Clemson defeated Texas A&M; Pittsburgh upset Central Florida and extended Penn State deep into the fourth quarter; Virginia Tech was a fourth-and-10 stop away from winning at Notre Dame.
There you have it, ACC football’s non-conference highlight reel from the 2019 regular season. Suffice to say, it’s a short film, and the inclusion of as many setbacks as victories is telling.
Virginia, Virginia Tech and Clemson are among the teams that can salvage some of the ACC’s reputation during postseason.
Each of the league’s 10 eligible teams received bowl bids Sunday, but postseason victories over the likes of Michigan State, Eastern Michigan and Mississippi State, 6-6 outfits all, won’t budge the needle. No, the ACC needs to beat some quality folks, which it rarely managed during the regular season.
To wit, for the second consecutive year, the league went 4-14 against its Power Five peers, and three of those wins came over 4-8 South Carolina (Clemson and North Carolina) and 2-10 Rutgers (Boston College).
Here’s the most damaging indictment: Versus opponents that are among this week’s Associated Press Top 25, the ACC went 0-12. Virginia Tech, Virginia, Duke, Boston College and Louisville lost to Notre Dame; Miami and Florida State fell to Florida; Pitt lost to Penn State, North Carolina to Appalachian State, Georgia Tech to Georgia, Florida State to Boise State, and Duke to Alabama.
During postseason, three ACC teams can end that 0-for. Virginia faces No. 6 Florida in the Orange Bowl, Boston College draws No. 23 Cincinnati in the Birmingham Bowl, and reigning national champion Clemson plays No. 2 Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl, the latter a College Football Playoff semifinal.
Vegas likes Clemson by two points, but Virginia and Boston College are decisive underdogs — the Cavaliers are 131/2-point pups, the Eagles 61/2.
Other ACC bowl betting favorites: Miami over Louisiana Tech in the Independence, Louisville over Mississippi State in the Music City, North Carolina over Temple in the Military, Pittsburgh over Eastern Michigan in the Quick Lane and Virginia Tech over Kentucky in the Belk, the latter by a field goal.
Other ACC underdogs: Florida State against Arizona State in the Sun Bowl and Wake Forest against Michigan State in the Pinstripe.
That’s six faves among the league’s 10 postseason squads, and given the grim regular season, a 6-4 bowl record with a subsequent Clemson appearance in the national championship game would be welcomed by ACC officials.
Some random observations on Virginia’s and Virginia Tech’s bowl challenges:
# Florida is the highest-ranked team U.Va. has encountered in a bowl, and the Gators (10-2) were tested frequently in the Southeastern Conference. Their 6-0 start included a victory over previously undefeated Auburn, and their only setbacks were to No. 1 LSU and No. 5 Georgia.
Defense is Florida’s forte, and head coach Dan Mullen’s defensive staff has a distinct Virginia Tech flavor. Coordinator Todd Grantham and cornerbacks coach Torrian Gray are Hokies alums, and they’ve helped the Gators rank ninth nationally in scoring defense at 14.4 points per game and ninth in interceptions with 15.
Given how the lag between regular season and postseason can affect teams’ motivation and chemistry, handicapping bowls is often a fool’s errand. But here’s guessing Virginia and Florida will be amped.
The Cavaliers (9-4) are hunting the program’s second 10-victory season — the first was in 1989 — and want to prove they belong on a stage such as the Orange Bowl.
Florida’s SEC title and College Football Playoff aspirations ended with its loss to Georgia, but the Gators are 3-0 since, and though Vanderbilt, Missouri and Florida State were hardly formidable, Mullen’s crew thumped them by a combined 96 points.
Moreover, this is Florida’s first Orange Bowl since Tim Tebow and friends defeated Oklahoma for the 2008 national championship, and Gators faithful are likely to swarm Hard Rock Stadium.
# Virginia Tech coach Justin Fuente’s firing of assistants Brian Mitchell (cornerbacks), Zohn Burden (running backs) and Charley Wiles (defensive line) may complicate the Hokies’ preparations for Kentucky, but staff drama certainly doesn’t preclude bowl success.
In late 2005, Virginia offensive coordinator Ron Prince and defensive coordinator Al Golden landed head-coaching gigs at Kansas State and Temple, respectively, and without them, the Cavaliers defeated Minnesota in the Music City Bowl. Current U.Va. receivers coach Marques Hagans closed his college career in style that afternoon with a personal-best 358 yards passing.
More recently, many interim head coaches have steered teams to bowl victories. The group includes Florida State’s Odell Haggins and Texas A&M’s Jeff Banks in 2017, and Appalachian State’s Mark Ivey last year.
# Kentucky receiver-turned-quarterback Lynn Bowden announced Monday he’s declaring for the NFL draft, but first he figures to make Bud Foster’s final game as Tech’s defensive coordinator a chore.
Of all the striking numbers Bowden has posted this season, here is the most impressive: He’s averaging 8.18 yards per carry, second nationally to Clemson running back and ACC Player of the Year Travis Etienne’s 8.24.
The Wildcats (7-5) are 5-2 with Bowden at quarterback — injuries shelved starter Terry Wilson and backup Sawyer Smith — and closed the regular season with three consecutive wins. Punctuating that run, a 45-13 pasting of state rival Louisville.
Virginia Tech and Virginia both won bowls to close the 1995, 2002 and 2005 seasons. A sequel this month, versus the SEC no less, would be quite the feat.
David Teel, 757-247-4636, dteel@dailypress.com
ACC bowl lineup
Dec. 26
Independence Bowl: Miami vs. Louisiana Tech, 4 p.m.
Quick Lane Bowl: Pitt vs. Eastern Michigan, 8 p.m.
Dec. 27
Military Bowl: North Carolina vs. Temple, noon
Pinstripe Bowl: Wake Forest vs. Michigan State, 3 p.m.
Dec. 28
Fiesta Bowl (CFP semifinal): Clemson vs. Ohio State, 8 p.m.
Dec. 30
Music City Bowl: Louisville vs. Mississippi State, 4 p.m.
Orange Bowl: Virginia vs. Florida, 8 p.m.
Dec. 31
Belk Bowl: Virginia Tech vs. Kentucky, noon
Tony the Tiger Bowl: Florida State vs. Arizona State, 2 p.m.
Jan. 2
Birmingham Bowl: Boston College vs. Cincinnati, 3 p.m.
