season’s final regular season schedule very clean. Post coming up in a bit.
Intra-division games: BC-Syracuse, Maryland-N.C. State, North Carolina-Duke, Virginia-Virginia Tech
Non-conference games: Florida State-Florida, Clemson-South Carolina, Georgia Tech-Georgia, Wake Forest-Vanderbilt, Miami-USF, Pittsburgh-West Virginia
Editor, BC Interruption
hard to take you seriously 74...
so I don’t. You have the capacity to be serious, but for whatever reason, you choose not to be. So I usually read the first line or two and decide whether it’s one of the [extremely] rare lucid, sensible posts, or one of your rants. But I’ll bite…
Since “WE ARE BC,” I assume you think we should play our 9 game ACC schedule, which will always include Va Tech (been a perennial top 10, and often top 5, team), and then play ND, USC and Alabama (or similar programs) if we could, right? And we’d do that…because… WE ARE BC.
Why do you choose to pose such drivel? Is there another poster out there who agrees with this? Nobody in the Country does this, but we should do it…because…WE ARE BC.
74 – I implore you to use your good mind for more productive posts here at BCI.
I have posted that strategy and though for 9 years?
When the NCAA goes to a Final Four, SOS will be a crucial factor and if BC goes 11-2 and wins the ACC, we might get in.
PS:
74 – I implore you to use your good mind for more productive posts here at BCI.
I gradgitated in 1974, I have been told I can’t get into BC now and those brilliant commuters who could not afford room and board if BC had the room, are no longer welcome?
Ergo, my mind is useless now and as the Big O said, I am a Quack.
Would you rather beat the Stoned Brooksie Sea Pups 67-3, or upset Michigan 27-24 in the Big House?
Even if we lost 27-24, what would do BC and our SOS and rep and team more good in the long run?
See my JY post above. That is how you git er done and win Crystal Footballs!!!!
too far from crystal footballs...
In the words of Jim More…
Playoffs?!
Playoffs?!
I just want to win a game!
G-Mac bitches
BC 2011
by jdguggs10 on Feb 4, 2012 10:01 AM EST reply actions 1 recs
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