ESPN ACC preseason power rankings: Can anyone catch Clemson?

[MikeJackets1967]

Gotta go 6-0 in Coastal. Clemson is a loss and @Louisville is a toss up, at best (they will definitely be favored).

Everyone is overrating Loserville in 2018. Louisville with all they lost after the 2017 season will be in rebuilding mode. Loserville's biggest game in 2018 will be Kentucky because i think they will be 5-6 and fighting for a bottom tier Bowl Game.

 

[Deleted member 2897]

To be fair, I understand where this ranking is coming from entirely. So many question marks (Cooper vs Jahziel at center, tackles being able to block effectively as opposed to last year, new defense, TERRIBLE special teams outside of Harvin, loss of AJ who was our leading tackler, etc). I think a lot of people seem to forget that there's no guarantee that Woody's scheme will work well immediately, and that our secondary is almost entirely new/fairly inexperienced. On the other hand, we have some skilled players that can offset these issues but I think its worth tempering expectations and just hoping that we make a bowl game at this point based upon what we have seen the last few seasons and the already foreseeable potential problems.

People change DCs - hell we have twice. We’ve turned over a bunch of positions before. There is simply no evidence any of that matters with us.

 

[Adadu]

People change DCs - hell we have twice. We’ve turned over a bunch of positions before. There is simply no evidence any of that matters with us.

And there is no guarantee we'll be good on D either. Only time will tell.

 

[Deleted member 2897]

And there is no guarantee we'll be good on D either. Only time will tell.

Yep. But 1 out of 11 years under CPJ we’ve been under 0.500 in the ACC. So these guys could indeed be right. But based on the entire pool of history we have, they have about a 1 in 11 chance of being right. Or I guess you could say it would then be 2 in 12. That’s still 15%. I’m going with the 85% chance they’re just the usual uninformed folks.

 

[gtwcf]

Everyone is overrating Loserville in 2018. Louisville with all they lost after the 2017 season will be in rebuilding mode. Loserville's biggest game in 2018 will be Kentucky because i think they will be 5-6 and fighting for a bottom tier Bowl Game.

Agreed. They'll miss their defenders more than they'll miss Jackson imo (and he was pretty good). Petrino is one of the best QB coaches out there, so he'll have someone ready. But they fell apart on D after Jaire Alexander went out for a little while. The Atlantic looks pretty tough this year, so they may be out of bowl contention by the UK game....

 

[Adadu]

Yep. But 1 out of 11 years under CPJ we’ve been under 0.500 in the ACC. So these guys could indeed be right. But based on the entire pool of history we have, they have about a 1 in 11 chance of being right. Or I guess you could say it would then be 2 in 12. That’s still 15%. I’m going with the 85% chance they’re just the usual uninformed folks.

Right, not necessarily saying we'll go under .500 but I'm not sure we should be expecting a huge leap forward this season (at least at this point in the year).

 

[Deleted member 2897]

Right, not necessarily saying we'll go under .500 but I'm not sure we should be expecting a huge leap forward this season (at least at this point in the year).

Think about how disappointing last year felt - we were so close and ahead in nearly every game. We still, even in such a frustrating year, finished 5th in the ACC. To finish 11th implies something like 2-6.

 

[Adadu]

Think about how disappointing last year felt - we were so close and ahead in nearly every game. We still, even in such a frustrating year, finished 5th in the ACC. To finish 11th implies something like 2-6.

I agree 11th is a little low with the results we had with games like Tennessee, Miami, UVA, Duke, etc coming close/should have beens. Nonetheless, a loss is a loss which is the bottom line with these guys.

 

[Deleted member 2897]

I agree 11th is a little low with the results we had with games like Tennessee, Miami, UVA, Duke, etc coming close/should have beens. Nonetheless, a loss is a loss which is the bottom line with these guys.

