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The bad news is that Canes football isn't on today. The good news is that starting next Saturday, we'll get nine straight weeks of games. Regarding today, there are a few key storylines that'll affect our season. Here's how they break down and where to watch them.
Boise State at FSU
When: 12:00 PM
Network: ESPN News
Line: -6.5 FSU
The biggest storyline for this game is whether Willie Taggart can save his coaching career and get FSU back on track. Last year, FSU finished at an abysmal 5-7 and looked terrible throughout the 2018 campaign. This is a team that got consistently blown out, and that did not have an identity. Worst of all, Taggart showed himself to be woefully inept and in over his head multiple times throughout the season. A lackluster recruiting class didn't help Taggart's prospects in Tallahassee, though he did make some other changes over the offseason.
First, Taggart brought in Kendal Briles to rebuild FSU's offense, and to find an answer for his team's 2018 woes. "Lethal simplicity" was a failure last year, and Taggart is hoping Briles can find the answers he needs. Second, longtime starter Deondre Francois was dismissed from the team, and James Blackmon is stepping in to lead the 2019 offense. Ultimately, this game boils down to one question.
When: 3:30 PM
Network: ESPN
Line: -11 South Carolina
Mack Brown returns for his second tenure at UNC, hoping to turn around a Tar Heels squad that's been terrible over the past few years. Larry Fedora didn't leave Brown much to work with, and there are holes all over this roster. Not to mention that UNC is starting a true freshman QB today against a veteran South Carolina defense.
Plainly put, South Carolina should win this game in a blowout. UNC won't be a threat to Miami in the coastal this year, but this is an excellent game to see what we're up against next week. We'll see how well UNC's new Air Raid scheme does later today.
Virginia at Pittsburgh
When: 7:30 PM
Network: ACC Network
Line: -2.5 Virginia
UVA starts this season as the nominal ACC Coastal Division favorite and a crucial matchup with coastal competitor Pitt. Even though it's only week 1, this game will determine whether UVA has what it takes to compete for the coastal. A loss today will temper expectations for this team, and likely put UVA in an at best 7-5/8-4 season situation. With games against Notre Dame, FSU, Miami, Virginia Tech, and Pitt, this team will have to play extremely well to get to nine wins. A win puts this team in a great starting position to win the coastal.
Ultimately, today will come down to how well UVA QB Bryce Perkins plays. We'll be able to see whether Perkins takes the lessons of last season and improves upon a good 2018 campaign, or whether his run-first style and iffy mechanics will make him regress like Malik Rosier.
Best Case Scenarios for Miami
Ultimately, the only game that has any immediate bearing on our season is the UVA matchup with Pitt. A UVA loss puts the nominal coastal favorite in an early hole that will be hard to get out of. Between Miami, Virginia Tech, and Pitt, this UVA team will be lucky to win 1 of those 3 games. Ultimately, we need to take care of business and control our own destiny. A UVA loss though would help us out.
Though not immediately impactful, a Boise State upset of FSU could have huge recruiting and season ramifications. For one, an upset would likely be the beginning of the end for Willie Taggart. Taggart has to post at least an 8-4 record to survive after this year and there are at least 7 games on their schedule that this team could lose. Add in a game at Wake Forrest after their game at Clemson, and there's the potential for 8 losable games.
Predictions
Boise State at FSU
When: 12:00 PM
Network: ESPN News
Line: -6.5 FSU
The biggest storyline for this game is whether Willie Taggart can save his coaching career and get FSU back on track. Last year, FSU finished at an abysmal 5-7 and looked terrible throughout the 2018 campaign. This is a team that got consistently blown out, and that did not have an identity. Worst of all, Taggart showed himself to be woefully inept and in over his head multiple times throughout the season. A lackluster recruiting class didn't help Taggart's prospects in Tallahassee, though he did make some other changes over the offseason.
