With virtually any football team in the ACC other than Clemson, I could make a great case about how they’re a horrible job that a decent coach wouldn’t want. I could do that for most college football jobs. Most of what I read and heard from coaches and from sportswriters was that this was a plum job that a lot of people were competing for, and one of the better ones in the ACC.
I’d say we’re a top 50 job right now, but not a top 25 job at the moment, even with the rebuild. But this year is going to be rough.
I’m not going to go point by point on facilities/fans/expectations/academic support.
Regarding high expectations and low expectations for this year and last: We can “what if” our way up and down. I found last year to be disappointing compared to what I hoped we could be, but I also think we overachieved based on what we were.
The “Coastal is trash, we could have won it” is a tallest midget argument—if the other teams get a little worse, we can have a better record. If the Coastal isn’t that good, then it’s not a good yardstick for how good we are.
I looked at some of the stat measures, because while they may not be perfectly fair, they try to be. They also try to predict your score and the games that you’ll win, and overall do pretty well.
We were the #74 ranked team in the S&P+ last year—a little lower rated than FSU, but not much, and overall below average. If you want to look, go to
https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/ncaa/2018
This year, we were projected to be the #89 team based on the recruiting class we got and the production on offense and defense we lost, regardless of who our coach was. After our loss to the Citadel, we’re #89 in that ranking right now.
The eyeball test last year said we weren’t really a good team, and lucked out a bit even going to the Quick Lane Bowl. We should be better than that, but the way you prove that is by playing a good game, which we didn’t. (And let me be clear I admire the fan hood of anyone who trekked to Detroit to watch that—that’s unvarnished LOVE for your team that proves what great fans we have)
FEI liked us a little better last year, rating us #63. Not just outside the top 25, but a middle of the road NCAA team rather than a below average one. This year, we’re #77 at this point.
We could improve into a better team than the one that went to a bowl last year, and still go 1-11. Bad luck can be a factor in your record, and injuries sure can be. There won’t be much bragging rights, but part of that is the way the schedule works out. I think we’ll do better than that.
Last Saturday, we saw our team and our coaches at their worst, and we think it’s downhill from there. Plus, we have two weeks to let that sear into our memories.
If they’re good players and a good coaching staff, this is hitting bottom, and we use this to become the team we should.
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