acc coastal division preview

Ryan Wilkes

June 1, 2020

Throughout the past few years, the ACC Coastal has arguably distinguished itself as the most up-in-the-air division in college football.

This year looks to be no different.

Teams such as North Carolina, Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh return massive amounts of production while teams like Virginia and Miami look to fill the holes in their roster caused by departures or inconsistencies at certain positions.

So, how exactly will the ACC Coastal pan out? That’s the question that everyone always asks. Here are my predictions.

Virginia Tech

Record Prediction: 10-2 (7-1 ACC)

Losses: vs. Penn State, at Louisville

The Virginia Tech Hokies enter the 2020 season after only losing two of their key contributors from last year. Quarterback Hendon Hooker returns after reviving the Hokies’ campaign in the middle of the season while Tech returns almost all of their defensive starters.

The Hokies’ defense will be headlined by defensive backs Caleb Farley and Jermaine Waller. These two proved to be a troublesome duo for offensive coordinators, combining to produce 7 interceptions last season.

They also return talented linebacker Rayshard Ashby, who led the Hokies in tackles in 2019. This Virginia Tech defense looks to be something special in 2020 and will give offensive coordinators headaches.

I think Tech’s game against North Carolina on October 10 could be a toss-up.

The two teams could meet with the ACC Coastal Division on the line. The last time these two teams met with this high of stakes, Tech defeated Carolina 34-3 in Chapel Hill in 2016. The Hokies ended up taking the Coastal that year.

No matter how the ACC schedule plays out, the showdown in Kenan Memorial Stadium in October will have a large impact on the Coastal Division.

North Carolina

Record Prediction: 10-2 (7-1 ACC)

Losses: at Auburn, vs. Virginia Tech

Mack Brown’s second year with the Tar Heels will be a big one. Freshman sensation quarterback Sam Howell returns for his sophomore campaign, along with some of his favorite weapons.

Howell had an outstanding freshman season, outperforming all expectations. He totaled 3,641 yards, 38 touchdowns and only 7 interceptions.

The Tar Heels also bring back their two leading receivers in Dyami Brown and Dazz Newsome. The duo accounted for over 1,000 yards each in the 2019 season and they will undoubtedly be huge factors in the 2020 campaign.

On the defensive side, Carolina returns stud Linebacker Chazz Surratt. The former quarterback-turned-linebacker amassed 66 total tackles and 6.5 sacks, proving to be a leader for this Carolina defense. It’s truly a toss-up between Tech and Carolina, but the Tar Heels will have a scary team in Mack Brown’s second year nonetheless.

Miami

Record Prediction: 9-3 (6-2 ACC)

Losses: at Michigan State, vs. UNC, at Virginia Tech

Manny Diaz’s first year at the helm of the Hurricanes was anything but ideal.

In a season riddled with quarterback issues and inconsistencies, Miami finished with a subpar 6-7 record with embarrassing losses to FIU and Louisiana Tech.

Diaz made a splash via the transfer portal, bringing in electric ex-Houston quarterback D’eriq King.

The former Cougar had quite the tenure at Houston, amassing 4,925 yards through the air and 50 touchdowns. He also added 1,421 yards on the ground and 28 touchdowns.

King enters the ACC as a grad transfer with plenty of experience, which will give him an advantage in the battle for the starting job with redshirt junior N’Kosi Perry. King could make an instant impact for the Hurricanes’ offense.

Another key addition via the infamous transfer portal comes in the form of edge rusher Quincy Roche.

The 2019 AAC Defensive Player of the Year is an absolute force off the edge, totaling 13 sacks in 2019. He should be a great compliment to returning defensive end Gregory Rousseau who had 15.5 sacks in his monstrous freshman season.

The big questions for this team at wide receiver and running back. The Canes lost two big contributors on the outside KJ Osborn and Jeff Thomas. They also lost workhorse running back Deejay Dallas.

For this team to be successful, some veteran returners are going to have to step up to compensate for the losses on offense.

Pittsburgh

Record Prediction: 7-5 (4-4 ACC)

Losses: at Miami, vs. Notre Dame, at Florida State, vs. Virginia Tech, at UNC

The Pittsburgh Panthers are absolutely loaded with returning players on both ends.

On defense, the Panthers are returning the likes of Jaylen Twyman, who led the team with 10.5 sacks in 2019, and the deadly combo in the secondary with Damar Hamlin and Paris Ford. This defense will undoubtedly give offensive coordinators headaches, even more than they did the season before.

On the offensive side, they return quarterback Kenny Pickett and receivers Taysir Mack and Shocky Jaques-Louis.

This Pittsburgh team has one of the best defenses in the ACC, but the problems arise on the offensive side of the ball.

A lot of the ACC games down the stretch are going to come down to whether or not this offense can produce. Kenny Pickett had his fair share of struggles last year, throwing only 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

This Panthers team is going to need him to step up if they want any chance at the crown in this division.

