ESPN College Football

As of today, there are 100 days until the start of the college football season.

You bet we’re counting.

If you’re Scot Loeffler, Virginia Tech's new offensive coordinator, 100 days must feel like a nanosecond. The Hokies aren’t the only ones, though, with plenty of work to do before the season begins. Here’s a checklist of five things the ACC and its teams must accomplish before the opening kickoff:

1. Name starting quarterbacks. Syracuse can’t even talk about Oklahoma transfer Drew Allen yet because he’s not on campus and won’t enroll until next month, but the Orange are just one of several teams in the ACC that still have an ongoing quarterback competition. Virginia’s quarterback controversy has seemingly gone on for years, and Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher has yet to officially anoint Jameis Winston as EJ Manuel’s successor. Pitt is also still searching for a dependable leader, along with NC State.

2. Find an offense in Blacksburg. Virginia Tech has become one of the ACC’s brand-name programs, a consistent winner and a representative in the Top 25 and BCS standings. That changed last season when the Hokies bumbled their way through their most disappointing season in 20 years. Coach Frank Beamer made sweeping changes to his offensive staff, but little improvement was seen in the spring game. Loeffler said it wasn’t a true indication of the progress that was made in the other 13 practices, but also conceded there is still a lot of work to be done. With Alabama looming in the season opener, all eyes will be on the ACC in Week 1. When the Hokies are good, the ACC is better.

3. Improve defensively. With the exception of Florida State, which finished the season ranked No. 6 in the country in scoring defense, 2012 wasn’t a banner year for ACC defenses. The conference usually has some of the nation’s best defenses -- including Boston College -- but there was no Luke Kuechly and no identity for the Eagles last fall. Miami beat Duke 52-45. Georgia Tech beat North Carolina 68-50. Clemson beat NC State 62-48. Clemson took a major step forward defensively with its bowl win against LSU, but the defense must become elite in its second season under coordinator Brent Venables if Clemson is going to be a national-title contender.

4. Minimize the turnovers. Virginia Tech was No. 86 in turnover margin last year, and quarterback Logan Thomas threw three picks in the spring game. Boston College was No. 88 in the country in turnover margin, FSU No. 93, NC State No. 99, Maryland No. 104, Virginia No. 110. That’s almost half the league ranked among the worst in the country in turnover margin. The Hokies play Alabama. Virginia plays Oregon. BC plays at USC. FSU is at Florida, and the Seminoles turned it over five times versus the Gators in FSU's 37-26 loss last year. The Gators scored 10 points off turnovers in that game. If the ACC is going to stand a chance, it can’t give away freebies.

5. Stay out of the trainer’s room. Virginia Tech standout corner Antone Exum is still rehabbing from the torn ACL he suffered in a pickup basketball game. The bulk of Wake Forest’s offensive line was walking wounded all spring, and that group will make or break the Deacons' season. Clemson backup quarterback Chad Kelly and starting tight end Sam Cooper both tore their ACLs this spring. If the ACC is going to beat the best this fall, it needs its best players on the field. For some programs, like Boston College, the depth isn’t there to afford injuries.

Pitt isn’t the only team in need of an ACC rival.

The good news in the ACC is that six teams -- Florida State, Clemson, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, Virginia and Virginia Tech already have rivalries in place should the ACC decide to reserve the final week of the regular season for rivalry games. North Carolina and NC State would also make sense, but there are still six teams in need of somebody to hate.

My take is don’t force it, because that’s the only option with Syracuse right now. Even Louisville, which will join the ACC in 2014, is already taken (Kentucky). Pitt? Well, it’s looking for a rival, too, but the Panthers have better options in the Coastal Division.

Let the rivalries emerge and develop on their own as the conference race plays out over the next few years with Syracuse and Pitt in the mix, and preserve the rivalries that are already in place. Syracuse fans probably couldn’t even tell you who their biggest rival is. Some would argue West Virginia. Others will tell you Penn State. Boston College? Meh.

Syracuse will close its first ACC season at home against former Big East teams Pittsburgh and Boston College, respectively. Those are the two most logical options for the Orange’s top rivals, and Pittsburgh has the second-longest series in Syracuse history with 67 games against the Orange. Boston College makes sense because it’s in the Northeast, fans of both schools can travel to the games, and the two programs played almost every season from 1961-2004. There’s just nothing about BC-Cuse football right now, though, that makes this series any more than two programs trying to step over each other in the Atlantic Division.

