2024 Opponent News & Notes

[yeti92]

I agree!
The Notre Dame game was the worse. When I saw the team get off the bus up close, they did not even look like a football team, so out of shape. And the look in their eyes was so sad, like they knew were going to get their a**especially kicked, no joy whatsoever.
In a line at Midway, a woman turned to me, me being in my GT polo and hat, asked me how I could still wear my team logos. My reply was don't worry, we will be back. But never would I have thought it
would take only a couple seasons, thanks to Brent Key, J Batt, and most of all, President Rafael Cabrera.

*Angel Cabrera

 

[Bogey]

*Angel Cabrera

Damn, I knew that!

 

[CuseJacket]

 

[CuseJacket]

 

[mtodd30]

If Tech fans would pony up for only $35 a month to the Tech Way, we could reach that amount yearly with less people than were at the game last week.

I’m a recent graduate on a budget, but I’m highly considering a monthly donation. Maybe my mood is too tied to GT football for me to afford mediocrity!

 

[HurricaneJacket]

Week 2 preview from the Basketball Conference podcast/YT channel.

 

[FlatsLander]

Week 2 preview from the Basketball Conference podcast/YT channel.

This is a really good podcast/channel. The hosts are a GT and a VT grad, and they've done a great job previewing and reviewing all the ACC games each week since the 2016 season. They're also pretty entertaining on the review episodes when they give out their awards for the week. In my opinion they are worth a subscription on Youtube even if you don't plan to watch them regularly.

 

[TampaBuzz]

This is a really good podcast/channel. The hosts are a GT and a VT grad, and they've done a great job previewing and reviewing all the ACC games each week since the 2016 season. They're also pretty entertaining on the review episodes when they give out their awards for the week. In my opinion they are worth a subscription on Youtube even if you don't plan to watch them regularly.

And yet...both picked Syracuse to win. Their ignorance (or mine?) will be clear to all on Saturday around 4:00 pm

 

[CuseJacket]

 

[apatriot1776]

Notre Dame down a few starters. I know nothing about how good they are but FWIW CFB 25 has them all around 80 OVR

 

[MidtownJacket]

 

[roadkill]

Power Ranking Fail.

Syracuse gets a bump for playing Bye.

Meanwhile, we take care of business bigly against an FCS team but drop 2 spots. I suppose 223-0 might have only resulted in a 1-spot drop.

Pitt gains 3 spots for beating an unranked WV team in a last-minute comeback. WV has yet to win an FBS game. Perhaps the ranker thought WV was an ACC team?

Not implying that “ACC Power Rankings” is meaningful in any way, but I expect it to at least vaguely reflect results on the field.

 

[stinger78]

So, how does GT lose a 3-point game to the #4 team in the road at their place and then totally demolish a cuppie and drop 2 slots? Not sure how that happens.

Even more so, how does GT do that and not even get a vote in either poll?

How doe BC lose a one score game to a top 10 team and not get ranked? Even dropped from the rankings?

Meanwhile, there are no fewer than 9 SECheat teams now ranked, including 6 of the top 7 teams.

Answer: SECheat Narrative and anti-ACC bias.

 

[Poodletop]

Just some guy’s opinion, whoever Eric McLane is. I’ve got an opinion too and it smells no better than his.

 

[roadkill]

So, how does GT lose a 3-point game to the #4 team in the road at their place and then totally demolish a cuppie and drop 2 slots? Not sure how that happens.

Even more so, how does GT do that and not even get a vote in either poll?

How doe BC lose a one score game to a top 10 team and not get ranked? Even dropped from the rankings?

Meanwhile, there are no fewer than 9 SECheat teams now ranked, including 6 of the top 7 teams.

Answer: SECheat Narrative and anti-ACC bias.

To be fair, the ACC's own "Analyst" can't even do an ACC poll that makes sense.

 

[stinger78]

Just some guy’s opinion, whoever Eric McLane is. I’ve got an opinion too and it smells no better than his.

McClain is the big former OL on the ACCN panel after the games, IIRC.

 

[roadkill]

SECheat teams now ranked, including 6 of the top 7 teams.

Aside from preseason voter bias, it's largely due to not scheduling other SEC teams in the first several weeks of the season. W/L record is more significant to rankings at this point in the season. Since the top teams don't play each other, they can all go undefeated into mid-season if they're good enough. This will tend to work itself out as they get into conference play, but the early bias will persist.

The ACC hasn't learned (or doesn't care) how to play this game. So, let's schedule last year's champion in a tough conference opener on the road in Ireland. And our next highest-ranked team in a road opener against the #1 team. See how that works for the ACC's perception? The ACC is either incompetent or so biased toward tobacco road that they can't see the forest for the trees. Or both.