Last year’s offense was inconsistent at best, proving they could score the ball in games such as UCF and UNC, but it also showed how anemic they could be in games such as Penn State and Virginia Tech, games in which they desperately needed points.

A lot of the losses were games that were up in the air. The Panthers could easily have a record much better than predicted but it really depends on the offense.

Virginia

Record Prediction: 5-7 (2-6 ACC)

Losses: vs. Georgia (Neutral), at Clemson, vs. UNC, vs. Miami, vs. Louisville, vs. Pitt, at Georgia Tech

This might be a difficult year for HC Bronco Mendenhall and Co.

The Cavaliers have an extremely tough schedule after the graduation of dynamic quarterback Bryce Perkins. Leading receivers Joe Reed and Hasise Dubois also graduated, leaving a few gaping holes on offense.

Mendenhall has done everything in his power to shore up those holes this offseason, adding former four-star recruit and Mississippi State quarterback Keytaon Thompson. This addition adds depth to the quarterback room and creates a serious battle for the position between him and Brennan Armstrong.

Mendenhall also added wide receiver Ra’Shaun Henry, a graduate transfer from St. Francis (PA) who accumulated more than 1,000 receiving yards in 2019. This addition lightens the blow of losing Reed and Dubois and adds another threat on the outside to work opposite of Terell Jana, the leading returning wideout for the ‘Hoos.

Similar to Pittsburgh, the defense is not the issue with this team.

The Cavaliers bring back two talented and versatile linebackers in Charles Snowden and Zane Zandier. Their defense will prove to be stout, but their issues arise when you look at their unproven offense.

The additions that Mendenhall made are important and he deserves credit for the restructuring he did, but the quarterback room is very unproven and even with the addition of Henry, the losses of Reed and Dubois still loom large.

Duke

Record Prediction: 5-7 (2-6 ACC)

Losses: at Pitt, vs. UNC, at Notre Dame, at Georgia Tech, vs. Virginia, vs. Virginia Tech, at Miami

The Blue Devils come into 2020 after a 5-7 campaign in 2019.

They’re a hard team to predict. They looked like a top 25 team walking out of Lane Stadium with a dominant 45-10 win over the Hokies last September. They were 3-1 with their only loss coming at the hands of Alabama.

After defeating the Hokies, the Blue Devils went 2-6 the rest of the season. They showed signs of being quite the competent football team in 2019 but down the stretch, they lost - in embarrassing fashion. They were humiliated in two consecutive weeks, being outscored 87-13 on their home field.

This season looks like it could be very similar for this Duke team.

With games against Middle Tennessee State, Elon and Charlotte to start the year, Duke could come out of the gates hot. However, their hot start may not last long. The Blue Devils face in-state rivals in three consecutive weeks, which could be when things could start to go downhill.

Not only is their schedule set up for inconsistency, but the Blue Devils also lost their go-to guy in quarterback Quentin Harris.

While Harris didn’t finish with the most impressive numbers by the end of the season, he did showcase his talents in a few games.

Harris’ standout performance came in week three at Middle Tennessee where he threw for four touchdowns with only three incompletions. While Harris wasn’t consistently great for the Blue Devils, his absence leaves a considerable hole in Head Coach David Cutcliffe’s quarterback room.

Georgia Tech

Record Prediction: 3-9 (2-6 ACC)

Losses: vs. Clemson, vs. UCF, at UNC, at Virginia Tech, vs. Virginia, at Pitt, vs. Notre Dame, vs. Miami, vs. Georgia

This is no normal rebuild for second-year head coach Geoff Collins.

Collins is essentially converting Paul Johnson’s infamous triple option offense into something more like what he ran at Temple, which was multiple style. This has been no easy task for Collins, as the roster Johnson left him is loaded with players that were geared towards his run-dominated offense.

Collins has already shown his recruiting prowess, jumping up 23 spots with their 27^th ranked 2020 class. Their class is headlined by top-100 running back Jahmyr Gibbs and dual-threat quarterback Jeff Sims.

Sims and returning quarterback James Graham will duke it out for the starting spot for the Jackets.

With a year under his belt, Graham should show serious improvements after only completing 45.1 percent of his passes last season. Sims, a highly touted recruit out of Jacksonville, Florida, will look to add a little more accuracy at the Quarterback position.

Despite a lot of things looking up for the Yellow Jackets, it’s hard to see them winning more games than they did in 2019.

With road games at UNC, Virginia Tech and Pitt, even with an improved squad, Georgia Tech will not be able to hang with the more experienced teams in the Coastal. There will be a lot of bright spots with this year’s team, but with the tough schedule ahead, it may be a rough go in Collins’ second year.

The Outlook:

It seems as if the ACC Coastal will be a three-horse race between Virginia Tech, UNC, and Miami, but there is no way of telling. This division has never failed to surprise. Like usual, the ACC Coastal is going to be a roller coaster.