Recently, I asked two of the SCACCHoops.com writers to grade each ACC team's schedule for the 2009-10 season. Will and Casey graded each team and below are their thoughts. The two agree that UNC and Virginia have the strongest and weakest schedules respectively, while they differ strongly on Miami and Maryland. Leave your own grades in the comments section!
Boston College
Will: The non-conference is pretty weak. A couple of pesky road games against Providence and Michigan, and a home game against an up and coming South Carolina team, and a revenge match with Harvard are the highlights of the early season schedule. The conference schedule works in their favor, as they host UNC, but don’t have to go to Chapel Hill. Grade C+
Casey: There will be ups and downs for Al Skinner and his Boston College team this season. The Eagles compete early in the Paradise Jam, with potential to play some very solid teams such as Purdue who will be one of the favorites in the Big Ten this season, as well as Tennessee who will be a top tier team in the SEC. As with other teams BC will play its share of cupcakes. Bryant and the New Jersey Institute of Technology should prove to be two of their easier wins. Boston College will travel to Durham, Death Valley, Blacksburg and Winston Salem to take on conference powerhouses. All of these games will be stern tests for the Eagles. Though the Eagles have had some measure of success in Chapel Hill over the last few seasons, they are spared a trip there this season and will only take on the Tar Heels once that being in Chestnut Hill. All and all this is a decent schedule will a hand full of tough games to be played. Grade B-
Clemson
Will: Unlike the last few years, there is a bit of intrigue in Clemson’s non-conference schedule. Texas A&M, Illinois, and South Carolina are the big names on the schedule this year, but there are road games against Liberty and UNC-Greensboro on the schedule, and this is something Clemson doesn’t do very often. Notable on the conference schedule is no visit to UNC this year, which is a big sigh of relief for Clemson fans. Grade B
Casey: Oliver Purnell will need to do one of his better coaching jobs this season for Clemson to navigate this 2009-2010 season. The Tigers early season kicks into gear when they play in the 76 Classic Tournament, where they could see a solid West Virginia team out of the Big East, and a improved Texas A&M team from the Big 12. In state rival and a sneaky good South Carolina team should make this years game at Clemson a very good contest. Trips to Duke, Maryland, Wake Forest and Virginia Tech will test the Tigers on the road. Clemson will be thin in the back court season, and their current team will have to endure in order to come away with some wins against the tougher ACC teams, especially on the road. Grade C+
Duke
Will: The Blue Devils have three road non-conference games this year, at Wisconsin, Iowa State, and Georgetown, but unfortunately, Michael Finley, Marcus Fizer, and Patrick Ewing will not be coming in to save their respective schools. All three are expected to be a little down this year. The big non-conference home game is against Gonzaga, who is always pesky to any team they play. Of course, the conference schedule concludes with the home game against UNC, which will probably decide the regular season champion. Grade B+
Casey: Duke will have its normal highly ranked RPI rating this season. The Blue Devils play several tough games on the road and at home this season. The early part of the season will include the NIT Season Tip-Off. Ranked first in the field fans are already licking there chops at the prospect of seeing Duke play UCONN in the finals of the tourney. That is of course if both teams are there for the finals. Undefeated in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, the Devils will travel to Madison Wisconsin to take on the Badgers who always play tough at home. They also will play a tough pre winter break contest in New York against Gonzaga as well as a trip to Washington in late January to take on Georgetown. The ACC schedule is not an easy road ever for Duke as they are conference partners with UNC and Maryland, playing home and home games with both schools. They also have tough road games in Miami, and also make the trip to Clemson where the Devils received a rare beat down last season. The schedule is solid and come seasons end Duke will be battle tested as always. Grade A
Florida State
Will: There aren’t a lot of matchups in their non-conference that stand out here. Road games with Florida and Ohio State are pretty much, along with home games with Auburn and the Isiah Thompson (at least that’s what the school’s provost thinks) led Florida International team. They also avoid UNC in Chapel Hill this year. Grade C
Casey: Florida State will be big and athletic again this season. They will play several games this season which will test their size and athleticism. The Old Spice Classic is the early season tournament in which the Seminoles were chose to compete in. Xavier University and Marquette are two teams that that Leonard Hamilton and the Noles could face early on. The Noles will travel to Columbus to take on Ohio State in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Games in ACC play will also keep Florida State in the minds of the tournament committee come seasons end, as the Seminoles play teams like UNC, Duke, Maryland, Boston College and Clemson all on the road. Wins in a few of these games or even close losses could go very far for this team come March. Grade B+
Georgia Tech
Will: The Yellow Jackets are looking to test themselves early on in the non-conference, as they draw Dayton, who may be the team to beat in the Atlantic 10, in a non-conference tourney early on. They also play at Chattanooga, Charlotte, and Georgia, as well as host USC during the non-conference. The conference schedule doesn’t do them a lot of favors, as it gets pretty tough. Grade B+
Casey: The Yellow Jackets need to win. All teams need to win, but Paul Hewitt's club really needs to win this season. Finishing where they did this past season will only make this seasons schedule that much more important. Playing in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off could
