• Nov. 16 predictions
• Nov. 9 predictions
• Nov. 2 predictions
• Oct. 26 predictions
With both division titles still up for grabs and N.C. State and Virginia looking to get to six wins and Clemson trying to get bowl-eligible as well, the last week of the ACC season is certainly overloaded with drama -- not to mention potential bowl implications.
North Carolina needs a big win over Duke to convince the Peach (Chik-fil-A) Bowl to jump over what figures to be three 5-3 teams to take the 4-4 Heels. And the scramble at the bottom of the bowl food chain is going to be crazy.
In Conference USA, East Carolina already has the East Division title locked up going into Friday's game against UTEP, but there's a three-way tie in the West Division standings heading into the final week between Houston, Rice and Tulsa.
Tulsa plays at Marshall while Rice hosts Houston. If Houston wins, the Cougars take the division. If Rice wins, the Owls take it with a Tulsa loss, otherwise it goes to the Golden Hurricane. The guess here is that Tulsa takes care of business in Huntington, but Houston wins on the road to grab the division title.
Elsewhere, Southern Miss needs to win at SMU, UTEP needs to win at ECU and Memphis needs to win vs. Tulane to get bowl-eligible.
ACC
Orange Bowl -- Virginia Tech
Chik-fil-A (Peach) Bowl -- North Carolina
Gator Bowl -- Florida State
Champs Bowl -- Georgia Tech
Music City Bowl -- Miami
Meineke (Charlotte) Bowl -- N.C. State
Emerald Bowl -- Boston College
Humanitarian Bowl -- Wake Forest
Eagle (Congressional) Bowl -- Maryland
CONFERENCE USA
Liberty Bowl -- Houston
GMAC Bowl -- East Carolina
Texas Bowl -- Tulsa
Armed Forces Bowl -- Rice
New Orleans Bowl -- Southern Mississippi
St. Petersburg Bowl -- Memphis
Luke has worked for The N&O since 2000. He covered the Carolina Hurricanes and the NHL before becoming a sports columnist in August 2008. A native of Evanston, Ill., he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania. He can be reached at (919) 829-8947, @LukeDeCock on Twitter or
Comments
Thanks ever so much, very
Fri, 11/06/2009 - 04:40 — mkoswellThanks ever so much, very useful article.
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Bowl Projections
Mon, 11/24/2008 - 18:24 — linda1331As a Virginia Tech alumni, I hope your bowl projections come true. However, even if Tech can beat UVa (no guarantee the way this seasons been going), I can't see them matching up well with either BC or Fla State in the ACC Championship. Can you share your thoughts on why you think Va Tech will reach the Orange Bowl? Thanks!
I love that bowl lineup!
Mon, 11/24/2008 - 11:22 — dj5377As a State fan, I hope I see that list in two weeks.
Also, for what it's worth, I have read that Maryland won't take the Congressional Bowl because of exams. If your scenario plays out and only Wake and Maryland are left when the #8 pick (Boise) comes up. I think Wake (with ACC approval) will gladly take one step back, and tell Maryland they can have Boise, sending the Deacs to Washington, DC.
An interesting scenario,
Mon, 11/24/2008 - 12:25 — ldecock (author)An interesting scenario, except Wake already played Navy this season, which rules the Deacons out of the Congressional Bowl. Sorry to say it, State fans, but if Maryland won't play that game, the most logical team to shoehorn into that game would be the Pack.
On the other hand, after a 2-6 start, who's going to complain about driving to D.C. instead of Charlotte?