Credit to uga (gag) for actually scheduling some tough games and an SEC opponent in the front end of their schedule. They're the only SEC team to do that.

 

[ThatGuy]

Aside from preseason voter bias, it's largely due to not scheduling other SEC teams in the first several weeks of the season. W/L record is more significant to rankings at this point in the season. Since the top teams don't play each other, they can all go undefeated into mid-season if they're good enough. This will tend to work itself out as they get into conference play, but the early bias will persist.

The ACC hasn't learned (or doesn't care) how to play this game. So, let's schedule last year's champion in a tough conference opener on the road in Ireland. And our next highest-ranked team in a road opener against the #1 team. See how that works for the ACC's perception? The ACC is either incompetent or so biased toward tobacco road that they can't see the forest for the trees. Or both.

Credit to uga (gag) for actually scheduling some tough games and an SEC opponent in the front end of their schedule. They're the only SEC team to do that.

Eh. We used to play that game. And then the argument was that “by week 4, [insert ACC team name here] ain’t played nobody.” Meanwhile, the SEC and others were playing cupcakes, but also playing a couple of big out of conference games.

The simple thing we have to do to combat the narrative? Win. We’re not going to get the benefit of the doubt in preseason rankings until we accomplish what CBK has been preaching all fall: learn to win consistently. Had we beaten Cuse, the narrative would be different. But we didn’t, so we didn’t challenge the (biased) narrative.

It will come. But that’s what we have to do. Scheduling a full slate of cupcakes at the start of the year isn’t going to get us attention in the eyes of the press. We have to schedule a mix of games - and take care of business each time. Only then will they be forced to look at us. I’m confident we’ll get there.

 

[forensicbuzz]

Eh. We used to play that game. And then the argument was that “by week 4, [insert ACC team name here] ain’t played nobody.” Meanwhile, the SEC and others were playing cupcakes, but also playing a couple of big out of conference games.

The simple thing we have to do to combat the narrative? Win. We’re not going to get the benefit of the doubt in preseason rankings until we accomplish what CBK has been preaching all fall: learn to win consistently. Had we beaten Cuse, the narrative would be different. But we didn’t, so we didn’t challenge the (biased) narrative.

It will come. But that’s what we have to do. Scheduling a full slate of cupcakes at the start of the year isn’t going to get us attention in the eyes of the press. We have to schedule a mix of games - and take care of business each time. Only then will they be forced to look at us. I’m confident we’ll get there.

BC beating Missouri would have been very helpful. Us beating Tennessee Week 1 in 2018 (or 2017, I can't remember) would have been helpful. Losing these close games perpetuates the perception. NCST getting shellacked by Tennessee and VT losing to Vandy only hurt because these two teams were being propped up as potential challengers for the ACCCG. Don't know how NCST/Tennessee will be, but VT looks like a paper tiger again.

Our middle needs to beat their middle. Our top usually does fine against their top. Their top usually only schedules and wallops our bottom. That's historic; maybe they'll start playing better OOC now that it's not so detrimental to lose 1 game early.

 

[roadkill]

Eh. We used to play that game. And then the argument was that “by week 4, [insert ACC team name here] ain’t played nobody.” Meanwhile, the SEC and others were playing cupcakes, but also playing a couple of big out of conference games.

The simple thing we have to do to combat the narrative? Win. We’re not going to get the benefit of the doubt in preseason rankings until we accomplish what CBK has been preaching all fall: learn to win consistently. Had we beaten Cuse, the narrative would be different. But we didn’t, so we didn’t challenge the (biased) narrative.

It will come. But that’s what we have to do. Scheduling a full slate of cupcakes at the start of the year isn’t going to get us attention in the eyes of the press. We have to schedule a mix of games - and take care of business each time. Only then will they be forced to look at us. I’m confident we’ll get there.

You and @forensicbuzz are not wrong about what needs to happen for us and the ACC.

However, I was responding to the comment that 6 of the top 7 teams in the current poll are SEC. They’re all still undefeated and will likely stay that way until they start playing each other. By that point they may have enough ranking momentum to stay in the top 12 even after a loss. And if the loss is to another top 7 SEC team late in the year, they won’t drop much if it's close.

On the other hand, if the SEC schedulers had set things up where the anticipated heavyweights played each other early, it would paint a different picture. For example, if #1 played #4 and #3 played #7 out of the gate, the W/L ratios would take a hit and there could easily be some upsets. Then we wouldn’t be having this conversation. Instead, they’re all undefeated, while we approach our 3rd conference game.

To be fair, a few of these juggernauts have played decent OOC competition. But I don’t think the conference schedulers have much say over the OOC slate.