The first USA Today Coaches Poll of 2011 is out and of course the Boston College Eagles didn't garner any votes (not much of a surprise here). Expectations by most people are historically low this season. As a BC fan, we all know this lack of respect isn't new. Take a look back at previous years where BC hasn't been able to crack the Preseason Top 25:
2007: 150 points
2008: 47 points
2009: 3 points
2010: 10 points
2011: 0 points
Commence the gnashing of teeth ... we don't get respected by the media or coaches! Even with the Preseason ACC Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year in Montel Harris and Luke Kuechly, BC will never get respect until they prove on the field. Also note that Coach Spaziani is one of four ACC coaches that didn't vote in the Coaches Poll and is joined by Jimbo Fisher, Paul Johnson and Dabo Swinney as the only non-voting coaches in the conference.
Another interesting factoid to take from this poll is how difficult BC's opponents are perceived to be. Our entire schedule is on the list except for UMass, Duke and Wake Forest (but they don't really count). Florida State tops the list ranked #5 which should give their fan base a smug sense of satisfaction. But honestly congratulations to Florida State. It's great to see an ACC school crack the top 5.
5. Florida State (1,116 points)
13. Virginia Tech (767 points)
18. Notre Dame (440 points)
29. Miami (49 points)
31. Northwestern (30 points)
33. Central Florida (22 points)
40. Clemson (7 points)
44. N.C. State (4 points)
Preseason polls are usually pretty worthless -- Auburn was ranked #22 last year -- but it is interesting to visualize how difficult BC's schedule is this year.
Our entire out of conference FBS opponents are floating around the Top 25. Much different than the years with schedules padded with cupcakes like Kent State and Weber State. One of the positives about having a difficult schedules is if the Eagles can knock off Northwestern and UCF, they will shoot up those rankings, and quick.
As we all know 2011 will be another underdog season for BC, but as a fan that is just where I want them to be.