Are the ACC's BCS Championship Hopes Already Dashed?

(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The ACC has not been eliminated from the BCS Championship competition, but it is on life support. A few weeks ago, the ACC looked like it had a shot with Virginia Tech, who rose all the way to No. 4 in the polls before suffering cardiac arrest in the second half against Georgia Tech. 

Now the top-ranked team, Georgia Tech, stands at No. 11 in the latest BCS standing—with a mountain to climb to get to Pasadena. A combination of factors are working against the ACC getting to the BCS Championship game for the first time since 2000, including conference parity and the influence of preseason polls.

This season, like most in the ACC, has been filled with parity (or mediocrity depending on your view). The Coastal triumvirate of Georgia Tech, Miami, and Virginia Tech all beat each other on their home field, and the Atlantic has its usual three-way tiebreaker of .500 teams into late October. 

Meanwhile, Florida and Alabama have emerged in the SEC unscathed, Texas has not lost yet, Iowa from the Big 10 is undefeated, and two BCS-busters (TCU and Boise State) are trying to take the same girl to the dance. The ACC has no one but themselves to blame for their situation, right?

Well, not completely. Even though the BCS rankings are released halfway through the season, they are weighted heavily from two human polls that are cast beginning in the preseason. And the preseason polls have not been kind to the ACC over the years. 

But this year could have been different. The ACC started off with Virginia Tech ranked No. 7 in the preseason Coaches Poll with a showdown against No. 5 Alabama looming in the first week. But the Hokies promptly lost and were sent packing all the way to No.  15 in the Coaches Poll—worth one-third of the BCS rankings. 

After just one week, the ACC's highest-ranked team was Georgia Tech at No. 13. Above the Yellow Jackets were four teams from the SEC, two teams from the Big 12, two from the Pac-10, two from the Big 10, and two from non-BCS conferences. Well, the Yellow Jackets promptly lost two weeks later at Miami, were sent out of the Coaches Poll and told not to let the door hit them on the way out. 

The conference then rallied around media darling Miami, who was off to a 2-0 start with wins over Top 25 teams. The Hurricanes were supposed to be the bread and butter when they entered the ACC in 2004. Well, the Hurricanes ran into a deluge in Blacksburg and lost to the Hokies. With the win, the Hokies worked themselves back up to No. 6, but the eventual loss to Georgia Tech ended their chances.

The merry-go-round continues. 

But even if the ACC had an "elite" team, would it sway the pollsters enough to put them in Pasadena? How would you feel if Ohio State or Oklahoma was in the BCS Championship game this year after numerous failures before? 

The ACC, long a basketball-first conference, has not sniffed the BCS Championship game since 2000, when Florida State faced Oklahoma. Outside of Virginia Tech's win last year in the Orange Bowl, the ACC was 1-9 in BCS bowls, with the lone win coming 10 years ago. 

Those 10 appearances were the minimum number of bids, as the champion getting a bid each year. Contrast that with the SEC's 17 BCS bowl appearances, and the Big 10—who leads all conferences with 19.

The ACC's best chance in 2009 is the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, currently 7-1 and ranked No. 11 in the most recent BCS standings. But history is not on the Yellow Jackets' side either ,as no team has made it to the BCS Championship game after being ranked lower than eighth with six weeks or less remaining.  

It will be hard for the Jackets to make up ground, as they have largely finished the strength of the schedule. Only games against Vanderbilt, Duke, Wake Forest, and Georgia remain. Meanwhile, GT's neighbors in the standings all have a season-making game left. Oregon has a game with No. 4 USC, LSU plays Alabama, Iowa and Penn State have Ohio State remaining, and TCU faces Utah.

To add insult to injury, the Atlanta Journal Constitution thinks Georgia Tech can make it to the BCS Championship game in 12 easy steps—all they need are teams like Texas, Boise State, Cincinnati, Iowa, USC, Oregon, and TCU to lose. 

And of course, Georgia Tech needs to win out and finish with a 12-win season—something they have never had. 

Is it fair the ACC is the Rodney Dangerfield of the BCS? Yes and no  The conference has not had a strong showing in previous BCS games, but the level of competition has risen significantly in recent years. With some more hype in the preseason, the ACC could be poised to return again to the BCS Championship game.

But for now, ACC fans, let's just enjoy the notoriety while it lasts and hope we can get some strong finishes this season. There is always next season.

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