The ACC: 12 Early Questions Entering 2009

We're kicking off the 2009 season in the spring this year and the ACC looks to be gearing up for a banner year. Watch for routine updates, starting with this introduction to the ACC's spring season.

12) How will the Yellow Jackets respond to the early success?

In Paul Johnson’s first season the Jackets surged out to a very admirable 9-4 record, finishing second in the Coastal Division and showing the nation that the option wasn’t dead; it’d just taken a break from BCS football. Johnson’s young Jacket squad was only learning the option in 2008 in the 2009 season this roster will be peppered with Johnson recruits and anchored by players experienced in running the attack.

With both quarterback Josh Nesbitt and the ACC’s leading rusher Jonathan Dwyer returning the Ramblin’ Wreck possess the nucleus of the nation’s fourth best rushing attack. The key to the spring will be the Jacket’s ability to shore up a defense that lost defense linemen Vance Walker, Darryl Richard and Michael Johnson and their best cover corner Jahi Word-Daniels.

11) Can Jim Grobe replace his first ever “star” class?

Steve Justice and Kenny Moore were drafted in 2008 but 2009’s NFL draft holds the true keys to Wake Forests four year run in the ACC. Aaron Curry, Chip Vaughn and Alphonso Smith are three of the best players to ever step foot on the tiny campus in Winston-Salem and their departure is going to be felt by the Deacon defense....

Replacing Curry, the do everything linebacker along with Smith and Vaughn will be no small task and it will be interesting to see how Grobe’s “a redshirt for everyone” strategy works to fill these positions. The Deac’s offense looks to be ready to hit the ground running in ’09; returning Riley Skinner (QB), Josh Adams (RB) and DJ Boldin (WR) will go along way towards buying time for their defense to gel.

10) Did Gene DiFilipo (after the soap opera) pick a winner?

BC’s not known for drama, they’re a blue collar, hard working school outside of Boston with great academics and a hardnosed, get it done football attitude. However, DiFilipo’s offseason posturing with former Coach Jeff Jagodzinski put the spotlight squarely on the New England campus for a week. When a coach goes 20-8 in two seasons at a middle tier football school it’s expected that he’ll be courted by other, better jobs; what is not expected is for the AD to attempt to strong arm the coach out taking job interviews.

DiFilipo’s bizarre approach to keeping a successful coach ended in Jagz leaving and BC staring down the barrel, scrambling to make a hire to salvage their recruiting class. Enter Frank Spaziani, he’s put in over a decade of work for the Eagles on the defensive side of the ball and he’s a coaching staff, player, fan and campus favorite in Chestnut Hill. He’s finally got his shot at the top spot and now it’s up to him to prove he can extend BC’s consecutive bowl trips to eleven while trying to find a quarterback and a defense to get him there.

9) Will the Terps run their way to a solid Atlantic finish?

Last season the story coming from College Park centered on Darrius Heyward-Bey not getting the football enough due to inconsistent quarterback play from Chris Turner and Jordan Steffy. This season, Turner and Heyward-Bey are gone and the Terps should return all but one offensive lineman. The story now focuses on Steffy handing the ball off to the ACC’s most dynamic running tandem; Da’Rel Scott and Davin Meggett.

Both showed flashes of brilliance in 2008 but the Terps were too inconsistent to take full advantage of the potent one-two punch. In 2009, with an experienced offensive line and no proven receivers look for the Terps to ride the legs of Meggett and Scott to ACC success. They may not post the gaudy per game numbers of the “run-centric” Georgia Tech offense but they will be a potent attack built to punish defenses in the fourth quarter.

8) What is Thaddeus Lewis going to do without Eron Riley?

Sure if you look at the stats you’ll see that Riley only caught 61 of Lewis’ 224 completions and only 693 of the quarterbacks 2,171 yards or only 27% and 39% of the aforementioned passing statistics. However, take a look closer and you’ll see that Lewis’ go to, speedy receiver accounted for eight of the quarterback’s fifteen touchdown passes. That’s 53% and that number will be a lot harder to replace.

