ACC football: Does that ‘A’ stand for ‘awfully managed’?
Tech coach Paul Johnson: By ACC standards, he's an institution. (AJC photo by Johnny Crawford)
Here’s a fun fact: Paul Johnson, who’s about to enter his fourth season at Georgia Tech, ranks fourth among football coaches in his 12-team league in on-the-job seniority, and the only reason he’s not third is that North Carolina State hired Tom O’Brien instead of PJ in December 2006.
Think about that. The ACC isn’t some fly-by-night conference. It has been in operation since 1953. And yet it has taken to operating as if it’s some geographically incorrect start-up.
North Carolina fired Butch Davis on Wednesday, two days after he was allowed to meet the media assembled in Pinehurst, N.C. This was but the latest in a series of weird ACC coaching maneuvers. Since 2007 the conference has seen two Bowdens nudged aside — one at Clemson, the other at Florida State — and one Fridge moved. (Ralph Friedgen was bought out by Maryland last December after going 8-4, but not before James Franklin, who had been designated the Terps’ coach-in-waiting, had bolted to Vanderbilt.)
In January 2009 Jeff Jagodzinski was canned by Boston College AD Gene DeFillippo after interviewing for the New York Jets’ head coaching position. (Jagodzinski, best known as Matt Ryan’s college coach, has since lost jobs as Tampa Bay’s offensive coordinator and as head coach of the UFL Omaha Nighthawks.) That same year Al Groh, who’s now Georgia Tech’s defensive coordinator, was fired by Virginia, and his final act in Charlottesville was reciting a poem. Last fall Miami dumped Randy Shannon; back in 2006, the U had promoted Shannon after dumping Larry Coker, who’d won the 2001 BCS title.
If you’re keeping score, Frank Beamer, who became Virginia Tech’s coach in 1987, has been in his current job the longest, although technically Beamer has worked in the ACC only since 2004. (That’s when the Hokies joined.) If you count his time at Boston College, O’Brien has been the head coach at an ACC school since 2005. (He worked at BC when the Eagles moved from the Big East.) And Jim Grobe has been in place — at both Wake Forest and in the ACC — since 20o1. So he’s the dean, I guess.
Oh, one thing more: Even the unshakable Beamer had a tough offseason. It has been revealed that he invested with alleged Ponzi schemer Jim Donnan, who played at — wouldn’t you know? — N.C. State. (Though Beamer says he didn’t lose any money.)
And this, too: Carolina AD Dick Baddour announced today he’s stepping down.
By Mark Bradley
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163 comments Add your comment
Darth Fornicator
July 28th, 2011
11:15 am
HA!
I claim this blog’s virginity.
Darth Fornicator
July 28th, 2011
11:17 am
The ACC will ALWAYS be a doormat for the rest of college football, particularly the SEC.
Butch Davis was THE BEST, yet apparently THE WORST, thing to happen to North Carolina Football in generations, if not ever.
MagnaCarterGT
July 28th, 2011
11:20 am
“the only reason [Johnson]’s not third is that North Carolina State hired Tom O’Brien two days before Tech tapped PJ.”
TOB brought his brand of blandness to Raleigh in 2007, Mark.
Mark Bradley
July 28th, 2011
11:25 am
Thanks, MagnaCarterGT. Got my Decembers confused.
Outside Observer
July 28th, 2011
11:29 am
MB, Isn’t this same concept prevalent in other conferences like the SEC where the coaching turnover is insanely high? I believe Richt is the longest tenured coach in the SEC, and he has been there about as long Grobe at WF.
Tech Class of 2013
July 28th, 2011
11:31 am
So where is the tickle pile going to be for the opening game? and its it shirts vs skins?
Atlanta Gator
July 28th, 2011
11:32 am
Does anyone know if Tony Barnhart’s blog column will return for the fall college football season? Without it, I have found that the quality and quantity of the AJC’s college football coverage has nose-dived . . . .
ClemsonBrad
July 28th, 2011
11:33 am
Hate to say it….but if Dabo doesn’t get the tigers past 6-6 this year…he very well could join this list.
Steve
July 28th, 2011
11:34 am
Was there really nothing else to write about today, MB?
There’s a lot of turnover in every CFB conference. If you check the all-mighty SEC beyond Mark Richt (who will probably be gone after this season), there isn’t a lot of tenure.
cattle dawg
July 28th, 2011
11:34 am
So is cpj a candidate for unc job? I believe he is from North carolina , correct?
About ACC football: Does that ‘A’ stand for ‘awfully managed’? – Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog) | USA Baseball America
July 28th, 2011
11:35 am
[...] post by webmaster@technorati.com and software by Elliott Back Comments [...]
P-Man
July 28th, 2011
11:35 am
Atlanta Gator, Tony Branfardt is now at CBSSports.com. Greener pastures, I guess…
RAMBLE ON!!!
July 28th, 2011
11:36 am
They call us Nerds, Mark
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GJVxFP19Gs
Jamaaliver
July 28th, 2011
11:38 am
Mark, is it wrong at all that I miss rawdawg?
Richt`s Hammer
July 28th, 2011
11:39 am
Wow I can win 3 games this year and no one will notice. Life is grand.
Mark Bradley
July 28th, 2011
11:39 am
I miss him, too, Jamaaliver.
Mark Bradley
July 28th, 2011
11:42 am
Oh, and I’ll concede that other conferences have turnover, too. But I don’t know that any conference has lately had a run of messier changes than the ACC. Florida didn’t fire Urban Meyer. LSU didn’t fire Nick Saban. Tennessee didn’t fire Lane Kiffin (though it did fire Philip Fulmer).
JacketsRule87
July 28th, 2011
11:45 am
If the ThUga joined the ACC they’d be perennial champs hands down. We [ACC] are no better than Conferece USA,….if not worse.
CFB Fan
July 28th, 2011
11:48 am
Mark I don’t know what you are trying to get at on this one.
Before Groh’s firing he was there for a long time. Jags was at BC for a while.
It’s cyclical. Write this article in 5 years about the SEC. I’d wager Richt will be gone, Miles will be gone, Vandy will have a new coach, Spurrier may be gone.
Tech Fan
July 28th, 2011
11:51 am
Gotta agree Mark, the ACC has to have the most turmoil year in and year out. And we all thought the ACC was going to turn into a power when the U and Va Tech came in. Amazing
techfan
July 28th, 2011
11:53 am
The ACC has been under performing for the past several years. Wouldn’t you expect there to be a lot of changes? I would be more worried if the ACC wasn’t doing anything.
