Previewing ACC football in 2016, from the Wake Forests to the Clemsons

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

When Jimbo Fisher took over for Bobby Bowden in 2009, he inherited one of the most fragile bluebloods in the country. Over Bowden’s final five years, FSU had lost at least four games every season and had gone 7-6 three times.

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

Not going to lie: I was having doubts. When a coach with the points-happy reputation of Bobby Petrino starts a new job, you just assume it’s only going to take him so long to figure things out. That’s his track record.

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

There are now 11 years’ worth of S&P+ ratings banked and available to explore. It is a rating that I am both immensely proud of and forever looking to improve, and one of the many things I’ve learned from it is just how hard it is for teams to keep pushing the boulder up the mountain.

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

Every coaching search takes on its own identity over time. Maybe there’s an obvious front-runner from the start. Maybe there are 20 semi-sensible names. Maybe the fan base adopts one particular name while administration works from a completely different list.

At the end of each conference run-through, I take a look at how I perceive the conference’s balance of power heading into the season. This is in no way based on schedules, so they are not predictions. This is just how I would rank the teams after writing thousands of words about each of them. When I finished all of the Group of Five conferences, I compiled a full mid-major power rankings list. Now let’s talk power conferences.

1. Clemson

2. Florida State

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

Let’s take a trip back in time, to that faraway year of 2014. It was a simpler time. Cleveland was still in a sports title drought. Donald Trump was just an obnoxious reality show star. Alabama’s dynasty had not yet died.

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

As fans, we have plenty of funny tendencies. If you raise the stature of our program just enough to break our heart with high-stakes losses, we will resent you for it.

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

On Wednesday’s Podcast Ain’t Played Nobody, Steven Godfrey and I fielded a question from a Kansas State fan about hard jobs and how they go back to being hard when a legend retires.

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

In 2014, we saw what happens when it all goes right. Georgia Tech had a quarterback come into his own, with a set of senior skill guys, behind a line that featured an All-American. The defense stayed mostly healthy, and Paul Johnson’s Yellow Jackets won 11 games for the first time since 2009 and finished in the AP top 10 for the first time since 1998.

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

Over the final seven games of 2012, Syracuse quarterback Ryan Nassib’s passer rating soared to 150.2. He was suddenly completing intermediate passes all over the field, throwing two touchdowns per game, and making almost no mistakes. After averaging 22.8 points per game through six contests, Doug Marrone’s Orange averaged 36.1.

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

The ACC made a lot of coaching changes, and the potential upgrades were clear. Virginia Tech landed Memphis’ Justin Fuente to replace Frank Beamer. Syracuse replaced Scott Shafer with Bowling Green’s Dino Babers. Miami replaced Al Golden with alum and former 10-wins-a-year Georgia coach Mark Richt.

Check out the advanced-stats glossary here. Below, a unique review of last year’s team, a unit-by-unit breakdown of this year’s roster, the full 2016 schedule with win projections for each game, and more.

First things first: Wake Forest’s win total did not improve in Clawson’s second year. In both seasons, the Demon Deacons took down an FCS opponent (Gardner-Webb in 2014, Elon in 2015), Army (by three points each year), and a similarly offensively challenged ACC opponent (Virginia Tech in 2014, Boston College in 2015). That’s impressive symmetry.