Bleacher Report has a "best moment" for each P5 school - here are the ACC teams (plus Maryland and Notre Dame):

Best BCS-era moments:

Boston College - 2007 - play in ACC CG, beat Mich. St in Champs Sports Bowl

Clemson - 2013-14 - beating Ohio St in the Orange Bowl

Duke - 2013 - reaching the ACC CG

FSU - 2013-14 - winning BCS national championship

Ga Tech - 2009-10 - winning ACC, playing in OB

Louisville - 2012-13 - beating Florida in the Sugar Bowl

[Maryland - 2001-02 - winning ACC, playing in OB]

Miami - 2001-02 - winning national championship

UNC - 2013 - rallying from 1-5 start to win Belk Bowl

NC State - 2002-03 - winning 11 games and beating ND in Gator Bowl

Notre Dame - 2012-13 - playing in BCS championship game

Pittsburgh - 2004-05 - winning Big East, playing in Fiesta Bowl

Syracuse - 1998-99 - winning Big East, playing in Orange Bowl

Virginia - 2007 - beat Miami 48-0, go to Gator Bowl

Va Tech - 1999-2000 - play in BCS national championship game

Wake Forest - 2006-07 - win ACC, play in Orange Bowl

Two things to notice:
* Some of these are recent, some have been a while.
* Some of these are impressive, some not so much.

Comments?

I understand that this is going to sound counter-intuitive to some of you but Pitt's best BCS era moment was not qualifying for the 2005 Fiesta Bowl.

Everyone understood in that moment how week the Big East was at that time and especially during that season. Nobody looked at that arrangement as being nearly the achievement that one would normally associate with the BCS bid. It wasn't even a mixed emotion, it was really a shrug of the shoulders and a crossing of one's fingers more than anything else. I think even the most optimistic Panther fan understood that we were at most the best of several really bad choices and that we would be likely get blown out in that game no matter who we played.

That is a very weird emotion. On one hand you were playing on the biggest stage in college football and on the other hand you know that you have no chance to win that game so you can't even allow yourself to be happy about it because you know that it's fraudulent. In fact, we fired our coach right after the game. That is an nobody's definition of an apex and especially not for a program that has experienced as much success as we have over the years.

Pitt's best moment of the BCS era definitely came on December 1, 2007 when the 4-7 Panthers went into Morgantown and upset the No. 2 ranked West Virginia Mountaineers 13-9. WVU came into that game 28.5 point favorites and they were exceptional. Nobody had yet quite solved RichRod's spread option offense and it was positively stacked with speed all over the field. They just hung 50 and 60 PPG on teams like it was nothing.

It is my opinion that aside from some of those legendary Miami teams in the early 2000s, that played for multiple national championships, I believe that West Virginia team was probably the best team to ever play in the Big East and I believe they would've blown Ohio State out of the national championship game.

Pitt, on the other hand, was decidedly average and probably not even that good. The Panthers had holes all over the place and really did not appear to be going anywhere. However we did have the best player on the field in Shady McCoy and that was really the difference between the two teams that night. He was an unbelievable college football player. It is rare to see a single player absolutely carry an inferior team past another far superior team but that is exactly what happened on that night. Pitt basically won that game without the benefit of the forward pass as our QB was among the worst in CFB at the time and was basically a liability.

That was a sweet and totally unexpected moment - much sweeter than 2004.

Yinzer, just when I think I have you figured out you bring this mess!

Considering the best moment for 11 schools included at least playing in a BCS bowl, it stands out when UNC's best moment includes "1-5 start" and "Belk Bowl".

(07-17-2014 01:06 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  Considering the best moment for 11 schools included at least playing in a BCS bowl, it stands out when UNC's best moment includes "1-5 start" and "Belk Bowl".

That kind of stuck out for me, too, along with UVa beating a mediocre Miami team and getting to the Gator Bowl. And those are two names often tossed out as prime, if unlikely, expansion targets for the B1G.

(07-17-2014 01:06 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  Considering the best moment for 11 schools included at least playing in a BCS bowl, it stands out when UNC's best moment includes "1-5 start" and "Belk Bowl".

Played in National Championship Game: FSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Va Tech

Played in BCS Bowl: Clemson, FSU, Ga Tech, Louisville, [Maryland], Miami, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Va Tech, Wake Forest

Played in ACC Championship Game: Boston College, Clemson, Duke, FSU, Ga Tech, Va Tech, Wake Forest

None of the above: UNC, NC State, Virginia

(Now you see why certain folks are unhappy with those 3 schools?)

........so what you guys are saying is that This is UNC's Year!!!
FLossY out...

(07-17-2014 12:39 PM)Hokie Mark Wrote:  Yinzer, just when I think I have you figured out you bring this mess!

What can I say? Being a Pitt fan is a very complicated proposition. There are never any easy answers.

(07-17-2014 01:16 PM)Hokie Mark Wrote:  

(07-17-2014 01:06 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  Considering the best moment for 11 schools included at least playing in a BCS bowl, it stands out when UNC's best moment includes "1-5 start" and "Belk Bowl".