5150 UOAD
July 28th, 2011
11:54 am
SEC
Southerners Excelling @ Cheating.
dawgmatic
July 28th, 2011
11:57 am
ALL CHEATERS CONFERENCE
You NERDS should be ashamed of yourselves.
Paul in RDU
July 28th, 2011
12:02 pm
I am not sure that the ACC has any more coaching turnover than other big conferences the details of the removals of Bobby Bowden, Fridge, Butch and Jagodzinski are bizarre.
The timing of Davis’ firing (although not the firing itself) was strange. The only thing that seems to make sense is that the firing happened on the same day of the first meeting of the Board of Trustees after electing a new board chairman and he pushed for the change.
Curious George
July 28th, 2011
12:07 pm
Is Jim Donnan going to prison?
headley lamar
July 28th, 2011
12:10 pm
Tech assistant gets one-game suspension
Geez can we go one day without a scandal at Tech.
They have turned into one of the dirtiest programs in college football.
JB
July 28th, 2011
12:11 pm
Tech and North Carolina BOTH in Big trouble with the NCAA. Tech already sentenced…We’re waiting on NC. Big time cheaters at Tech. They’ve just come off probation. I just don’t understand it. They seem like nice folks over at Tech…..But seem to stay in hot water with the NCAA. We need our sister State school to straighten out and obey the rules. Go Dawgs. ( tongue and cheek, this will be fun to read)
Curious George
July 28th, 2011
12:12 pm
If Mark Richt is the Head Coach at North Carolina this time next year, will Richt help that ACC team end Georgia’s recent stranglehold on the FULMER CUP?
Worm
July 28th, 2011
12:13 pm
Paul Johnson could be returning to his home state!
ToccoaDawg
July 28th, 2011
12:14 pm
ACC stands for Another Coach Canceled
JB
July 28th, 2011
12:15 pm
C George………..Donnan hasn’t drawn a check from UGA in years………….We’ll tolerate losing to Florida, but not the Nerds. Donnan was fired for that. Richt, 9 of 10……And as much trouble as ya’ll stay in, we need to review that game…LOL
DawginLex
July 28th, 2011
12:15 pm
Why is a monkey giving us advice about football?
Auburn is the runaway leader in 2011 Fulmer Cup
UGA has zero points.
http://www.edsbs.com
Paul H
July 28th, 2011
12:16 pm
You got the “Awful” part right.
JB
July 28th, 2011
12:16 pm
Johnson would be a good fit at NC. That “I just got out of bed look” would probably play better up there.
BigTimeTechFan
July 28th, 2011
12:21 pm
ACC football: Does that ‘A’ stand for ‘awfully managed’?
No, the A stands for “Atlantic”
You have been a sports reporter in the south for how many years and you don’t even know what ACC is. Not good.
BigTimeTechFan
July 28th, 2011
12:22 pm
Th e ACC leads BCS automatic-qualifying conferences in the latest US News & World Report “Best Colleges 2011” rankings with a combined average ranking of 50.5. The ACC is the only conference with seven schools in the Top 50 (4 private, 3 public). The ACC is the only conference with 10 schools in the Top 70. Of the league-record eight
teams from ACC schools that won NCAA Titles during the 2009-10 season, all came from schools ranked in the Top 56.
BigTimeTechFan
July 28th, 2011
12:24 pm
A leader among the BCS conferences for APR and GSR, predominately all programs register rates at/or above the national average. In addition, the ACC has led the nation in graduation rate for its football student-athletes for the fifth consecutive year and also ranks No. 1 nationally in football APR for the fourth straight year
JB
July 28th, 2011
12:25 pm
And if they don’t slow down, they’ll lead in NCAA sanctions soon.
ToccoaDawg
July 28th, 2011
12:37 pm
Tech should be happy. Now they have a chance of a win against UNC
ajc sports idiots
July 28th, 2011
12:38 pm
Big Time, don’t you know Mark Bitterly is full of anger and has to rant and accuse GT by now? Bitterly wants GT to take his own shame for being the laziest and sorriest writer at the AJC which is hard to accomplish. When the AJC replaces Bitterly with Coley Harvey one day, it will be too comical. The best of the worst at AJC was Jeff Schultz that finally stated that Tech didn’t do much of anything and that is the best the Atlanta paper can do. It is like GT has to appeal the AJC.
Yeah, the southeastern chumps are the way truth and life with coaches above board in all categories and players who didn’t know anything when fathers out there soliciting 6 figures for playtime.
Keep accusing Bradley, that is about all you got left to do in your so called career
Russ, the Temporary Mascot turned Running Back
July 28th, 2011
12:38 pm
Let’s face it, running backs in the ACC get to play more games per capita than running backs in the SEC because you have to figure UGA’s running backs in. Since most of UGA’s running backs are gone now and some new ones are on the way in . . . I believe that the worm is about to turn. Soon, you will see a little scatback toting the ball, running low to the ground, and slobbering all over the ball. Soon, UGA football will be back to normal. Who will be running this state now? Crazy Legs Russ!
DetroitBraves
July 28th, 2011
12:39 pm
The UNC firing was understandable, though the timing a bit odd. I was looking at (early) recruiting rankings today. Perhaps Miami and FSU will ascend to their previous lofty positions in the coming years and add both some stability and respectability to the conference. The newer staffs there are off to decent starts. Having said that, it only pays off for the conference if the rest of the programs are then forced to keep up, and are somewhat successful in doing so. It’s not as if the Big East or ACC were considered premiere conferences when Miami and FSU were contending for national championships out of those leagues.
Old Gold
July 28th, 2011
12:40 pm
Paul Johnson will be the next head coach at NC!!!
DetroitBraves
July 28th, 2011
12:44 pm
“ACC football: Does that ‘A’ stand for ‘awfully managed’?
No, the A stands for “Atlantic”
You have been a sports reporter in the south for how many years and you don’t even know what ACC is. Not good.”
Heh! Just read this one. You got a chuckle out of me Techfan. Good shot.
ACC Insider
July 28th, 2011
12:44 pm
PJ to NC !! Take it to the bank!!
