Category: ACC Football (Page 2 of 2)

Ultimate College Football Preview, 130 Teams In A 130 Days: Louisville

April 24, 2023 / John Broderick

Welcome to the Ultimate College Football Preview for 2023. Every team in FBS Football will be covered in this daily blog release. All of your favorite teams from the ACC, AAC, Big 12, Big 10, C-USA, MAC, Mountain West, PAC 12, SEC, Sun Belt & even every Independent. Think of these daily college football previews as a cheat sheet going into next year.

2022 Recap:

The Cards had an average year last year with a 4-4 conference record and an overall of 8-5. The defense was just outside the top ten in points allowed per game, only allowing an average of 19.2 points. The defense was the only bright side of the team which struggled on special teams, and the offense was in the bottom third of all college football. I can’t say factually, but the team seemed to have known that Satterfield was on his way out. The effort was on a different level when interim coach Deion Branch took over for the Fenway Bowl where they dominated the whole game. The Cards loved playing for Branch and the talent was there. They just needed a leader.

Head Coach:

The Cards have Jeff Brohm coming in as their head coach this year. Brohm comes over from Purdue where he had moderate success at the lower tiered Big 10 school. The offense at Purdue was very improved when Brohm took over, as he was a former QB. The issue he had at Purdue was acquiring and recruiting top tier talent. I personally think he will get much higher ranked recruits to play in his great system. If he can make Aidan O’Connell and Charlie Jones household names and All-Americans, I can’t wait to see what he does at Louisville.

Key Players:

Coach Brohm brought one of his guys over from Purdue in QB Jack Plummer. While Plummer started at Cal last season he completed 62.5 % of his throws for 3,095 yard with 21 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. He knows Brohm’s offense from Purdue when he started 13 games and played in 17 under Brohm. His numbers were good at 64.8% completion, 3,405 yards with 26 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He was in the system for 4 years; he knows all the ins and outs. The offense last year depended a lot on Malik Cunningham’s legs. This year it will be Plummer throwing to Jamari Trash, Jadon Thompson and Amari Huggins-Bruce.

2023 Prediction:

First off, they don’t have a nice little image of their schedule. So that’s bullshit. I think a goal for the Cards this year should be 8 wins and if they get to 9, it will be a great year. The Non-Conference isn’t that difficult with games against Murray State, Indiana, and of course the other team from the same state. They should win all of those games and 5 or 6 in conference will be a great year for the first year under Brohm.

2023 Louisville Football Schedule

Home (7):
Murray State 🐴
Boston College 🦅
Virginia 🙏🏾
Virginia Tech 🦃
Notre Lame 🍀
Duke 😈
That team down the road 🖕🏾🖕🏾

Road/Neutral (3/2):
GT (neutral site in Atlanta)🐝
IU (neutral site in Indy) 🖕🏾🖕🏾
Miami 🏝️
Pitt 🐆
NCST 🐺
— King Fiasco (@LJthaFiasc0) November 28, 2022

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Ultimate College Football Preview, 130 Teams In A 130 Days: Georgia Tech

April 23, 2023 / John Broderick

2022 Recap:

It was a tough year for the Ramblin’ Wreck. Their coach, Geoff Collins was fired after a 1-3 start to the year. They did finish decent ending up with a 5-7 overall record. One bright side is they did end up .500 at 4-4 in conference play which is a silver lining after a year of shit. The team was just not competitive the first 4 weeks of the year losing 3 games by an average of 30 points. Once the change at coach was made Georgia Tech woke up and played competitive and even winning football from the middle of the year on.

Head Coach:

As stated before Geoff Collins was replaced by new head coach Brent Key after the first quarter of the season. Key was the Assistant Head Coach and Offensive Line coach before taking over for Collins. He has been at Georgia Tech since 2019 before he had a stop as Offensive Line Coach at Alabama from 2016-2018. Before that he was at UCF as Assistant Head Coach and O-Line Coach from 2009 til 2016. He preaches hard nose run the ball and play defense football. Leading the Ramblin’ Wreck to a 4-4 season, he has a lot to prove to keep his place in Atlanta.

Key Players:

Let’s be honest this team was dog shit on offense. Their one playmaker Jeff Sims at Quarterback transferred out of Georgia Tech. They did however get once highly touted QB Haynes King in the portal who is expected to start. Their best weapon coming back is RB Dontae Smith who had 420 yards rushing and 5 touchdowns. All of their starting Wr’s will be new weapons and are unproven. The defense does return a good amount of starters and contributors from last year. The only issue is their defense was ranked 84th in points allowed. They will need unknown guys to step up and become leaders and playmakers on both sides of the ball.

