March Madness rooting guide

Another March, another relatively meaningless time for BC Basketball. But the Big Dance is still a fun sporting event and it is even easier to jump on a bandwagon when BC's not even near the action. I would rather be rooting for BC, but here are some team's and storylines that are kinda, sorta related to our Eagles. Here is who I am rooting for:

The Entire ACC.  This even includes Duke, Louisville (I despise Pitino) and Notre Dame. What's good for the ACC is good for BC. If they all do well, it means more money for BC and more respect for the conference. Don't listen to anyone who says a strong ACC makes our rebuild harder. The job is always going to be tough, but our next coach will come in at a good time. Coach K, Pitino, Roy Williams and Jim Boeheim are all getting really old. Some of those programs will have a difficult transition. A new BC coach can take advantage of that. But in the mean time why not have the conference's reputation as strong as possible?

VCU. Potential AD Ed McLaughlin won't take a shot or call a play during the tourney, but why not have his team do well? Another deep run for VCU helps his reputation with future coaches he might hire at BC.

Jesuit Schools. Some BC fans question if the Jesuits care about sports. Marquette, Creighton, Gonzaga, and Xavier are proof that Jesuits schools can compete without compromising their mission.

Providence. I think the time has passed for Ed Cooley to come back to BC, but I still like to see him do well.

Northwestern. They have one of the worst basketball traditions in Power 5 conferences. If Chris Collins can get them into the Tournament in four years, then plenty of coaches can do the same at BC. 

Rooting guide

It doesn't get much simpler than this week's rooting guide. We need division rivals to lose!

Wake Forest at Miami. Miami. Wake's loss to Maryland gave us a little breathing room. If the 'Canes pile on Wake might not even be in the division race by the time we play them.

Duke at Vanderbilt. Duke. Part of me wants to see Duke lose. It makes BC's life easier if they are permanent doormat, but a ACC win over an SEC team helps.

NC State at Maryland. NC State. No one likes to root for TOB, but a win here would help us out big time. Maryland tends to play down to their competition so this game could be a close one.

Virginia at Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech. I want GT to do well since it makes our one loss look better.

Virginia Tech at Florida State. Virginia Tech. This is obvious. A VT win makes our win over them look better and it knocks Florida State down in the division race.

Rooting Guide: Clemson vs Wake Forest

Clemson takes on Wake tonight on ESPN. This game is fairly important in the division.

If Wake wins...
They will be 2-0 in conference and have Duke, UVA, Miami, NC State, Maryland and BC ahead. They will probably be favored in all of those games. Even assuming a BC win, it is hard to see them falling apart down the stretch.

If Clemson wins...
They would improve to to 2-1 in the division. Yet they still have BC, Georgia Tech, Florida State, Duke and Virginia. Tommy and team could still lose three more ACC games.

If BC wants to control its own destiny, we need Wake to come back to the pack. Go Tigers!

Rooting guide

The Orange Bowl is ours as long as we win next week. That doesn't mean that this weekend's action doesn't have implications. This is what I am hoping for while I scoreboard watch this weekend.

Virginia vs Virginia Tech. A Virginia Tech win would help our bowl options but I want to play Virginia in the ACC Championship Game. Go 'Hoos.

Florida vs Florida State. The only way Tebow is losing the Heisman (and keeping the hopes for Ryan alive) is with another loss. Plus it would help the ACC. Go 'Noles.

Maryland vs NC State. The winner goes bowling the loser is done. Go Terps.

Wake Forest vs Vanderbilt. ACC vs SEC. Go Wake.

Georgia vs Georgia Tech. A GT win helps BC. I am a little torn since I do have an interest in UGA. For BC's sake -- go Jackets.

Duke vs North Carolina. Neither impacts BC. I guess I would like to see Duke win so that Ted Roof hangs around another year (and they don't come after Logan). Go Duke.

Clemson vs South Carolina. I love the Clemson fans but another loss might knock the Tigers out of a good bowl and open a spot for BC. Go 'Cocks.

Rooting guide

Why do we need a rooting guide if we still control our own destiny? It is not that simple. Beating Clemson gets BC into the ACC Championship Game. However, if BC loses that game, we can tumble down the bowl ladder pretty quickly. With NC State and Florida State and their great travel reps still hanging around, BC could always use some help.

North Carolina vs Georgia Tech. North Carolina is no longer bowl eligible. Tech is and would probably bring more fans to Nashville than BC. Go Heels.

Maryland vs Florida State. Both would travel better than BC. Both have beaten BC. It is toss up. I would prefer to see Maryland win as it would put the Champs Bowl out of reach for the 'Noles. Go Terps.

Miami vs Virginia Tech. No major bowl implications (since VT is going to a good one regardless), so I would like to see BC's strength of schedule improved. Go Hokies.