Tech
July 28th, 2011
12:46 pm
Tech is NOT in big trouble with the NCAA. Keep dreaming JB. I know you hate Tech but that’s wishful thinking brother. Comparing Tech’s program to UGA’s is day/night as far as problems. You have NO room to talk about Tech.
gtfanfrom1951
July 28th, 2011
12:47 pm
Looks like a 4-0 start for GT to me!!!!! Russ If the SEC is back normal then Fla should win the east and UGA will back to just flapping their jaws. HAHAHAHAHA
ToccoaDawg
July 28th, 2011
12:51 pm
The tragic truth is the UNC players are the ones who will end up paying for this. Davis and the old AD will still be laughing all the way to the bank while the players are left holding the bag. And lest we forget, the majority of the players had NOTHING to do with this at all.
JB
July 28th, 2011
12:53 pm
ACC Insider…………don’t think so. I am a Dawg fan, but I don’t believe NC would hire a coach who himself has just spent a week or two in the National News with NCAA troubles, just say’n
techfan
July 28th, 2011
12:59 pm
It’s pretty hilarious to see people trying to equate the UNC situation with the Tech situation.
bro
July 28th, 2011
1:10 pm
TRADE THE HEAD COACH-TAKE THE PRESSURE OFF- BEFORE THE INVESTIGATION UNCOVERS THE REAL BAD GUY AT A VERY HIGH LEVEL AT UNC.
tom
July 28th, 2011
1:10 pm
ajc news. does the a stand for asinine
ToccoaDawg
July 28th, 2011
1:12 pm
Another Juvenile Communist
Burdell
July 28th, 2011
1:14 pm
ToccoaDawg…we are 7-2 against UNC in our last nine games against them. Probably better than that but ESPN only has schedules going back to 2002. Nice try though.
Chris
July 28th, 2011
1:17 pm
Why omit where Donnan coached and not played? Seems that would be an important topic considering he was likely starting his ponzi while a coach at the aforementioned school. Let’s look at the sec. Gators coach quits. Then comes back and quits again. Tenn fires Fulmer, hires Kiffin who bolts after a year. Saban leaves lsu, goes to the nfl, and now back to the sec. Arky fires it’s coach and then hires the joke petrino who deserted the falcons. Aubbie fires tubs and bring in chizik. And then there’s the ky firing and ole miss hiring the ex coach at ark. So come on Bradley. The sec has more weird things going on than the acc. It’s actually not even close. And add in richt on the “hot seat” Lose the first two, and he’s done unless he finishes 9-3, which ain’t happening under that scenario.
Chris
July 28th, 2011
1:18 pm
Oh and didn’t sylvester get canned at miss st? Keep it real Bradley. This article is awfully much ado about nothing.
ormewood
July 28th, 2011
1:21 pm
The ACC has been a mediocre football conference for a long time, yet they continue to crank out NFL talent. I think 15 of the first 60 picks were from the ACC, more than even from the SEC. I think you have to blame the coaching.
Oh and the turnover is not limited to football. In hoops, seven of the 12 coaches have turned in just the last 18 months.
Atlanta87
July 28th, 2011
1:21 pm
Once again ToccoaDawg shows how stupid UGA fans are when it comes to football and anything in general. GT beat UNC @ UNC last year 30-24. One of their 6 wins, which I believe tied UGA if I’m not mistakn.
Atlanta87
July 28th, 2011
1:22 pm
Testing
amau2009
July 28th, 2011
1:23 pm
Once again ToccoaDawg shows how stupid Dog Fans are when it comes to football and anything in general. Tech beat UNC @ UNC last year 30-24. It was one of their 6 wins, which tied how many UGA had if I am not mistaken.
GT 88
July 28th, 2011
1:23 pm
I would say A for academics
Atlanta87
July 28th, 2011
1:24 pm
Does the M in Mark stand for Moron?!?!?!
T3
July 28th, 2011
1:27 pm
Kentucky has super-whore John Calipari.
AJ
July 28th, 2011
1:29 pm
mark must have been given the job to bash the acc this year and pump up richt and the sec. it will be funny in 45 days to see him making excuses for the 0-2 start
boise 27 ga 21
sc 30 ga 18
RedandBlackDAWG
July 28th, 2011
1:35 pm
UNC made the conference look bad for having waiting so long to fire their head coach since they probably knew a while back that was what they were going to do. Now their AD has resigned so you have to wonder whats going on up there. Tech. does itself no good, by complaining and filing an appeal with their latest NCAA probation and then suspending a coach for one game for having illegal contact with recruits. Doesn’t help out the appeal.
All conferences have a pretty good sized turn over of head coaches, because at the salary they get paid at, the demands for a great season are always expected. The ACC, SEC, Big Ten, all have had a fair amount of coaching changes either because the coach left, was fired or retired. Some coaches are even forced to resign because they violated rules.
What makes all the difference in the world is if the Administrators use a little common sense in letting a coach go. Less than six weeks before you play your first game, as in UNC’s case, is a pretty stupid thing to do. They will have a hard time getting ready for the season, and they have probably severely hindered the recruiting efforts for 2012. If the NCAA doesn’t blame a whole lot on the coach, it appears that the school, didn’t use a lot of common sense and simply sacrificed this season. I wonder if this will also make it that hard to get a new coach, with a good reputation, after he sees the situation they have put themselves in.
One thing that needs to be dropped is to consider a schools academic standing when talking football. Do you really think 90% of these players are hoping to leave school as a Rhodes Scholar,or are most of them likely there because of their football talents? Being a math or engineering major doesn’t make you a better athlete on the field of football.
T3
July 28th, 2011
1:35 pm
Bradley:
I hope you’lll explain why your article about the topic of ACC conference management
chosen to use a picture of Paul Johnson.
Why not John Swofford?
RedandBlackDAWG
July 28th, 2011
1:37 pm
T3,
His picture was easier to get.
T3
July 28th, 2011
1:38 pm
S – Signing
E – Everyone for
C – Cash
T3
July 28th, 2011
1:39 pm
redandblackdoofus
You’re not THAT stupid enough to REALLY believe that, are you ?
T3
July 28th, 2011
1:41 pm
Bradley just pissed at GT because Bradley
is now “Persona Non Grata” at the Edge.
Arent cha Bradley ??