Syracuse fans should be thrilled Penn State is on the schedule this year as the opener at MetLife Stadium in The Meadowlands, but can it be a rivalry renewed? Might Syracuse have to look outside the ACC for its next true rival, or will a reunion with former Big East foes rekindle the hate?

Syracuse needs help. Cast your votes now.

From May 20-31, Insider's college football experts will be examining the national championship chances of the 10 teams with the best odds to win the BCS title this season, according to Brian Fremeau's post-spring projections. Today, KC Joyner takes a look at the path the Clemson Tigers could take to the national championship game, and the factors that could trip them up along the way.

Joyner writes that, "while their national championship chances aren't as strong as the rest of the teams we'll be profiling in the next two weeks, a zero- or one-loss season would absolutely put them in the title discussion."

Don't look now, but based on the ink they've already gotten this preseason, the Tigers are already in the conversation.

Deshaun Watson, ESPN's No. 1-rated dual-threat quarterback prospect in the Class of 2014, is committed to Clemson. He has been for about two years.

The question is whether or not he will continue to be.

And so continues the recruiting ritual, where a commitment means about as much as a second date. The SEC will continue to recruit Watson, who lives in Georgia, and Mitch Sherman of ESPN RecruitingNation went to Gainesville, Ga., to document just how firm this pledge of loyalty is right now.

So far, so good.

"I'm committed to the whole university," Watson told Sherman. "It's where I want to be."

It's also a long way until signing day.

 

Don't worry, the season will be here before you know it.

• Sammy Watkins is flying under the radar after a quiet season, but his stats tell a different story.
• Pitt is entering the ACC without a natural football rival.
• The ACC is considering a permanent rivalry week on the last weekend of the regular season, beginning in 2014, according to Jeremy Fowler.
• The legend of FSU quarterback Jameis Winston continues to grow.
• Former Virginia Tech receiver Danny Coale has been hurting in the NFL.
• Does ACC football really stink? LSU might disagree.
• FSU coach Jimbo Fisher talked about some of the biggest storylines for his program this season.
• Clemson athletic director Dan Radakovich gives his take on the program.

Seven ACC players have been named to the 2013 Watch List for the Lott IMPACT Award, honoring the top defensive player in the nation who has made an impact both on and off the field.

In all, 42 players from 37 different programs made the list. The Pac-12 led the way with 11 selections, while the ACC, Big 12 and Big Ten each had seven. The SEC had five players chosen.

Virginia Tech was one of seven schools nationally to have multiple selections on the watch list. The Hokies were joined by Baylor, Northwestern, Ohio State, Stanford, UCLA and Washington.

Here are the ACC players on the watch list:

• Duke CB Ross Cockrell
• Pittsburgh DT Aaron Donald
• Boston College LB Steele Divitto
• Virginia Tech CB Antone Exum
• Florida State CB/S Lamarcus Joyner
• Clemson LB Spencer Shuey
• Virginia Tech LB Jack Tyler

The ACC has had one previous winner in the Lott IMPACT Award's nine-year history -- Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly in 2011.

Time to check in with ESPN expert Mel Kiper Jr. to see where the top ACC prospects for the 2014 draft rank at quarterback, linebacker and tight end.

Quarterback

No. 2 Tajh Boyd, Clemson

Next up: Logan Thomas, Virginia Tech

Of Boyd, Kiper Jr. writes, "People who would question Boyd because he was throwing to a great arsenal of pass-catchers last year should watch what he did against LSU in the Chik-fil-A Bowl. Boyd might as well have gone 12 rounds with Rocky in that game. Not only did he take hits on a lot of designed runs, the LSU defense battered him. But he played through it. The kid is tough."

And yes, you knew Thomas would make this list, considering how high Kiper Jr. has been on the senior-to-be in the past. Kiper calls him a "must-watch prospect" for 2014. Boyd and Thomas are featured on ESPN Insider Travis Haney's "make-or-break scenarios" for top quarterback prospects.

Kiper also gives a shout out to Bryn Renner of North Carolina, Stephen Morris of Miami and Pete Thomas of NC State in a "more I like" category.

Tight end

No. 3 Eric Ebron, North Carolina

Kiper Jr. writes: "He has the athleticism to be split out at the next level a la an Aaron Hernandez, but I like that Ebron displays a willingness, and even a bit of a nasty streak, when called on to block."