NC State vs Wake Forest. A late charging NC State could screw up the whole bowl picture. Wake needs to end TOB's little run. Go Deacons.

Duke vs Notre Dame. No implications on us (outside of strength of schedule). I would love to see the Dukies win. Go Duke.

Rooting guide

As much as I've preached not looking outside the ACC, I've been guilty of it Saturday. See where it got me? Lesson learned. Now we really do need to focus on the ACC. Everything is up for grabs so we could use some breathing room in the division.

NC State vs UNC. Doesn't have major implications on us. An NCSU win would help our strength of schedule, but it would also but the Wolfpack closer to bowl status, where they would trump a potentially slumping BC. Go UNC. (And who am I kidding? I don't want TOB to win this game.)

Wake Forest vs Clemson. Huge game. Huge. We really need Wake to win. If Clemson wins, then next week becomes our playoff.

Duke vs Georgia Tech. A GT win helps our strength of schedule. Go Jackets.

Florida State vs Virginia Tech. It is a net-net on strength of schedule. But I want VT to win. A late run by Florida State makes them much more appealing to the better bowls.

Virginia vs Miami. Gotta go with Virginia here. I would like to see them give the Hokies a run in the Coastal division.

Rooting (and weather) guide

Before I get into the rooting guide, I have to mention the weather. It is supposed to be windy and rainy...again. Let's hope it stays cold but the rain stops around 8ish. We need to be able to pass.

For those who missed it, here is the coverage map and Game Watch post. (Email me any game watches I missed.)

Once again I am going to ignore the national picture and focus on the ACC. Obviously only one game truly matters. We need to beat Florida State. Go BC!

Wake Forest vs Virginia. Root for Al Groh and the Cavs like you've never done before. Wake is a very good team and very real threat. We need all the breathing room we can get.

NC State vs Miami. NC State is in the division, but I am actually rooting for TOB for once. Miami is holding onto a glimmer of hope about winning the division. I don't want them to have anything left to play for by Thanksgiving. Losing this week might speed up them mailing in their season.

Clemson vs Duke. Go Duke. Like Wake, we need the cushion in the Atlantic.

Maryland vs North Carolina. Go Heels. Maryland is probably not a threat in the division anymore but I would still prefer to face them coming off a loss.

Rooting guide

Despite my burning desire to write about what we need to happen to LSU, Oklahoma and Tim Tebow, I am going to keep the rooting guide exclusively ACC. IF we navigate our future landmines, then I may start talking about all of those teams in other conferences. Here is who I want to win this weekend.

Wake Forest vs North Carolina. We need Wake to lose. They are still hovering in the division standings.

Clemson vs Maryland. We play them both. Both already have two conference losses. In my opinion Clemson's remaining conference schedule is easier so I would like to see them pick up another L here.

Virginia vs. NC State. NC State is in our division and would be eliminated officially with this loss. Go UVA.

Duke vs Florida State. I don't think it will happen, but it would be nice to see the Dukies win.

I may post sporadically this weekend. Not sure when I'll have the grades and viewing thoughts up. Hopefully Saturday but it could take until Sunday.

Rooting guide and weekend plan

No football for us this weekend, so the posting will be light. I'll continue the basketball player previews and then post an interview with another national basketball writer who has BC ties. I'll also have some VT content up late this weekend. Now onto who I am rooting for this Saturday around the ACC.

Army vs Georgia Tech. We need GT to win and help our strength of schedule.

Navy vs Wake Forest. Wake. For us and for the ACC.

Miami vs Florida State. We need Miami to win and give us more breathing room in the division.

East Carolina vs NC State. I can't do it. I can't root for TOB. Go Pirates.

Virginia vs Maryland. A Virginia win helps BC's division standings.

ACC rooting guide

No TOB game this week, so I am going with logic. Here are the teams who would help BC by winning Saturday.

-- Virginia. Helps ACC. Hurts UConn.
-- Georgia Tech. Helps our resume and undermines future opponent Miami.
-- Duke. Undermines future opponent VT.
-- UNC. Helps ACC.

Teams I'm rooting for this weekend

As a follow up from last week, here are the games I will keep an eye on and their potential impact on BC.

Georgia Tech vs Maryland. A Georgia Tech win helps our resume and hurts a division foe.

NC State vs Florida State. Once again I am putting aside logic and rooting against TOB. But if he pulls off a stunner, it would help our ACC Atlantic standings.

Clemson vs Virginia Tech. Go Hokies. A Clemson loss would put them in a deep hole against us in the division.

Virginia vs Middle Tennessee State. Outside of the ACC pride aspect this game means very little to BC, so let's hope Virginia gets the win.

Wake Forest vs Duke. Another ACC loss would put Wake Forest in our rearview mirror. Go Dukies.

Miami vs North Carolina. I want the Heels to win. The game has no real implications on BC, but a big win for Butch Davis would make things a little more uncomfortable for TOB.