Atlanta87
July 28th, 2011
1:42 pm
The B must mean Butt head
Skeezix
July 28th, 2011
1:53 pm
Can’t understand why UNC waited so long to fire Butch Davis. It wasn’t just agent contacts and money/favors to players, etc– as there also was serious academic fraud committed by many of the UNC footballers. The “tutor” who was helping the “student” athletes cheat was even employed by the Davis family. The assistant coach who generated the agent contacts had a questionable past and was hired by Butch. And these are facts—i.e., they aren’t just allegations and haven’t been for a very long time. After seeing what happened to Ga. Tech (for less offenses), I think the dunces over Butch have just figured out how hard UNC is going to get hit by the NCAA. The NCAA needs to crack down very hard on all the cheaters.
Paul in RDU
July 28th, 2011
1:55 pm
GT is 11-2 against UNC since Mack Brown left.
Paul in RDU
July 28th, 2011
1:57 pm
I agree that it is strange how long UNC waited to fire Davis. It is probably not a coincidence that he was fired on the same day that the UNC Board of Trustees elected a new Chairman.
Alabama Jack
July 28th, 2011
1:58 pm
Too bad we can’t have that kind of turnover in the AJC sports department. Might eventually get some sports writers,
T3
July 28th, 2011
1:59 pm
BamaJack:
Now THAT…was funny !!
Paul in RDU
July 28th, 2011
2:01 pm
Davis was fired on the same day that the UNC Board of Trustees elected a new Chairman and 2 new members. Probably not a coincidence
http://uncnews.unc.edu/content/view/4652/68/
5150 UOAD
July 28th, 2011
2:07 pm
Mike leach has a better shot at UNC than CPJ.
stinger2
July 28th, 2011
2:07 pm
Bradley: Your recent columns indicate you can find nothing positive or good to write about no matter what topic you choose. Enough bashing and negative stuff for a while. Write what you choose but make it positive for a change.
T3
July 28th, 2011
2:10 pm
With UNC dealing with big issue:
my forcast of GT going 10-2 just got stronger.
1. (W) Western Carolina
2. (W) @ Middle Tennessee
3. (W) Kansas
4. (W) UNC: Its-in-the-bag now (Thanks Butch)
5. (W/L) @ NCState
6. (W) Maryland
7. (W) @ UVA
8. (L) @ Miami
9. (W) Clemson
10. (W) VT
(Note: Chuck Oliver will look like a
“Kang” size A-hole for predicting VT will crush GT.
GT will BLAST VT: 49-24)
(Famous Kang quote: “GT cant block Auburn.”
2003: GT:17 Auburn:3
2005: GT: 23 Auburn:14
Kang = FAIL !!)
11 (W) @ Duke
12 (W) UGA (Will another loss in 2011 to GT cost Richt his job?)
DawginLex
July 28th, 2011
2:10 pm
UNC is waiting for the hammer to drop and struck a premptive strike.
T3,
You don’t know John Calipari. He was told by the NCAA that a player was completely eligible to play and was cleared by the NCAA Clearinghouse. Any coach in America would have played him based on the information received. Your own school is now a victim of the NCAA and its warped antics. I have met him, his wife and children. They are all very nice people and he is trying to raise a family just like most folks are.
Kentucky is lucky to have him and he is perfect for this pressure cooker of a job because he understands, if you can’t win at Kentucky, you can’t win anywhere. Haven’t seen anyone trying to take the UK Final Four away. Truth is, your own coach Hewitt has done more wrong than Calipari.
5150 UOAD
July 28th, 2011
2:16 pm
DILex that is the truth. the Academic cheating was really what pizzed UNC off. I believe.
Mike BOBO for the new coach at UNC.
BOBO is an Offensive Genius. Maybe he can hire Pat Nix as his OC.
Ryan GA
July 28th, 2011
2:17 pm
Yeha right dawg in lex. Anyone and everyone knows John C is a shady coach. When you have shady events at every school you go to, it’s not a coincidence.
DawginLex
July 28th, 2011
2:18 pm
Ryan
Ignoring facts and basing your beliefs on an organization as idiotic as the NCAA borders on stupidity.
Gillislee
July 28th, 2011
2:20 pm
It’s the WeakCC actually
Ryan GA
July 28th, 2011
2:23 pm
I rest my case
http://www.google.com/#hl=en&xhr=t&q=john+calipari+shady&cp=19&pf=p&sclient=psy&site=&source=hp&aq=0v&aqi=g-v3&aql=&oq=john+calipari+shady&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=379f8f2fda529b02&biw=1366&bih=499
GT
July 28th, 2011
2:24 pm
The ACC is second best. They sit and watch recruits be taken from their areas for the SEC and other leagues. Yesterday with Miami and FSU, a strong Tech, Clemson and Va. Tech, UNC and Maryland making progress, the ACC was a player. Then they went straight with running their programs, just like the book says. The reward is second best, very little attention from the national press except to underline how weak they are, to the point of over stating it, and loss revenues. They are the only clothed bodies on the beach. Now they take their clothes off and the police go right by the tanned bodies to get to the white pasty ACC ones. Maybe just maybe someone does not want to see the ACC wake up again.
Peter
July 28th, 2011
2:24 pm
Wasn’t weak last year
UNC > Tenn
Fsu > SC
And clemson on the road came the closest of any team to beating auburn.
Big A
July 28th, 2011
2:35 pm
All this sports talk will be moot in a year when the economy is even worse, our credit rating gets downgraded(soon) and unemployment goes to 12%
Tallest midget
July 28th, 2011
2:41 pm
ACC and Big east neck and Neck for the worst BCS college football has to offer. Should be replaced by the MWC.
THE Dixie Redcoat Band
July 28th, 2011
2:42 pm
Wow…Butch Davis put NC right up there (or down there) with “thug u” and “free shoe u”.
Petty funny…{”:}
Gator Mike
July 28th, 2011
2:43 pm
It will be great for all of us and all of our teams when the games begin in September. At that time, it will be fun once again.
Wolfman
July 28th, 2011
2:44 pm
Somehow you failed to mention that Jim Donnan is an ex-UGA coach… Talk about a crook!
BigTimeTechFan
July 28th, 2011
2:48 pm
Oh and Papa Joe’s comment today hit Mark exactly where it hurts.
When ask what is the key to being a head coach a one university for so long is:
His response was “There is less of you guys around Penn St”, meaning the press. Joe Paterno just called Mark out for articles just like this.