Outside linebacker

No. 5 Jeremiah Attaochu, Georgia Tech

Next up: Christian Jones, Florida State

Kiper Jr. says of Attaochu: "Tall, rangy and with good closing speed, he could play either outside linebacker or defensive end, but projects better at OLB for the NFL."

Want more? Haney ranks the Top 10 most talented teams in America . Florida State checks in at No. 4, and Miami is at No. 8. Clemson just misses the cut at No. 12. Of those three teams, only Miami is not projected to start the season in the Top 25. But don't be surprised if the Canes end the season there.

Wrapping up on the Island today.

• On-field results don't come close to matching the league's potential.
• Notre Dame has been a factor in the optimism at spring meetings.
• Clemson coach Dabo Swinney says the ACC must produce dominant teams.
• An expanded ACC now tackles scheduling issues.
• Presenting the ACC's magician: John Swofford.
• Florida State and Georgia are in talks for a neutral-site game in 2016.
• Pitt coach Paul Chryst has been energized by the spring meetings.
• Retiring Virginia Tech president Charles Steger was an advocate for athletics.
• Here is a look at how the Hokies' linebackers stand after the spring.
• ESPN.com's Ivan Maisel on finding success in athletics and academics.

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. -- The Big Ten has mandated it would no longer play FCS competition as a way to boost its strength of scheduling.

There is no such mandate in the ACC, where league coaches and athletic directors said during spring meetings they have no issues with playing one FCS game per season. Georgia Tech athletic director Mike Bobinski said discussions about eliminating all FCS games went nowhere during the meetings.

"Geographically the Big Ten has a different set up. They have a relationship with the Mid-American Conference, which works philosophically, geographically, competitively on a lot of levels. We live in an area where there’s an awful lot of FCS football. We have some responsibility, and I think the SEC will do the same thing. I don’t think they’re going to do what the Big Ten has done, either. We feel like we have a responsibility to the sport in our region to continue to play some of those games."

Because if these games go away, many of these FCS programs will not have the money to support themselves. Payouts from these guarantee games support the entire athletic department.

"I just think it’s not something we would feel good about as a league," Bobinski said. "There’s a lot of FCS teams that are important to the sport of college football and we don’t necessarily want to cut them out."

The ACC has gotten some backlash, though, because some teams have had two FCS teams on the schedule. It happened to Florida State last year, though that was out of the Seminoles' control. When West Virginia backed out of their game last season with only months to spare, the Seminoles couldn't find an FBS team to fill the open slot.

"I don’t necessarily want to play them, either, but you go find four nonconference games, it’s a lot harder than finding three," Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher said. "I would rather play all Division I-A schools but that goes back to finding opponents that are willing to do it. You hate to get in a lot of home and homes because you do lose revenue, but at the same time you don’t want to pay an arm and a leg for what they price them out. Those situations will all determine how you schedule games. It’s harder scheduling than people think it is.

"A year ago for us we get punished but here’s the thing, whoever wrote the contract 10 years ago. We (get blamed) for getting out of it but we had nothing to do with it. There was a buyout, so West Virginia bought it out to do what’s best for them."

Clemson is in a similar situation this season, having to play two FCS teams. When the league decided to move to a nine-game league schedule, Clemson jettisoned Kent State for this season. But when Notre Dame agreed to a scheduling partnership, the league went back to eight conference games. It was too late for Clemson to get Kent State back, so it had to add a second FCS team. Georgia Tech also has two FCS teams on the schedule this year for the same reason.

Neither is ideal, and nobody supports playing two FCS games per year.

"Everybody is OK with one," Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. "There’s a lot of positives that come from it. Duke, it’s important to them to play North Carolina (Central). I think it’s great for us to play somebody in our state, a Furman, a Citadel and really create that revenue for our state and the opportunities for those student-athletes."

Miami athletic director Blake James also said the preference is to keep FCS teams on the schedule.

"You have to always be looking at what puts your program in the best position," James said. "If there were structures put in place by the league, we’d be in line with those parameters. With that said, we’ve scheduled a number of FCS opponents going out and we have a number of commitments to those institutions and we plan on honoring those commitments moving forward."

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. -- Though league scheduling was not a major topic on the spring meetings agenda, ACC coaches unanimously support an eight-game conference slate.

And they told the athletic directors as much.

The ACC scaled back from a nine-game league slate to an eight-game league slate last October after Notre Dame entered into a football scheduling partnership with the schools as part of their membership in all other sports. Notre Dame essentially takes up one nonconference spot every three years. For those teams with long-standing rivalry games like Florida State, Clemson and Georgia Tech, playing nine league games, plus Notre Dame, plus a rivalry game is untenable.

