Late Hits: Sept. 15

• Late Hits archive 

UNC: The Tar Heels looked good, Mack Brown Good, Thursday night, and it was not just those navy blue pants. Even if Rutgers finishes 3-9, it doesn't matter. With the mental "road" block out of UNC's way, the schedule is suddenly wide open for the Heels to win nine or 10 games, even if they lose the next two games (Virginia Tech and Miami).

ECU's in the top 25, and UNC is not far behind. Hide the cutlery from the State fans.

Duke: Just as Ted Roof once predicted, the Blue Devils have a chance — "So you're telling me there's a chance?" — at winning six games and qualifying for a bowl with Saturday's 41-31 shootout win over Navy.

The Blue Devils are 2-1 with a Duke-like Virginia team next on the schedule. Even kickers Nick Maggio and Joe Surgan are coming through for new coach David Cutcliffe. No one could have predicted that.

Ohio State: Jim Tressel won four NCAA Division I-AA national titles at Youngstown State. Given Ohio State's performance Saturday in Los Angeles — and in the past two BCS title games — the only way Tressel is going to win another national title is if the Buckeyes drop down a level.

Where's the pride, "The" Ohio State? Beanie Wells or not, you have to do better than 35-3 — or 41-14 or 38-24 for that matter.

Pac-10: With the free world piling on the ACC, the critics' attention was diverted, for at least one weekend, out west.

Other than USC's romp over Ohio State, the Pac-10 went 2-7 including 0-4 in the Mountain West Challenge — UCLA, Stanford, Arizona State and Arizona lost to MWC teams.

UCLA and Washington gave up a total of 114 points in their losses.

And the real kick in the pants, a ranked Cal team lost to — gasp! — an ACC team.

####

Bad sign for Groh

Thomas Jefferson could turn a phrase or two. "We hold these truths to be self-evident ... " yadda, yadda, yadda, but apparently, Mr. Jefferson's gift for words, and a dissenting opinion, is not being encouraged by his university.

In a brilliant preemptive move, Al Groh and UVa prohibited fans from bringing homemade signs to Scott Stadium before the season started. After a 35-point loss to UConn, which was preceded by a 45-point loss to USC, Groh needs to worry more about "the course of human events" and less about the "opinions of mankind."

####

Coachspeak-to-English translation

"This is really the outcome we thought could happen."

— USC coach Pete Carroll after the Trojans' 35-3 win over Ohio State

Translation: Stanford's better than Ohio State. Wake me when the regular season ends.