Born2Buzz
July 28th, 2011
2:48 pm
Big A, the sports talk will be all we can do to keep our mind off the economy. Why do you think the NFL is still making $12B in revenue in a down economy.
5150, your last comment made me laugh. Thanks.
T3
July 28th, 2011
2:49 pm
OK dawginlex:
Since you seem to want to “defend” Calipari:
This, straight from his wiki page:
“…the only head coach to have a Final Four appearance vacated at more than one school.”
I guessed you CONVENIENTLY left out the cluster-pille he left at UMass.
SEC R
July 28th, 2011
2:52 pm
ACC coaches–most of them are cheating but they still aren’t any good. What gives???
Beast from the East
July 28th, 2011
2:58 pm
Mark,
The “A” stands for arrogant.
And it’s starting to cost them with the NCAA.
juvenal
July 28th, 2011
3:07 pm
oh for the days sports reporters reported sports…..got lots of E$PN $ for basketball……
ACC
July 28th, 2011
3:12 pm
Well, if we are discussing coaching moves, let’s examine a little further. Saban, Meyer, or Lane Kiffen QUIT their respective head coaching positions for other schools (except for Meyer). And he’ll probably end up at Ohio State or Penn State w/in the next 1-2 years anyway. SEC fans are delusional and head coaches cannot stand the pressure too long before they give up and walk away.
DC ACC
July 28th, 2011
3:12 pm
And the irony of all of this scandal and mediocrity is that the ACC made a deal with the “devil” back in ‘04 to sacrifice its basketball pedigree, geographic sanity, and the double round robin league schedule to go BIG in football.
VA Tech, Miami and BC joined and seven years later what we have is a league that fell further behind the SEC (and others) in football while cheating more (or being less good at cheating . . .), and willfully ceding its status as a powerhouse basketball conference (four bids was a bad year when there were 9 teams, unacceptable with 12 teams).
Talk about blowback. Not what John Swofford had in mind.
Beast from the East
July 28th, 2011
3:17 pm
ACC,
“Delusional” or demanding? If “delusional” means expecting to compete for championships, then would the ACC not fall into that same category in hoops?
Amos Alonzo Stagg
July 28th, 2011
3:21 pm
As far as football goes; the ACC is, and has always been a “mid major” at best. I know, I played for an ACC Champion in the 1980’s. When the “super conference” shake-up/shake-down dust settles; I suspect the more football oriented ACC schools (FSU, Miami, Clemson, VA Tech) could very well be part of a 16 team SEC, with some of the more hoops-oriented public university franchises (MD, UVA, UNC, NC State) possibly landing in the Big X (16). Or perhaps Pitt, WVU, Syracuse and MD end up inthe Big X, and UCONN, UNC, NC State, UVA, etc. end up in a re-shaped Big East. The smaller private schools (BC, Duke, WFU, and perhaps Vandy from the SEC) will likely form their a league of their own. Bottom line, this is business as usual in the BCS. The SEC, PAC 10, Big XII, et al tend to “recruit” coaches from each other, which leads to vaccancies which are not the result of termination or buyouts, but the essence of the openings (the color of money) remains the driving force.
Tallest midget
July 28th, 2011
3:24 pm
1. (W) Western Carolina
2. (tossup) @ Middle Tennessee that your program play @ middle tenn. speak volumes
3. (w) Kansas but very close
4. (L) UNC: Its-in-the-bag now (Thanks Butch)
5. (L) @ NCState
6. (L) Maryland
7. (L) @ UVA (tech can’t win in Charlottesville)
8. (L) @ Miami
9. (L) Clemson (the lack of talent problem )
10. (L) VT
(Note: Chuck Oliver will look like a
“Kang” size A-hole for predicting VT will crush GT.
GT will BLAST VT: 49-24)
11 (L) @ Duke recovering from the beatdawn of Va tech
12 (L) UGA Georgia can play badly and still rock Tech. (PJ bigger fish to fry looks to be somewhere in the Southern Conference)
Jerry
July 28th, 2011
3:25 pm
The old ACC isn’t looking to strong in the coaching department these days. Besides a select few they are pretty weak. I look for Clemson to bounce back this year with Morris as the OC. I heard Wes and Tony talking today on 790 about the website i’ve talked about before. Apparently these guys are starting to get some buzz. You can look at the individual profiles for all the ACC coaches for free.
http://coachesbythenumbers.com/coach-search/
WnE...
July 28th, 2011
3:26 pm
@BigTimeTechFan:
“Of the league-record eight
teams from ACC schools that won NCAA Titles during the 2009-10 season, all came from schools ranked in the Top 56.”
__________________________________________________
How many of these did tech win…… thought so…
cream puff sec shedule
July 28th, 2011
3:27 pm
Coastal Carolina, 1-11 New Mexico, now you’re talking !
Amos Alonzo Stagg
July 28th, 2011
3:33 pm
Jerry, There is no “bounce back” anymore. The habit of hiring and firing OCs and DCs is all part of the ruse. Like the NFL, the BCS chose “revenue-sharing” and TV deals over competition. At the end of the day, it is the schools that can recruit and coach-up talent. Remember ‘ol Charlie Weis and his “schematic advantage” nonsense? How’d that work out for Notre Dame? BCS football isn’t football; it’s a “made for TV” miniseries about football. Not saying it is good or bad, and every couple years you might have a one hit wonder come out of the ACC (until the annual bowl beatdowns), but let’s not go thinking “Tony and Wes” know something you and I do not.
Buzzwax
July 28th, 2011
3:37 pm
CPJ to UNC??!! That is hilarious!! Chappel Hill is NO WHERE NEAR western carolina, CPJ’s home. In fact Atlanta is just as close. CPJ and UNC’s ‘culture’ are like oil and vinegar!!
GT just went through an NCAA ’spill’ but UNC is about to go through Niagara Falls.
boner
July 28th, 2011
3:37 pm
The ACC is a joke. I rank it 5th in the conference football rankings, just ahead of the Big East and the Mountain West.
TnMountie
July 28th, 2011
3:52 pm
Don’t know if the Southerners realize it, but:
1. WVU, from the much-maligned Big East, has 2 BCS bowl wins in the last decade.
2. The ACC, as a whole, has 2 BCS bowl wins in the last decade.
question?
