ACC Football: Season preview and final standings predictions
The Saturday Blitz staff goes on the record with their ACC football picks for the 2017 season. Can Clemson repeat or will a new team seize the crown?
The coaching ranks of the ACC are as strong as they’ve ever been. The conference returns the defending national champions and the Heisman trophy winner. That’s not bad, but it’s hardly likely that both of those things remain true in 2017, right?
From top to bottom the staff of the Saturday Blitz has made their projections for the ACC football standings in 2017. So let’s cut to the chase and take a look at how each division shakes out and who we tabbed as the 2017 ACC Champion.
ACC Atlantic Division
| Florida State | 1 |
| Clemson | 2 |
| Louisville | 3 |
| NC State | 4 |
| Syracuse | 5 |
| Wake Forest | T-6 |
| Boston College | T-6 |
There are four active coaches in college football that have won a National Championship: Nick Saban (Alabama), Urban Meyer (Florida), Jimbo Fisher (Florida State) and Dabo Swinney (Clemson). Two of those coaches currently reside in the ACC Atlantic. No other conference in college football boasts a pair of national championship coaches, let alone two of them in the same division.
Florida State looks to be the most complete team in the conference by a wide margin. The Seminoles return Deondre Francois at the helm of their offense and a bevy of talented defensive players including Tarvarus McFadden and Derwin James. Clemson, the reigning national champions, will have to replace Heisman finalist Deshaun Watson as well as running back Wayne Gallman and receiver Mike Williams.
Questions abound the further down the list you go. Louisville will be dangerous with Heisman winner Lamar Jackson. However, the Cardinals will be extremely young this season and will be even more dependent on Jackson to carry the load. He was under constant pressure a year ago and won’t have the element of surprise working in his favor this year.
More: Game by game predictions for Louisville in 2017
The bottom of the division shouldn’t pose much of a threat to the upper portion, with the notable exception of NC State. The Wolfpack were a missed field goal away from toppling national champion Clemson a season ago. They’re a team that is sure to beat one of better squads in the conference one week and get blown out by an inferior team the following week.