Played in National Championship Game: FSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Va Tech

Played in BCS Bowl: Clemson, FSU, Ga Tech, Louisville, [Maryland], Miami, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Va Tech, Wake Forest

Played in ACC Championship Game: Boston College, Clemson, Duke, FSU, Ga Tech, Va Tech, Wake Forest

None of the above: UNC, NC State, Virginia

(Now you see why certain folks are unhappy with those 3 schools?)

Well, at least we beat ND in the Gator Bowl and WVa in the Russell the year before they killed Clemson.

We have had solid chances but each time we became ultra conservative against teams with fairly equal talent. We did it 2002 against GT and MD, we did it in 2010 against Clemson with a stupid punt call. In 2002 we were just 15 points from from an undefeated season:


Date

Time

Opponent#

Rank#

Site

TV

Result

Attendance

August 24 4:30 PM New Mexico* Carter–Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC (BCA Classic) FSN W 34–14 47,018
August 31 7:00 PM East Tennessee State* #25 Carter–Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC W 34–0 42,507
September 7 12:00 PM at Navy* #21 Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD W 65–19 29,613
September 14 7:00 PM Wake Forest #19 Carter–Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC (Tobacco Road rivalry) W 32–13 51,094
September 21 12:30 PM at Texas Tech* #17 Jones SBC Stadium • Lubbock, TX FSN W 51–48 OT 35,864
September 28 1:00 PM Massachusetts* #17 Carter–Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC W 56–24 51,221
October 12 12:00 PM at North Carolina #14 Kenan Memorial Stadium • Chapel Hill, NC (Rivalry) JPS W 34–17 60,250
October 19 12:00 PM Duke #13 Carter–Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC W 24–22 51,500
October 24 7:45 PM at Clemson #12 Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC (Textile Bowl) ESPN W 38–6 78,904
November 2 3:30 PM Georgia Tech #10 Carter-Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC ABC L 17–24 51,500
November 9 12:00 PM at Maryland #14 Byrd Stadium • College Park, MD ABC L 21–24 52,915
November 16 12:00 PM at Virginia #22 Scott Stadium • Charlottesville, VA JPS L 9–14 53,371
November 23 3:30 PM #14 Florida State Carter–Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC ABC W 17–7 51,500
January 1 12:30 PM vs. #11 Notre Dame* #17 Alltel Stadium • Jacksonville, FL (Gator Bowl) NBC W 28–6 73,491
*Non-conference game. daggerHomecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.

One thing to remember about NC State, we do not play well in the cold - never have.

(07-17-2014 01:16 PM)Hokie Mark Wrote:  

(07-17-2014 01:06 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  Considering the best moment for 11 schools included at least playing in a BCS bowl, it stands out when UNC's best moment includes "1-5 start" and "Belk Bowl".

Played in National Championship Game: FSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Va Tech

Played in BCS Bowl: Clemson, FSU, Ga Tech, Louisville, [Maryland], Miami, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Va Tech, Wake Forest

Played in ACC Championship Game: Boston College, Clemson, Duke, FSU, Ga Tech, Va Tech, Wake Forest

None of the above: UNC, NC State, Virginia

(Now you see why certain folks are unhappy with those 3 schools?)

Questionable coaching hires and the inability to match a defense with an offense are the key to understanding these three. Had Phillip Rivers redshirted one year, he would have overlapped with NC State's twin All American tackles in 2004 along with our best RB in decades. Amato never found another QB until he started recruiting Russell Wilson. Wilson had to labor under TOB, whose recruiting philosophy was to go after 2 star kids who like a military lifestyle.

UNC rarely has a QB to match their defense. In fact UNC probably has the worst QB results in the history of ACC football. NC State had places 5 QB's in the NFL and kept them there over the last 50 years. I'm not sure UNC has had one make it past two years.

UVa has not had a coach since Welsh.

But it hurts when you 3rd, 4th and 6th largest schools can get it together on the football field.

(07-17-2014 01:16 PM)Hokie Mark Wrote:  

(07-17-2014 01:06 PM)CollegeCard Wrote:  Considering the best moment for 11 schools included at least playing in a BCS bowl, it stands out when UNC's best moment includes "1-5 start" and "Belk Bowl".

Played in National Championship Game: FSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Va Tech

Played in BCS Bowl: Clemson, FSU, Ga Tech, Louisville, [Maryland], Miami, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Va Tech, Wake Forest

Played in ACC Championship Game: Boston College, Clemson, Duke, FSU, Ga Tech, Va Tech, Wake Forest

None of the above: UNC, NC State, Virginia

(Now you see why certain folks are unhappy with those 3 schools?)

If you only include "BCS-era while in the ACC", Miami falls into the None of the above category.

Hard to decide between the '99 Title and '13 Title for FSU. Both were fun as hell. But '99 wasn't scary as hell on top of it.

I'd probably have to say '99, despite how much I loved '13. It's hard to top something that happened in your "youth".