Stuck Inside of Tampa with the ACC Blues Again

John Swofford was probably hoping for a better Saturday for his league. Instead, he'll go into next weekend praying that it doesn't get any worse than it already is.

Going into Saturday, there appeared to be some added clarity with Miami's 16-14 defeat of the Hokies Thursday night. The Coastal Division seemed to be the 17th ranked Tar Heels' territory for the taking. They had three winnable games right in front of them. They couldn't even get past the first one, however, losing to Maryland 17-15 in the cold rains of College Park.

Now, the ACC is assured of two three-loss teams playing in the title game in Tampa on Dec. 6. Miami, who only has two conference losses, looks to now be the team most in control of its own destiny. Win out and they stay in Flordia to compete for a conference championship and solidify Randy Shannon as ACC Coach of the Year.

But what happens if they lose to Georgia Tech next week or to N.C. State on Nov. 29? Leaving the Dean E. Smith Center Saturday night and hearing disappointed Tar Heel fans, who had stayed to watch the end of the Maryland game on the arena's big-screen televisions, discuss the possible scenarios made about as much sense as someone deciphering the meaning of "Twin Peaks." Virginia was even still discussed. One fan said that someone should just double-check to make sure Duke had been eliminated from the scenario.

And things are not any better in the Atlantic Division for Swofford. Riley Skinner getting sacked on fourth down assured the Demon Deacs of a letdown in Raleigh Saturday evening at the hands of the Wolfpack, who, just as they did last year, find themselves on their way to a nice surge at the end of the season.

The Wolfpack are emblematic of the up and down season in the conference. Win next week in Chapel Hill and Nov. 29 at home against the Hurricanes, and they are bowl eligible.

You heard me correctly. N.C. State could still go to a bowl.

With the Wake Forest loss, 20th ranked Florida State found itself atop the Atlantic. Is anyone surprised at Christian Ponder throwing three interceptions and the Seminoles dropping one at home to the Boston College Eagles 27-17?

No team in the league can stand prosperity. Every team is a "Flavor-of-the-Week" or a "Your-Guess-Is-As-Good-As-Mine."

The only thing we know is that no team is an answer to the league's disappointing record in BCS contests. With Swofford needing a team to emerge and redeem the league's reputation on a national scale, it doesn't look like 2008 is the year for that.