Right. Here is our ACC finishing position under CPJ:
2017: 5th
2016: 8th
2015: 12th (injury year)
2014: 2nd
2013: 4th
2012: 3rd
2011: 3rd
2010: 6th
2009: 1st
2008: 1st
Average = 4.5

So I say, when you look at that, where does a sports writer come up with 11th? Other than one year when everyone's grandmother was injured, we never have even come close to 11th.

There's only one way to come up with that - you overlook us, underrate us, and don't respect our program enough.

 

[Skeptic]

At this point i think it's Clemson and Miami then it's everyone else

I am not a Richt basher. He has shown he can recruit and he can build very good teams. But in his first matchup with Johnson he got caught in the headlights and when he called the team up to assure them or comfort them or inspire or whatever that sideline gathering was supposed to be in the face of a Tech onslaught in the second half, I thought it went the other way. Then in the Butker Bowl Bowl his call for a short kickoff gave us what amounted to a 40-yard return and set us up for that tying field goal from downtown Athens. Then a pooched kickoff last year with Miami ... There's coaching and there's game coaching. He's good at the first. Clemson, yes. And they might be in it for a long time. I see today they made Venables the highest paid DC in the country in total contract. He had a great recruiting year, and as a gift got three on the D line expected to go pro back for one more season. (No guarantee there. Sometimes it goes south and nothing can make it work. A tough coaching job for both Venables and Swinney this year.)

 

[jacketup]

Right. Here is our ACC finishing position under CPJ:
2017: 5th
2016: 8th
2015: 12th (injury year)
2014: 2nd
2013: 4th
2012: 3rd
2011: 3rd
2010: 6th
2009: 1st
2008: 1st
Average = 4.5

So I say, when you look at that, where does a sports writer come up with 11th? Other than one year when everyone's grandmother was injured, we never have even come close to 11th.

There's only one way to come up with that - you overlook us, underrate us, and don't respect our program enough.

Misleading POY. Let's tell the whole truth.
2017: 5th with 3 others at 4-4
2016: 8th at 4-4
2015: 12th (injury year) with 1 other at 1-7
2014: 2nd with 1 other at 6-2
2013: 4th with 2 others at 5-3
2012: 3rd with 2 others at 5-3
2011: 3rd with 3 others at 5-3
2010: 6thwith 3 others at 4-4
2009: 1st at 7-1
2008: 1st with 3 others at 5-3

Over the last 4 years we are 15-17, including our "great" 6-2 year of 2014.

Over 10 years, a middle of the pack average and declining.

Demand better, Jackets!

 

[tmhunter52]

Right. Here is our ACC finishing position under CPJ:
2017: 5th
2016: 8th
2015: 12th (injury year)
2014: 2nd
2013: 4th
2012: 3rd
2011: 3rd
2010: 6th
2009: 1st
2008: 1st
Average = 4.5

So I say, when you look at that, where does a sports writer come up with 11th? Other than one year when everyone's grandmother was injured, we never have even come close to 11th.

There's only one way to come up with that - you overlook us, underrate us, and don't respect our program enough.

Or, you just think that almost everyone else has gotten better than you...

 

[Deleted member 2897]

Misleading POY. Let's tell the whole truth.
2017: 5th with 3 others at 4-4
2016: 8th at 4-4
2015: 12th (injury year) with 1 other at 1-7
2014: 2nd with 1 other at 6-2
2013: 4th with 2 others at 5-3
2012: 3rd with 2 others at 5-3
2011: 3rd with 3 others at 5-3
2010: 6thwith 3 others at 4-4
2009: 1st at 7-1
2008: 1st with 3 others at 5-3

Over the last 4 years we are 15-17, including our "great" 6-2 year of 2014.

Over 10 years, a middle of the pack average and declining.

Demand better, Jackets!

I did not include ties. But to say it’s misleading is misleading. You could say we finished last in all tie breakers and we still would have never been close to 11th across that. Putting us last in all tie breakers would not be fair, but even still our average finish would be 6.5. 11th is BS.