2023 Prediction:

The Wreck have a very difficult Non-Conference schedule playing @ Ole Miss and vs. home state rival Georgia. Looking at the teams in conference and what the Yellow Jackets have on both sides of the ball it doesn’t look great. I would expect them to win 5 games 6 at the most. If this team goes bowling this year that is a huge win for the program.

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Ultimate College Football Preview, 130 Teams In A 130 Days: Florida State

April 22, 2023 / John Broderick

2022 Recap:

The Noles had an up and down to back up season last year. Starting off with a big win vs. LSU and winning the next two. Then the drop off happened, losing their next 3 games, all in conference. The Noles finished strong winning its next 7 games, including knocking off rival Florida and beating Oklahoma in the Cheez-It Bowl. Finishing the season at 10-3 and ranked 11th in the AP Poll. It was an overall successful season and if they don’t lose close conference games in the middle of the year this could have been a playoff team.

Head Coach:

Coach Norvell is coming into his fourth year in Tallahassee. After a terrible first year going 3-6 followed by a 5-7 record things turned for Norvell last year. He has improved every year with the Noles, despite notable criticism from local and national media. To take a team from 3-6 to 10-3 and ranked in the top 15 in two years is impressive. A lot of the criticism comes from the Noles’ own fan base who didn’t want to hire the Group of 5 coach. I personally think the turn around Coach Norvell has done is impressive and he will continue that this year.

Key Players:

Jordan Travis is a big time Heisman trophy candidate for the 2023 year. The dual threat QB, when healthy, is one of the most dynamic players in college football. While not playing in every game, Travis still was able to complete 64% of his passes for 3,200 yards 24 touchdowns and only 5 interceptions. Travis also rushed for over 400 yards and 8 touchdowns. Florida State always have great WRs, but let me tell you about 6’7 Sophomore Johnny Wilson. This man is a flat out stud and will be a household name after this year. Last year he had 43 catches for 897 yards and 5 touchdowns. That is over 20 yards per catch; the man has big play all over him. Wilson, along with Seniors Mycah Pittman & Winston Wright Jr., might be the best receiving group in the country. The defense is young but has over 14 players coming back that contributed in a big way lead by Senior LB Tatum Bethune.

2023 Prediction:

If you look at the schedule, there is a very good chance this team could be undefeated going into the last game of the year @ rival Florida. Now the first game of the year is a huge test with LSU coming into Camping World Stadium in Orlando. It is not an actual home game, but the crowd should be majority Noles. If they get by the Tigers of LSU and then the Tigers of Clemson on the road, the schedule lightens up a lot. The ACC has a lot of bottom feeders that the Noles should handle easily. I am predicting they split vs the 2 Tiger teams and beat the Gators. If they don’t have 10 wins and are playing for an ACC title it will be a disappointing year for FSU.

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Ultimate College Football Preview, 130 Teams In A 130 Days: Duke

April 21, 2023 / John Broderick

2022 Recap:

The Blue Devils finished much better than experts predicted last year. They went 9-4 overall and 5-3 in Conference play. Duke ended its season with a win vs. UCF in the Military Bowl. They had a top 35 offense in points per game and a top 35 defense in points per game. They had a very balanced offense with 5 players over 500 yards rushing. This team was a big surprise and took advantage of a down ACC last year.

Head Coach:

First year head coach Mike Elko brought grit and stability to the Blue Devils last year, surprising most in college football with 9 wins. The long time successful defensive coordinator had his defense in the top 35 overall in the country in efficiency. Elko’s brand of defense mixed with Kevin Johns clever offensive play calling could have Duke as more than just a basketball school.

Chasing excellence in every arena. #LETSGODUKE @DukeMBB @DukeWBB https://t.co/pNJeRUuzAJ
— Coach Mike Elko (@CoachMikeElko) March 1, 2023

Key Players:

There is no bigger player for Duke this year than JR QB Riley Leonard. Last year he completed just shy of 64 % of his passes for almost 3000 yards. He added in 20 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. His dual threat ability will be key for the Blue Devils. Duke was a well balanced team last year running and throwing. A big key to that was the three headed monster of Waters, Coleman and Moore. Each of the running backs had over 550 yards rushing and had 18 combined touchdowns. The defense will be lead by Senior Safety Jaylen Stinson. The teams third leading tackler also had 2 interceptions and will be a huge part of the defense next year.

