ACC Bowl Schedule Less Than Compelling

GOOD NEWS: The ACC becomes the first conference to have 10 teams participate in bowl games in a single season as the ACC sends 10 of its 12 conference members to post-season bowl trips, led by its 2008 champion—Virginia Tech—heading to the FedEx Orange Bowl in Miami to play Cincinnati of the Big East Conference on Jan. 1 in an 8:30 pm on FOX.

In addition, the Conference posted an all-time best 37-11 record against non-conference foes this season, a .771 winning percentage.

Including this year's total, the ACC has had 34 teams go to bowl games over the last four years. No other conference has had more during that time span. Either they’re getting better, or they have managed to negotiate more conference tie-ins than their ilk.

BAD NEWS: Look at this dreadful lineup of games.

(Includes a brief comment and Give-A-Crap-Meter reading on a 1-10 scale.)

DEC 20—EagleBank Bowl, RFK Stadium, Navy (8-4) vs. Wake Forest (7-5), 11 a.m., ESPN: Rematch that includes a service academy and what until recently has been considered a basketball school. Six.

DEC 27—Meineke Car Care Bowl, Charlotte, West Virginia (8-4) vs. North Carolina (8-4), 1 p.m., ESPN: These two under-achievers should make for an interesting game. Don’t TiVo the game to diagram the defensive schemes. You'll be disappointed. Eight.

DEC 27—Champs Sports Bowl, Orlando, Wisconsin (7-5) vs. Florida State (8-4), 4:30 p.m., ESPN: One semi-power, one re-emerging one. Gets points for being a 4:30 p.m. game on the Saturday after Christmas. Loses points because (right or wrong) folks back East think the Badgers/Big Ten are boring. Eight-point-five.

DEC 27—Emerald Bowl, San Francisco, California (8-4) vs. Miami (7-5), 8 p.m., ESPN: California on a late season surge, Miami in a late season slump. Go ahead, fall asleep on the couch. Five.

DEC 29—PapaJohns.com Bowl, Birmingham, Rutgers (7-5) vs. N.C. State (6-6), 3 p.m., ESPN: This will be fun because Russell Wilson (the best QB in the ACC) will be playing and most ACC fans have never seen him take a meaningful snap. Loses points for being a Monday when we are supposed to be acting like we care about something at work on Tuesday. Six.

DEC 30—Humanitarian Bowl, Boise, Maryland (7-5) vs. Nevada (7-5), 4:30 p.m., ESPN: Well, it’s got the blue field and really cold weather and Ralph. Hmmm... Three.

DEC 31—Music City Bowl, Nashville, Boston College (9-4) v. Vanderbilt (6-6), 3:30 p.m., ESPN: Obviously, the bowl folks aren’t all that excited about the ACC-runner-up or Vandy’s attempt at a nerd upgrade. We concur. Three.

DEC 31—Chick-fil-A Bowl, Atlanta, Georgia Tech (9-3) vs. LSU (7-5), 7:30 p.m., ESPN: While the Jackets get a home game, they get a tough draw with a very good 7-5 SEC team. Eight.

JAN 1—Gator Bowl, Jacksonville, Clemson (7-5) vs. Nebraska (8-4), 1 p.m., CBS: ACC comeback story v. Big 12 program recently on the skids. We aren’t sure what this game is doing on New Year’s Day. Five.

JAN 1—Orange Bowl, Miami, Virginia Tech (9-4) vs. Cincinnati (10-2), 8:30 p.m. FOX: Can the Hokies slow down Cincinnati and improve the ACC’s woeful BCS record? Hope so. The Orange Bowl is a Couch Classic no matter what. Plus, you can completely load your new 32Gb iPod Touch you got from Santa during the seemingly endless (and massively over-produced) halftime show. Seven.

(Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images, Doug Benc/Getty Images and AP Photos)