 

[Deleted member 2897]

Or, you just think that almost everyone else has gotten better than you...

Absent any supporting data, you could only think that by underrating and overlooking the program.

 

[bke1984]

It's really tough to make excuses for how we've fared the last few years. Three years in a row without a winning conference record.

2017 - 4-4
2016 - 4-4
2015 - 1-7

I'm sorry man, but there's not really a good way to dress that up. We should expect to be better than that.

 

[Deleted member 2897]

It's really tough to make excuses for how we've fared the last few years. Three years in a row without a winning conference record.

2017 - 4-4
2016 - 4-4
2015 - 1-7

I'm sorry man, but there's not really a good way to dress that up. We should expect to be better than that.

Don’t know if you’re talking to me, but if so I’m not dressing anything up. I am not demanding we be ranked in the top 10 nationally. I’m not demanding we be predicted to win the coastal. I’m just laughing at a prediction we will finish 11th out of 14 in the ACC. It’s insane. In fact, that’s more insane than predicting us to win the coastal. We’ve won the coastal twice as many times as we’ve finished below 8th.

 

[bke1984]

Don’t know if you’re talking to me, but if so I’m not dressing anything up. I am not demanding we be ranked in the top 10 nationally. I’m not demanding we be predicted to win the coastal. I’m just laughing at a prediction we will finish 11th out of 14 in the ACC. It’s insane. In fact, that’s more insane than predicting us to win the coastal. We’ve won the coastal twice as many times as we’ve finished below 8th.

11th is pretty low, but it's not like we gave them any reason to pick us higher. Our offense didn't look very good last year and now we're installing a new defense.

What they don't understand is that we're so much better on offense when we have experience. When I looked the other day our entire starting lineup on O is Jr's and Sr's...and there are only 2 underclassmen on the 2-deep. We could be really good on that side of the ball...but I think one of our receivers is going to have to emerge as a big time threat. Every year that we've been really good under Johnson we've had a great receiver. I don't think that's a coincidence.

 

[Deleted member 2897]

11th is pretty low, but it's not like we gave them any reason to pick us higher. Our offense didn't look very good last year and now we're installing a new defense.

What they don't understand is that we're so much better on offense when we have experience. When I looked the other day our entire starting lineup on O is Jr's and Sr's...and there are only 2 underclassmen on the 2-deep. We could be really good on that side of the ball...but I think one of our receivers is going to have to emerge as a big time threat. Every year that we've been really good under Johnson we've had a great receiver. I don't think that's a coincidence.

We didn’t give them a reason to pick us higher? We finished tied for 5th last year. We’re getting rid of a system everyone agrees was bad on defense and going to a better system with more talented players.

Don’t let the haters and people ignorant of our program convince you we’re suddenly going to have one of our worst seasons in the last 25 years.

 

[bke1984]

We didn’t give them a reason to pick us higher? We finished tied for 5th last year. We’re getting rid of a system everyone agrees was bad on defense and going to a better system with more talented players.

Don’t let the haters and people ignorant of our program convince you we’re suddenly going to have one of our worst seasons in the last 25 years.

Dude, I don't think we're going to have a bad season. I think we're going to go 8-4 or 9-3. I just don't know why anyone thinks what they're saying is all that unreasonable. Maybe they watched us play at Duke last year...that alone would make me think we're capable of anything terrible.

 

[AE 87]

Dude, I don't think we're going to have a bad season. I think we're going to go 8-4 or 9-3. I just don't know why anyone thinks what they're saying is all that unreasonable. Maybe they watched us play at Duke last year...that alone would make me think we're capable of anything terrible.

If they had seen the Duke game, then they'd know that the DC who allowed 43 pts from a team that averaged 26 is gone. They'd also know that few offenses can be successful when forced to be one-dimensional passing to try and catch up, especially a run first offense.