First, Taggart brought in Kendal Briles to rebuild FSU's offense, and to find an answer for his team's 2018 woes. "Lethal simplicity" was a failure last year, and Taggart is hoping Briles can find the answers he needs. Second, longtime starter Deondre Francois was dismissed from the team, and James Blackmon is stepping in to lead the 2019 offense. Ultimately, this game boils down to one question.
- Is this the beginning of the end for Taggart, or will he slowly turn things around at FSU? A loss today to Boise State at home would be devastating to his team's bowl prospects, and would likely mark the beginning of Taggart's eventual dismissal. We'll have to wait and see. Boise State is at a disadvantage today starting a true freshman QB, but they have a shot to pull the upset. If this FSU team gets in a bad position early or faces adversity, they'll fold. There's nothing in Taggart's record to indicate that he can turn things around.
When: 3:30 PM
Network: ESPN
Line: -11 South Carolina
Mack Brown returns for his second tenure at UNC, hoping to turn around a Tar Heels squad that's been terrible over the past few years. Larry Fedora didn't leave Brown much to work with, and there are holes all over this roster. Not to mention that UNC is starting a true freshman QB today against a veteran South Carolina defense.
Plainly put, South Carolina should win this game in a blowout. UNC won't be a threat to Miami in the coastal this year, but this is an excellent game to see what we're up against next week. We'll see how well UNC's new Air Raid scheme does later today.
Virginia at Pittsburgh
When: 7:30 PM
Network: ACC Network
Line: -2.5 Virginia
UVA starts this season as the nominal ACC Coastal Division favorite and a crucial matchup with coastal competitor Pitt. Even though it's only week 1, this game will determine whether UVA has what it takes to compete for the coastal. A loss today will temper expectations for this team, and likely put UVA in an at best 7-5/8-4 season situation. With games against Notre Dame, FSU, Miami, Virginia Tech, and Pitt, this team will have to play extremely well to get to nine wins. A win puts this team in a great starting position to win the coastal.
Ultimately, today will come down to how well UVA QB Bryce Perkins plays. We'll be able to see whether Perkins takes the lessons of last season and improves upon a good 2018 campaign, or whether his run-first style and iffy mechanics will make him regress like Malik Rosier.
Best Case Scenarios for Miami
Ultimately, the only game that has any immediate bearing on our season is the UVA matchup with Pitt. A UVA loss puts the nominal coastal favorite in an early hole that will be hard to get out of. Between Miami, Virginia Tech, and Pitt, this UVA team will be lucky to win 1 of those 3 games. Ultimately, we need to take care of business and control our own destiny. A UVA loss though would help us out.
Though not immediately impactful, a Boise State upset of FSU could have huge recruiting and season ramifications. For one, an upset would likely be the beginning of the end for Willie Taggart. Taggart has to post at least an 8-4 record to survive after this year and there are at least 7 games on their schedule that this team could lose. Add in a game at Wake Forrest after their game at Clemson, and there's the potential for 8 losable games.
Predictions
- FSU over Boise State. Although my heart says that Boise State will find a way to pull the upset today, ultimately I think FSU will find a way to win. They won't cover, and they won't look great, but they'll do enough to beat a true freshman led Boise State offense. A loss here for FSU would be laughable.
- South Carolina over UNC. This game won't be close, and South Carolina will cover. Ultimately, this game will end in a double-digit USC win. I don't expect UNC to look good at all in this game. SC QB Jake Bentley will have a great day in the air, and Will Muschamp's Gamecock's will have their way with a depleted UNC team.
- Pittsburgh over UVA. I think Pitt wins in a very close defensive struggle. The loss of star WR Olamide Zaccheus and star RB Jordan Ellis (42% of UVA's offensive production last year) will prove to be too much for UVA in its first outing of the 2019 season. While Bryce Perkins will play decent enough to give UVA chances in this game, there isn't an immediate replacement for Zaccheus or Ellis.
