Two huge games in the ACC this weekend. Duke at UVA, and Clemson at Wake. Clemson vs. Wake should be a classic...I hope I can make it to that one. I think Duke vs. UVA could be interesting. The Blue Devils are a team that plays to the level of competition, and they'll certainly be hyped to play the Cavs. With UVA's porous defense, the Devils should be able to find the back of the net, and the same can be said for UVA because Duke's defense is not the greatest either. They gave up a soft goal to Campbell last night. I predict lots of goals in the UVA - Duke game. As for Clemson - Wake, that baby is going overtime. Then of course we have NC State visiting UNC. I understand Tarantini has been in rare form these days, so going to watch his sideline antics could be worth the three bucks they charge at Chapel Hill.
The Duke-UVa game is the Cavs biggest regular season game in memory and certainly the biggest regular season game in the Gelnovatch Era. Simply put, if UVa loses, they likely won't get an at-large bid. It would make them 7-6 and they just don't have enough quality wins. Of their Ws, only the won over VCU could be considered a quality win and there's no guarantee the Rams won't tank the rest of the season and take the quality out of that win. The rest of the 6 wins are a who's who of also-rans: Kentucky, Rhode Island, NC State, Marshall, Hartwick and Liberty. Of the 5 games left after Duke, only 2 are against ranked teams: American and Maryland. Even if they win those games, tha would still give them only a couple of quaity wins and keep them off the bubble. So, to avoid bubble status, the Cavs need to take care of business Saturday vs. the Dookies. I've seen both teams play this year and UVa has way more talent than Duke. But, since Big George took over, Virginia has a sad habit of underachieving and playing poorly in big games, something that this is.
ACC No way loses to Duke. I agree - lot of goals for UVA. They'll get into the tournament, no chance the committee will say no to the Team that Bruce Built.... Clemson V Wake - who knows? #2 in the country playing at home. Hopefully it will be an attractive game. If anyone makes it to that one, I'd love to hear the reports...Clemson 3-2
Re: ACC I'm not going to predict a winner, but I can say with virtual certainty that Wake will not give up 3 goals to Clemson. I'm tempted to make the drive to Winston-Salem on Saturday, but it's possible that I won't make it past Chapel Hill. I may not want to miss George Tarantini's last regular season game as the coach of the Wolfpack.
acc championships I believe that this weekend's ACC games could go a long way in determining who gets the all important first-round bye in the ACC tournament - especially the CU vs. Wake game. Clemson on the road at Wake should be a tough match. The last time the Tigers played Wake there was the 2000 ACC championships. A game that ended in a 2-2 tie after Clemson held an edge in the run of play. The Wake keeper had a blinder and carried his team through on penalties. We'll see how it shakes out!