2023 Prediction:

The Devils have a decently tough schedule in 2023, starting game one with Clemson. They also have a tough game at home vs. Notre Dame and Northwestern, which we never know what Wildcats team we will get year to year. I would put this team between 7-9 wins with the latter being a great year 2 for Coach Elko. The momentum from last year can really help the Blue Devils going into this year and the years following.

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Ultimate College Football Preview, 130 Teams In A 130 Days: Clemson

April 19, 2023 / John Broderick

2022 Recap:

Last year, even finishing with 11 wins and only 3 losses, the Tigers underachieved. Going into the 2022 season, expectations were through the roof for Clemson. They went undefeated in conference play and won the ACC Championship, but that’s a given in Clemson, South Carolina. There was QB controversy and what looked like a lack of effort in some games. The loss to Notre Dame can be forgiven, but losing to in state South Carolina, at home, is unacceptable. Then to end the year, they were run off the field by Tennessee. For most teams 11 wins is a great year; but not for the Tigers.

Head Coach:

Dabo Sweeney is one of the best coaches in college football. He might have taken a little credibility hit after last year. Dabo did not have his Offensive Coordinator, Tony Elliot, who was on staff for 10 years. He left to become the UVA head coach. Also Dabo did not have 10-year Defensive Coordinator Brent Venables who left for Oklahoma. The Tigers were not totally clicking on each side of the ball and those two leaving played a factor in that. I am sure a year without them and working with new staff Dabo will right ship. He made a smart decision by accepting transfers this year, as he was steadfast against the transfer portal at first.

Key Players:

When you are talking 2023 college football previews, a top name in the country is Cade Klubnik. Hailed as a savior by some Tigers fans last year, they were begging for him to take D.J. Uiagalelei out of games last year. He went 1-1 as the starter last season, winning the ACC Championship game but losing the Orange Bowl. There is no doubt the Clemson offense all comes down to his play & decision making. He will have veteran Will Shipley in the backfield as a great security blanket. Randall and Collins are big play makers on the outside if the ball can get to them. The defense is always good and they have a ton of upper class veterans starting. It will take that leadership and some young talent to replace Murphy, Bresee and Simpson. All were leaders and big contributors on the defensive side of the ball.

2023 Prediction:

I openly just laughed at Clemson’s schedule this year. It is unbelievably easy. The hardest game of the year is at South Carolina followed by home vs. Notre Dame. I don’t see them losing a conference game, because the ACC is kind of laughable. The two “tough” ACC games are both home vs. FSU & UNC. If they don’t go undefeated or 1 loss next year it will look like a bad year again for Clemson. In all honesty, they have a very good chance to cruise to the playoff.

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Ultimate College Football Preview, 130 Teams In 130 Days: Boston College

April 19, 2023 / John Broderick

2022 Recap:

The Boston College Eagles finished last year with a 3-9 overall record. They went 2-6 in ACC play. I am not going to sugar coat it for you BC fans, they sucked last year. The injury bug plagued the offensive line which did not help. Minus the games they won, they were not very competitive in ACC play either. Losing their starting QB Phil Jurkovec to an in conference team was the cherry on top of BC’s shitty 2022 cake.

Head Coach:

Coach Jeff Hafley is coming into his 4th season as the Eagles coach with a 15-20 overall record. Besides the last season, he had Boston College over .500 and even to a bowl game 2 years ago. The defensive minded head coach needs to find a way to shut down the high flying ACC offenses. The Eagles have been a historically gritty defensive team that grind games out on offense. He really needs to find his guys this year and establish an identity.

Key Players:

It looks like Red Shirt Sophomore Emmett Morehead will be at the helm of the Eagles offense. He completed almost 60% of his passes last season with 10 touchdowns and 6 interceptions and 1250 yards. He will depend heavily on WR Joseph Griffin Jr. and Jaden Williams to make plays for the offense. Both wide outs are capable of play making, but need to elevate their game to help the Eagles be more efficient. I am guessing Pat Garwo will be the starting back behind a healthier offensive line that will be improved. I do imagine the Eagles will have a 3 person rotation at the running back. The defense has 9 of the starters as upper class-men and I really believe as a unit will be dramatically improved.

2023 Prediction:

Boston College has 4 very winnable games in their non conference schedule. UConn, Navy, Holy Cross and Northern Illinois, with 3 of those games being at home. With what I think will be an improved defense, they should be much more competitive this year. If the offense can click just a little, they should be able to win at least 3 or 4 games in conference and go bowling this year. If they fall short of that, look for the Eagles to make a change at the top.