Riley’s 61 catches more than doubled any other Duke receiver’s production so the Devils will turn to receiver by committee. The talented trio of Donovan Varner, Johnny Williams and running back Jay Hollingsworth will have to work together to pick up Riley’s leftovers. Varner, a converted cornerback, showed promise last season snatching 21 catches and showing flashes of athleticism in the open field. If Coach Cut can find a legitimate deep threat he may be able to keep defenses honest and push towards Duke’s first bowl since 1995.

7) Will the massive staff overhaul save Al Groh’s job?

With the exception of Tommy Bowden for obvious reasons, no coach’s seat was hotter during the season than Al Groh’s. The coach lost his job, saved his job then tried to lose his job over the course of the season’s twelve games. At one point the Wahoos were tied for the Coastal lead only to drop their last four games for a 5-7 finish and no bowl appearance.

Groh fired three assistants, two assistants left on their own accord and in the off-season the grizzly veteran has pushed to fill his staff with quality football coaches. He’s added Latrell Scott and Gregg Brandon with the hopes of bolstering his offensive production. Meanwhile long time NFL and college assistant Bob Trott has signed on to coach linebackers and former Kansas State coach Ron Prince is back in Charlottesville to head the special teams units. Will this remodeling of the staff be enough to get Groh a few more years in the land of the Wah-Hoo-Wah?

6) How will Bowden’s ‘Noles handle the added scrutiny?

We all know the Bobby Bowden, truly one of college football’s good guys, will handle the added attention the way he always has, with grace; but how will his young football team respond. The nation’s eye has turned back to Tallahassee for all the wrong reasons following the cheating scandal and NCAA sanctions levied just over a week ago. Just as Christian Ponder was setting up to battle EJ Manuel to retain his starting position the NCAA shine’s their security guard flashlight on the dark underbelly of FSU sports.

Instead of focusing on how the Noles will replace NFL draft bound Everett Brown and the ever present showdown between Bowden and Joe Pa the nation will be poking around the capital trying to dig up more dirt on the Noles. Its been over a decade since the “Crimi-Noles” moniker debuted and once again FSU finds itself between a rock and a hard place; the difference is those “Crimi-Noles” teams were dominating the ACC, this team has yet to prove itself.

5) What is Tom O’Brien going to do with Mike Glennon?

This time a year ago the Wolfpack faithful were raving about their incoming freshman Mike Glennon. The brother of Virginia Tech quarterback Sean Glennon, Mike was the Pack’s ace in the hole, set to enroll in the summer and become the savior of the red and the white. Enter Russell Wilson, 2008’s ACC Rookie of the Year and the quarterback of 2008’s All-ACC team.

O’Brien is the model of consistency, the poster boy for steadiness and uniformity which is why there will likely be no open competition as the Pack enter spring football. The job will be Wilson’s and barring some outrageous Festivus styled “feats of strength” Glennon won’t come close to anything but mop up duty for the Wolfpack. This team rallies around the savvy Wilson and, if he’s healthy all season, the quickly improving Pack have a shot at winning eight, or more, games this season.

4) Can Jacory Harris showcase his talent with Marve out of the picture?

The two quarterback system enacted by offensive coordinator Patrick Nix called for Harris and Robert Marve to alternate series in the first half, never truly allowing either quarterback to truly get into the flow of the game early. Nix is out the door, Mark Whipple is in as the new OC. Marve, after violating team rules, is also out of the door in Coral Gables. It’s time for the Harris show.

Mr. Football in Florida in 2007, the true freshman showed poise in big spots including a comeback win over Virginia and a battle against a ranked Virginia Tech team. He has a live arm, outstanding mobility and a core of talented young receivers. The biggest story will be Harris’ reunion on field Saturdays with his favorite high school target the 6’5” 205 pound wide receiver Tommy Streeter. This dynamic duo looks to connect for big plays as the Canes revamped offense gives Whipple plenty of toys to experiment with.