July 28th, 2011
3:55 pm
TnMountie
Thanks for the insight Captain Obvious
beebee
July 28th, 2011
3:57 pm
“We’ll tolerate losing to Florida, but not the Nerds”
That’s why Georgia will NEVER win a BCS Title. You “tolerate losing…”
bee
The Ghosy of Jeff Hostetler
July 28th, 2011
3:59 pm
Yep, and I’m purdy sure one of WVU’s BCS victories was the 2006 Sugar Bowl, which was played in the GA Dome. Who’d they humiliate in dat one?
The Ghost of Jeff Hostetler
July 28th, 2011
4:00 pm
‘Scuse me. We don’t spell so good in Morgantown.
Midlantic
July 28th, 2011
4:01 pm
WV was the 2005 SEC Champs
Carlton Powell
July 28th, 2011
4:08 pm
Must say I was a bit surprised by The Chief’s sacking in Chapel HIll yesterday. Thought he’d weathered the storm. Holden Thorp had given him his support. Thorp now looks like and idiot. No doubt the re-configuring of The Board of Trustees at UNC had a lot do with the decision. Plus, when the minions from state college in Raleigh started taunting online and otherwise about cheating, etc.the deal was sealed. There are very few institutions more concerned about their image than UNC and UVA. This concern for image, or as Thorp said “what others think of our institution” trumps all else. As usual, the players are the big losers in the fray. Well, I guess basketball starts two months earlier than usual in CH this year. I do hope that somehow the football ‘Heels have a good season. Best of luck.
Move along folks
July 28th, 2011
4:17 pm
nothing here – nothing at all.
Furious Styles
July 28th, 2011
4:19 pm
Bradley, the ENTIRE NCAA is mismanaged. Singling out one particular conference or school does nothing to address the issues.
Heels Rock and Rule
July 28th, 2011
4:26 pm
The SEC still could attract UNC to the SEC. UNC recruited some guys who violated some rules, similar to what AJ Green did. Everybody recruited these players. Several UNC players committed academic misconduct, and were dismissed from school and the team. One of their coaches (probably) attempted to direct players to a certain agent. (Only one player from 2 yrs back signed with said agent.) The UNC adminstration ,in the person of their chancellor, said on TV doday that he does not believe Butch Davis know about any of this.
UNC is not dirty; matter of fact, they are the only school that dismissed players for academic misconduct in recent times that I am familiar with. They are the only school that just scrubbed their entire football program. And I cant believe that there are not football players at all schools who are not getting their friends, girlfriends, etc. , helping them to write papers. UNC fired their coach because they caved in to the blood-thirsty media and the rantings of UNC haters and misguided academics. The rest of you are just hypocrits.
The Ghost of Dick Crum
July 28th, 2011
4:28 pm
UNC and football do not mix. Remember the 80’s? They had some talent (LT, Kelvin Bryant, Amos Lawrence, Harris Barton, William Fuller, Ethan Horton, Brian Blados). They also had a schedule that had teams like Miami of Ohio, Western Carolina, and the Citadel on the front end; which ad them 7 or 8 and 0, before they’d end the season with consecutive losses to Maryland, Clemson, UVA and sometimes NCSU. On November 1 they were talking Orange Bowl or Cotton Bowl, but by Thanksgiving they were accepting bids to the Tangerine Bowl or Sun Bowl; same states (FL and TX), but slightly less of a payout. UNC is a hoops school, and it always will be.
techfan
July 28th, 2011
4:34 pm
But I don’t know that any conference has lately had a run of messier changes than the ACC.
There will be 4 new coaches in the Big 10 this year. All after the previous coaches were fired. The crown jewel of the Big Ten is probably going to get a hefty NCAA sentence. The second biggest team (Michigan) has been in a messy free fall for a while now and just fired a coach who begged to keep his job. I would say the coaching issues in that conference are at least as messy as the ACC.
Paul in RDU
July 28th, 2011
4:49 pm
Heels Rock and Rule
I don’t doubt that there are plenty of schools where players are helped on their papers by girlfriends, buddies, etc. However, there is only 1 school I am aware of where the help (in the form of writing papers, paying over $1000 in parking tickets for one player, etc.) was being provided by an employee of the HC.
T3
July 28th, 2011
4:52 pm
Rut roh !!!!!!!!!!
Well, I wrote 3 weeks ago that the “situation” in Columbus with 2 UGA recruits,
Jones & Pope could become MUCH MORE serious than was being reported.
Of course, dont expect the AJC to do any objective reporting about UGA.
UGA trouts the AJC around on a leash. Not the other way around.
2 Columbus-area parks managers were fired and another is in big legal trouble
for funneling money to a Carver-Columbus athlete/recruit that is now bound for UGA, via USCw.
Is the evidence pointing to a connection between the Columbus Parks Department,
Carver-Columbus High School, and UGA.
It seems claer that whats going down in Columbus is now serious enough
to warrant UGA AD Greg McGarrity to travel to Columbus to try to put
that dumpster fire out before it “spreads” to Athens.
Steady stream of rumors continue to emerge of some “influential” folks engaged in
an ALL-OUT effort to put a lid on some unusual happenings going down in Columbus.
Was the Columbus Parks Department being used as some
form of “slush” fund in connection to Carver-Columbus recruits ??
Was Carver-Columbus High School “graduate” Isaiah Crowell
“auctioned off” similar to Scam Newton ??
Is that why Crowell seemed to “jack” UGA around for weeks?
Oh my. This could get interesting.
BigTimeTechFan
July 28th, 2011
4:57 pm
Was Carver-Columbus High School “graduate” Isaiah Crowell
“auctioned off” similar to Scam Newton ??
Nothing new, UGA has been doing that for years and the NCAA never cared. Dont worry, NCAA is to worried about Tech player getting Christmas gifts from their cousins.
FullMetalJacket
July 28th, 2011
5:10 pm
Well, guess it’s about time for Fall Practice to begin, so I reckon I’ll start reading the AJC blog again. While the timing of UNC’s recent move is vexing, I wouldn’t say the conference is any more dysfunctional than any other. Just in the last few years we’ve seen Auburn stumble around in the dark with Tuberville, Arkansas hire the Falcon fugitive Petrino, UT and that Krazy Kiffin fiasco, not to mention Urban’s on-again/off-again gig in Gainesville. And the SEC is not the worst by any measure. It just seems that the maelstrom engulfing most college football programs is too much for many coaches and administrators to handle with grace.
