ACC players of the week
NC State redshirt-junior quarterback Russell Wilson and teammate Nate Irving, a redshirt-senior middle linebacker, each set career bests Saturday and headline a list of six players recognized as the Atlantic Coast Conference Football Players of the Week, announced Monday by the ACC.
Wilson accumulated a career-high 368 passing yards – which ranks 18th in school history – and three scores while passing to 10 different receivers as NC State topped Georgia Tech 45-28. Irving, who was honored as the Walter Camp Foundation National Defensive Player of the Week Sunday, tallied a career-high 16 tackles against the Yellow Jackets, including 4.5 for loss.
Also recognized were Miami’s Orlando Franklin, the offensive lineman of the week selection, and North Carolina’s Bruce Carter, the defensive back honoree. Virginia Tech’s Chris Hazley was named specialist of the week, while Maryland’s Danny O’Brien earned rookie of the week honors. Read more
ACC TV gametimes for Oct. 9
The Atlantic Coast Conference on Monday announced the following game times and networks for the games of Oct. 9. All times are Eastern.
- Boston College at NC State, ACC Network, 12 p.m.
- Central Michigan at Virginia Tech, ESPNU, 12 p.m.
- Clemson at North Carolina, ABC/ESPN*, 3:30 p.m .
- Virginia at Georgia Tech, ESPNU, 3:30 p.m.
- Navy at Wake Forest, ESPN3.com, 6:30 p.m.
- Florida State at Miami, ABC, 8 p.m.
ESPN3.com is ESPN’s video streaming platform
*Shown regionally on ABC and to the rest of the country on ESPN
North Carolina: Can Heels turn the corner?
North Carolina at Virginia: Oct. 16
Virginia Tech at North Carolina: Nov. 13
Butch Davis didn’t come to Chapel Hill to win eight games a year. The former University of Miami and Cleveland Browns head man is at North Carolina to win championships.
If UNC is going to make the leap from middle-of-the-pack status to ACC elite, it’s going to come with extra emphasis on the offensive side of the ball.
“We’ve got to play better as a team, special-teams-wise and offensively. I don’t think we’re good enough or talented enough to win 7-0 every single week on defense,” Davis said.
The Carolina offense struggled to move the chains in 2009, gaining 307.8 yards a game of total offense, 11th in the ACC, and scoring 23.8 points per game, good for 10th in the league. Read more
Greenberg: ‘We’re still really trying to find ourselves’
12-1 Hokies getting ready for ACC opener with UNC
Story by Chris Graham
freepress2@ntelos.net
Coaches of 12-1 teams talking about their teams “trying to find” themselves are almost always engaging in subterfuge. “I don’t want my team to think there as good as I think they are” might be what they’re really saying. That, or, “I am superstititious, and if I start thinking we’re good, then, poof, it all goes away.”
Virginia Tech basketball coach Seth Greenberg is the rare one telling the truth saying his 12-1 Hokies are still trying to find themselves. Read more
Some, ahem, Bold Predictions
I called a couple of things right last year – that the UVa. basketball team would lose 20 games and cost Dave Leitao his job (they lost 18, and Leitao is gone), and that UVa. would for financial reasons regret retaining Al Groh as its head football coach (and now they’re practically begging people to buy tickets, and not finding any takers). Read more
Seven ACC ballers picked in NBA Draft first round
The ACC led all conferences with seven first-round draft picks in the 2009 NBA Draft – the Pac-10 was second with six. Since 1986, the ACC has had 88 players selected in the first round of the NBA draft, the Big East is second with 76 and the Pac-10 third with 67. Read more
Jeff Fife | An open letter to Valley UNC fans
Most of the Carolina fans around here are trying to figure out who they’d rather play in the second round, Butler or LSU. But as Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast, my friend.” Even though Radford is a 26. and a half-point underdog and a #16 seed has never beaten a #1 seed, the Hustling Highlanders should give the Tar Heels a little more action than they anticipate. Read more