"When you’re a school like us, when you’re playing Notre Dame, South Carolina plus nine conference games, it limits you in what you can do in our out of conference scheduling," Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. "We like the flexibility that comes with being able to do a Clemson-Georgia. We’re all comfortable with eight."

And if the SEC goes to nine league games? Would the philosophy change then?

"They don’t have Notre Dame," he said. "If they had a lock-in with Michigan for five games then it might be a little different. Everybody has to pave their own way. That’s the consensus of the ACC coaches. A lot of us already have really quality nonconference opponents, plus you’re adding Notre Dame in there. If we were playing Notre Dame this year and you’ve got eight conference games, Notre Dame, Georgia and South Carolina, nobody in the SEC is playing a schedule like that."

Given the strength of schedule that is going to be a component in the College Football Playoff, the Big Ten decided to move to nine league games. But there is a delicate balancing act that schools must follow.

"You can overschedule, too," Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe said. "If your schedule’s too tough it may give you two or three losses. You may be a heck of a team but you’re not getting in at the end if you have 2 or 3 losses. There’s a balance. You want to have strength of schedule, but you don’t want your schedule so strong that throughout the course of 12 games you’re not going to win but eight or 9."

Though Georgia Tech athletic director Mike Bobinski is not in favor of a nine-game league schedule, he wants to hear more about the possibilities. And not every single AD is in favor of eight league games. Virginia Tech athletic director Jim Weaver, for one, remains in favor of a nine-game league schedule.

Athletic directors are the ones with a final say, not the coaches. But it doesn't seem like there will be any movement for now.

"I wouldn't necessarily be in favor of the nine-game model although I’d like to hear more conversation about it, and there are several of us in that room with the same dynamic as us," he said. "We haven’t gotten together as a group and talked through that yet."

The current bowl math doesn’t favor the expanded version of the ACC.

With eight bowls and 14 teams in the conference, that means only 57 percent of the ACC will make the postseason this year, at most.

3682361With 14 teams in the conference, including Pittsburgh and Syracuse, there has to be more than the current eight guaranteed bowl slots moving forward, but what number will constitute the “sweet spot” ACC commissioner John Swofford said he is looking for? Especially considering how Notre Dame will soon be elbowing its way into the league’s bowl lineup and taking one of those coveted spots? (If Notre Dame is ranked higher than or equal to an ACC bowl-eligible team, or is within one victory of a bowl eligible team, the Irish can be selected for that bowl spot.) Swofford recently told ESPN.com that the league could increase its bowl tie-ins to nine or 10 games. Will that be enough? Too many?

Last year, when the SEC went to 14 teams, it added the Independence Bowl as its 10th bowl tie in, but only nine teams qualified, and one -- Alabama -- was playing in the national championship. With the new College Football Playoff system to start in 2014, the ACC will have to replace the Chick-fil-A Bowl in its lineup, as that bowl will be one of the host bowls in the playoff. The ACC also has to consider the possibility of having a team in the playoff. It also has to acknowledge the reality of having only eight bowl-eligible teams on average:

ACC’s bowl eligible teams during 12-team era

2012: 6 (not including UNC and Miami, which were ineligible)

2011: 9

2010: 9

2009: 7

2008: 10 (ACC record)

2007: 8

2006: 8

2005: 8

The number of bowl games is currently up for debate. Cast your votes now.

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. -- ACC coaches are in favor of having the coaches' poll be a part of the criteria used by the selection committee to determine the four teams in the College Football Playoff.

Duke coach David Cutcliffe, serving as league coaches' chair, told ESPN.com on Wednesday during the league's spring meetings that his group also is in favor of having every single coach have a vote in the poll and complete transparency in the voting. They also favor doing away with a preseason poll, and releasing their first poll at some point during the season -- much in the way the BCS standings are released.

League coaches also favor the model used by the NCAA basketball selection committee, with either current athletic directors or conference representatives serving on the committee, as opposed to retired coaches.

"For the most part, we wanted to see conference representation and institutional representation rotated to some degree but the biggest item for us is the criteria of selecting those four teams. We want our coaches’ poll to matter," Cutcliffe said. "In another sense, all the coaches have a vote on the committee, and we think that’s good for the game, for the coaches to be good stewards of who’s in that national championship picture.