3) How can the Tar Heels replace Nicks, Foster and Tate?

52 is the number of total receptions that return on the Tar Heels 2009 roster, including tight ends, backs and receivers. 114, is the amount of receptions Nicks, Foster and Tate combined for in 2008; Nicks totaled some 68 receptions on his own. In other words the Heels are inexperienced on the perimeter offensively and leave returning quarterback TJ Yates without a capable, proven, reliable go to receiver. The running game with emerging star Shaun Draughn will be the Tar Heel’s safety net but without a viable pass attack expect opponents to stack the box against the Heels.

Here is where the situation gets dicey: the Heels have Greg Little, a wide receiver, converted to running back, converted back to wide receiver to lead their receiving core but behind him the group totals zero receptions and limited game time. On the bright side the Heels have a bevy of highly touted, big and physical wide outs; sophomore Dwight Jones (6’4” 220 lbs) and freshmen Joshua Adams (6’4” 200 lbs), Todd Harrelson (6’2” 190 lbs) lead the charge as the young men auditioning for the spot opposite Little during the spring.

Looking at the build of UNC’s receiving core is there any doubt that Michael Irvin was one of Davis’ favorite U prospects and Cowboy receiver? It is far too early to anoint any of these talents as Irvin-esque but if they can work to fill Nicks’ shoes (68 rec, 1,222 yds) they will be well on their way to being Davis and UNC’s next big thing.

2) How is “That Boy” going to do in his first full season?

Last season Dabo Swinney inspired the Pickens County campus with his fiery antics including the “Tiger Walk”, kissing Howard’s Rock and the live television berating of a punter who failed to hustle off the field. What is next up for the man from Alabama? Transitioning his second half of the season inspirational novelty act into a full time culture infusion for Tiger Town. The roster is chock full of talent but losing quarterback Cullen Harper, receivers Aaron Kelly and Tyler Grisham, running back James Davis and the 75% of the secondary make the young ball coach’s job a little tougher.

The first test of the coach will be deciding between Kyle Parker and Willie Korn. Parker was a highly touted two sport recruit who redshirted his freshman season on his way to becoming an All-ACC baseball stand out. Korn, played sparingly as a true freshman in 2007 and saw action in five games in 2008 but entered Clemson as the “savior of Tigerland.” Korn’s plans to start in 2008 were derailed by Harper’s stand out 2007 season and now he finds himself embroiled in a legitimate battle with Parker.

One thing is for certain, Swinney has to make a clear cut decision for 2009. Parker’s baseball could give Korn a leg up but, NCSU’s Russell Wilson was a two sport guy and he’s the reigning first team All-ACC quarterback and Rookie of the Year.

1) Will Frank Beamer’s Hokie squad live up to their lofty expectations?

Gone are the guys who helped carry Beamer’s young team last season. Out are names like Victor “Macho” Harris, Orion Martin and Purnell Sturdivant as well as Sean Glennon who started the season at quarterback for the Hokie-birds. With Glennon out Beamer can finally hand the reins over full time to Tyrod Taylor, the ACC’s most electrifying returning player. The Hokies are slated to open the season as a top ten team, the ACC’s elite and have date with Alabama in the Georgia Dome.

The first key to avoiding “The Great Clemson Embarrassment of 2008” will be VaTech’s offense. Taylor has one of the ACC’s best running backs at his disposal in Darren Evans as well as receivers Danny Coale, Jarrett Boykin and Dyrell Roberts; all of whom are sophomores. Experience tight end the mammoth but surprisingly versatile Greg Boone (6’3” 280 lbs) returns as well. On defense VPI will expect safety Kam Chancellor, corner Stephen Virgil and linebacker Cam Martin to stabilize an experienced and deep core.

Dyrell Robers, who smashed every VT freshman return record in 2008, will be back to wreak havoc on cover teams as the Hokies look to get back to playing Beamer Ball. With all the pieces in place the September 5th date with a young Tide team could be the Hokie’s national coming out party.