Heels Rock and Rule
July 28th, 2011
5:12 pm
Paul in RDU; I believe that some of her transgressions occurred after she had been dismissed by the University. I personally do not see to be particularly egregious if, for example, the tutor was also the girlfriend of a FB player and she paid for something because she had a credit card and the football player did not, and he paid her back later. You can speculate on the details, and so can I. I simply do not believe the university nor the football program was complicit in this. I don’t think it could be averted. The university was not complecent in this, nor was the football coach. No one cheated here. It was bad judgement on the part of a young women who only lent a friend some money. Spin it any way you want. There was no ill intent here.
FullMetalJacket
July 28th, 2011
5:12 pm
Now, ACC basketball management and coaching changes are really something!!!!
Go for 2
July 28th, 2011
5:19 pm
Mark:
Perhaps but the AJ in AJC certainly stands for awful journalism.
I’ll get past your blatant homerism for UGa and remind you how AJC is the laughing stock of national media for failing to have had ANYBODY on the ball in 2009 to report the NCAA investigation of Tech-unforced incomptence of PUBLICLY AVAILABLE info shows how little effort you guys put into independently covering GTech and sports in general.
Moreover, when the vast majority of you puff pieces on UGa sound like notes sent over from the athletic department it makes us scratch our heads-how bad can these guys be?
So Mark does the AJ stand for awful journalism?
GF2
CLEMSONDUDE
July 28th, 2011
5:21 pm
MARK…I agreed that the ACC is a weak football conference. The ACC has a lot of work to do in football. No doubt that the schools in this league such as Florida State, Miami Virginia Tech, Clemson, and Georgia Tech should contend for the National Championships on a semi- regular bases…..but no ever realize this conference is the top football conference in academics. You got the SEC which are full of cheaters and sorry academics. Vandy, Florida, and Georgia are the only creditable institutions in the SEC. Lets say Clemson join the SEC they would be the 3rd or 4th highest academic institution in the SEC…YES…Clemson! SEC has a bunch of dumb a$$ kids.
Heels Rock and Rule
July 28th, 2011
5:33 pm
Clemsondude, UNC has as much upside in football as does Clemson. And when it comes to academics, Clemson is in the bottom tier; they follow Duke, UNC, Wake, UVA, GaTech, Miami, Boston College, Maryland, and so on down the line. You would fit in fine in the SEC. And I believe you have the darkest past among the original ACC schools when it comes to NCAA football sanctions.
Paul in RDU
July 28th, 2011
5:42 pm
Heels Rock and Rule
I agree that Butch, even though he employed her as a tutor for his HS son, was likely not complicit in the issues with Jennifer Wiley, the tutor. However, there were all sorts of problems throughout the program – the Associate HC, a guy known as “Black Santa”, a 35 year friend of Davis, being paid by an agent – a runner for an agent having free run of the training facility (same guy purchased AJ Green’s jersey) – blatant plagiarism by several players. Heck, the plagiarism wasn’t caught by the UNC Honor Court.
Who hired Blake? Who hired Wiley? Who was responsible for the program but appears to have known nothing about what was happening under his nose? Can you expect the HC who let things get so out of hand, who knew nothing, to really turn around the image of the team and school? If I were a graduate of UNC-CH, I would be far more concerned about the academic reputation of my alma mater than about the football program.
Chris M
July 28th, 2011
5:51 pm
hahaha the ACC is cheating and all of there teams still suck! Tech is just terrible and there going no where! GOOOOOOOOO DAWGS!!!!!!
CLEMSONDUDE
July 28th, 2011
5:53 pm
Heels Rock and Rule…..Put down the crack pipe. Your history in football is weak but your academics is very strong. You stupid dude, I was taking up for our conference in academics. This is why everyone in the ACC hates UNC. UNC has a huge black eye now in football and for what? LOL!. Three straight 8 wins seasons. HAHAHAHA!
FullMetalJacket
July 28th, 2011
6:15 pm
Chris M: Your post speaks volumes. “there” for “their”? “there” for “they’re”? and “no where” for “nowhere”? GOOOOOOO to class!
Glenu
July 28th, 2011
6:18 pm
Funny to see AJC sports idiots write about AJC sports idiots- isn’t one idiot enough?
FullMetalJacket
July 28th, 2011
6:29 pm
The ACC is clearly down in football and (worse) basketball in recent years and while I usually agree with you, Mark, on many issues, I can’t see that the league’s teams are mismanaged more than most of the other conferences in the country. The complexities of the rapid expansion of athletic programs and revenues are further compounded by inconsistent NCAA monitoring and enforcement. The executive administration of higher education has changed incrementally, while the role of athletics and its revenues has changed exponentially. The universities are still catching up.
Heels Rock and Rule
July 28th, 2011
6:36 pm
Clemsondude, UNC’s football past is not an embarrassment. In fact I believe UNC defeated Clemson last time they played and is favored to whip them this season. Clemson’s academic status is SEC-level.
FullMetalJacket
July 28th, 2011
6:38 pm
The most successful university athletic programs are run by (usually younger) executive managers, not former coaches, players, or alumni administrators. Similarly, many of the consistently successful football head coaches (Saban is the poster boy) are chief executives, not good ol’ boys. Notwithstanding recent NCAA ripples in both camps, Tech and Georgia are fortunate to have competent leadership in their athletic programs.
Whopper Dawg
July 28th, 2011
6:45 pm
There are three ringing endorsements of the ACC mediocrity.
1) Have never placed a team in the BCS championship game.
2) Have never had two teams in the BCS bowls in one year and in fact their champ is usually relegated to playing the big east champ in the laugher bowl.
And my favorite:
3) The ACC championship game has so many vacant seats it is laugh out loud funny when the network shows the stands (by mistake). And they can’t figure out where to play it. What a travesty.
CLEMSONDUDE
July 28th, 2011
7:12 pm
Heels Rock and Rule…..I am totally laughing and falling out of my chair from laughter…..Dude, you are funny! Really, put down the crack pipe. LOL!
techfan
July 28th, 2011
8:14 pm
Whopper Dawg, why were you watching the ACC championship if you hate ACC football so much?
Deuce Coupe
July 28th, 2011
8:14 pm
From SEC to ACC.
…………………………… go Jackets !