"All of us having a vote, the vote becoming transparent and the vote being conscientiously done. We think we’re qualified. We’re not watching every game on the East Coast, on the West Coast, but no one else is, either. We see a lot of film of a lot of people. We know who’s good, and who’s best -- maybe moreso than anybody else is looking at the game."

The one key piece to the College Football Playoff puzzle that remains unresolved is how the selection committee will look, and how they will go about selecting the four teams to make the playoff. Conference commissioners left meetings last month without any clear consensus, though it appears unlikely the committee will feature a representative from all 10 FBS leagues.

Cutliffe said there was no consensus from the coaches on who should serve on the committee, only that they favored having various leagues represented.

The coaches' poll is currently used in the BCS formula, but those with a vote have come under some heavy criticism in the past for their final votes. Some have shown bias in favoring their own conference in their final rankings. Others have pointed out that some coaches do not even do their own voting.

The BCS standings are being eliminated this year.

"Part of our concern was when you start naming individual coaches, it’s so hard to not have bias by coaches that have coached in certain leagues so the way we looked at it is if we allowed all the coaches to vote in the coaches poll and the coaches poll was looked at as a major contributing factor to the selection process, then all college coaches would have some input into the selection process," Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe said. "We’re just throwing things out right now because I don’t think anybody has a firm grasp of things.

"Will you have some bias from each coach? Absolutely you will, but through the country if it got balanced out, you’d probably still have a pretty legitimate idea of at least who the coaches thought the top four teams were."

Coaches agree bias cannot be completely eliminated in this process. That is why they are hopeful football adopts the basketball committee model. Ten members serve on the NCAA Division I basketball committee, and the group is balanced geographically. Georgia Tech athletic director Mike Bobinski served as committee chair for the last two tournaments.

"There is a model because basketball’s had a committee for a long time," North Carolina coach Larry Fedora said. "You’re going to have some of that. There’s nobody going to be out there that’s an expert on football that doesn’t have some affiliation somewhere in the past with a league or a team or anything so I don’t think you can do away with that."

Ingrained biases or perceptions do not concern at least one league coach.

"With the schedule that Clemson plays every year, if we take care of our business, all that stuff takes care of itself," Tigers coach Dabo Swinney said. "All I can tell you is Clemson worries about Clemson. We go and handle our business on the field, if we’re a one-loss team or no-loss team, Clemson with the brand we have, we’re right there."

More from Amelia Island today.

• ESPNU 150 receiver Demarre Kitt is going to choose between Clemson, Ohio State and Tennessee on June 10.
• Here is an early look at how Duke's recruiting class is shaping up.
• Athlon Sports asks, "How many games will Florida State win in 2013?" Here is an early Seminoles preview.
• Running back Johnathan Thomas talks about his decision to commit to Maryland.
• Miami coach Al Golden just wants closure from the NCAA. The Hurricanes' new athletics facility is nearly complete.
• Pitt coach Paul Chryst says he is holding his players to higher standards.
• Syracuse is one of the many schools vying for a commitment from defensive end Thomas Holley, quickly rising up recruiting rankings.
• Virginia and Virginia Tech try to balance business and football with their nonconference scheduling.

Stay tuned for updates from the spring meetings.

• Here are a few notes from Day 1.
• Several ACC records are in reach for Clemson quarterback Tajh Boyd.
• Injured Duke receiver Blair Holliday will enroll in summer classes.
• Will Myles Autry join his brother on the Georgia Tech football team?
• Here is a Maryland recruiting update from Alex Prewitt of The Washington Post.
• Miami picked up a commitment from quarterback Brad Kaaya, but commit Alin Edouard is wavering.
• Torry Holt has been selected for the NC State Hall of Fame.
• Who else deserves to have their jersey retired at Syracuse?
• Andy Bitter of the Virginian-Pilot recaps how the Virginia Tech defensive line did this spring.

Today, Mel Kiper begins a weeklong series looking at the top players at their respective positions for the 2014 NFL draft.

This is obviously an incredibly early look at where some of these prospects rank, but gives a good sense of who stands where with nearly a year to go before the draft rolls around again.

First up: receivers and defensive ends . Here is a look at the top ACC prospects at each spot:

Receiver

• No. 2 Sammy Watkins, Clemson. Kiper says: "Watkins has good size at 6-2, strong hands and is a big threat once he catches the ball. I'd be surprised if he didn't come back with a good season, but he needs to have a good August, too."
• Next up: Devin Street, Pitt.