YellowJacket
July 28th, 2011
8:53 pm
I wipe my ass with SEC alumni. They flush rather well.
original ole yeller
July 28th, 2011
9:10 pm
Bradley the only journalist talent you have is to P–SS everyone off. Non talented hacks are plentiful at the AJC. You sir are at the top of the list. If I may say so you are the most biased and rebel rousing so called journalist I have ever had the misfortune of reading. Your forte is negative writing. Will there ever be a day that you call on your impartial writing ability and put forth something meaningful?
jgral
July 28th, 2011
11:57 pm
I believe the SEC has every team on ‘probation’. This is getting out of control!
–
Atlanta Insight: Top 5 Moments in ATL Sports History – http://bit.ly/atlblog
Whopper Dawg
July 29th, 2011
5:09 am
To techfan:
I didn’t, saw the stands pan on ESPN and just echoing their comments as they were laughing at the state of that game. Maybe you could play it in a high school stadium so you could fill it.
Heels Rock and Rule
July 29th, 2011
5:24 am
I expect the UNC football team to threaten to boycott the season in a move to force the UNC administration to reinstate Butch Davis as coach. They are in the best position to know if there was “cheating” go on and if Butch was aware of it.
no go
July 29th, 2011
7:06 am
who cheats more: ACC, SEC or Big 12? Can they declare a winner and award some type of cash prize with a trip?
whatever
July 29th, 2011
8:05 am
What a weak article, Mark – you must be running out of ideas for your articles. Can’t you basically say the same thing of the SEC?? How many coaching changes has the SEC been through in the last 5 yeras? Isn’t CMR the longest – by far – current head coach with the same team?
Once again, Mark – your try allegiance is showing – we all know that you are a very stout SEC with total disdain for the ACC – hence this current article.
RambleOn84
July 29th, 2011
8:39 am
A couple of things:
First, Bobby Bowden had to leave sometime.
Secondly, I think the big problem with the ACC’s turnover rate is that the schools, at the end of the day, don’t regard football very highly. Take just two examples in BC and Miami. Boston College is a constant revolving door of assistant coaches; could they get a real-life established coach to come to their school? I don’t know. They seem to consistently attract and develop above-average OL talent. I think the team could be much better with a good coach. But they don’t even seem to try.
Miami, on the other hand, is just too darn cheap. It is quite apparent that their administration doesn’t agree with their fanbase on the importance of football. Miami should be a top 10 school for a coach to want to be at; yet their last three hires (Coker, Shannon, Golden) have all been ridiculously underwhelming. I mean what does it say when the most prestigious coach you have had in the last ten years is a guy who had only moderate success coaching the most talented team in the worst conference in the country?
gt4ever
July 29th, 2011
8:54 am
Heels Rock and Rule,,,
Are you serious! UNC football SUX and it always WILL SUCK!
DawginLex
July 29th, 2011
9:24 am
t3
so let’s compare:
Calipari didn’t know Camby had hired an agent. Clearly all the player’s fault. Once he found out, he owned up to it and took the punishment
GT AD finds out about problem with player, decides to tell coach after being told not to by the NCAA and the coach and AD decide to play the player, forcing NCAA to vacate league title
Now which one is worse?
You went to Tech so you are a lot dam smarter than me.
You tell me.
smarta$$
DawginLex
July 29th, 2011
9:27 am
T3:
and you are also FOS regarding the Columbus situation.
Jones was playing for USC, not Georgia when all the money got paid. He transferred to Georgia so his individual eligibility is in question. That is the only link to Georgia.
IC didn’t play basketball for the AAU coach and is not from Greenville where Jones and Pope-Caldwell are from. No connection to IC.
You are supposed to be so dam smart since you went to Tech, you really should do a little more research before spouting off.
steverino
July 29th, 2011
9:37 am
In the last 13 seasons, the SEC has utterly dominated the weak,mid-major ACC in head to head football games to the tune of 53-43 (.552). See, a little research shows you that it is not even CLOSE.
Tifton Jacket
July 29th, 2011
10:00 am
Mark when I read the headline I thought the article was targetted a John Swofford. If you want to compare conferences, look at the horrible job Swofford has done in comparsion with Slive in the SEC. Swofford is one of the biggest reasons the ACC is so far behind the Big Ten, SEC, and Big 12 (i guess it’s now the Big 10 as well). The ACC would be better served by pushing Swofford out of the way and putting somebody that can push the league to compete with the bigger football conferences.
A good example is the new TV deal the ACC put together this week. Not only did we get less money that the other big conferences, but we had to package basketball to get ESPN to pony up the money they did.
About ACC football: Does the 'A' stand for 'awfully managed … | Antalya Football Travel Blog
July 29th, 2011
9:48 pm
[...] Read the original post: About ACC football: Does the 'A' stand for 'awfully managed … [...]
TechMom77
July 29th, 2011
10:30 pm
No Mark, but articles by you regarding Tech generally bring another three letter A word to mind!!
Buzz 2011
July 31st, 2011
5:31 am
Dawgs commenting, what a joke…..
Buzz 2011
July 31st, 2011
5:49 am
UGA is the trash of the SEC and will always be. They can’t keep players out of jail, the AD is caught with his pants down, constant recruiting violations, etc.. What makes it worse is the kids signed can’t even write in some cases. They are brought in as athletes only, meat on the lines.. Now they can’t even play on top of everything else and are at the lower end of the SEC.
” UGA”
Under…..Gators……….Auburn
Under…..Gators……….Alabama
Under…..Gators……….At most six wins
Score Check
July 31st, 2011
10:41 am
ACC football: Does that ‘A’ stand for ‘awfully managed’?
YES
Yeller Bug
August 1st, 2011
4:47 pm
If Tech loses an ACC championship over an unproven $312 of improper gifts, then UNC will get the death penalty in football. The scuttlebutt is that the problems run deep and wide—-AD is stepping down—the school Chancelor may go next. It’s a large Wiener-like scandal that will be hard to cover up. All the lies will soon come to a head.
Sting Time
August 1st, 2011
11:24 pm
The academics are much harder in the ACC than the SEC. Ever thought it might be easier to keep a coach in the SEC? It is easier to recruit when the only requirment for a player to get into your program is that he fog a mirror. UGA had a player just get in that had a hard time graduating from high school. This type of thing happens in Athens every year and all we hear about is how great they are. Give me a break. The SEC is a joke academically with the exception of Vandy and I feel sorry for them being stuck with a bunch of football factories.