I really hate to admit this, but UNC is playing like the program i wish we could be. They will beat the hell out of you on the ground and then shut you down on defense. And they don't take their foot of the gas at any point. Their kick return game might be the best in the country. They have a Senior QB but many consider their best is currently backing him up. Their running back is an absolute beast as well. The last 7 quarters they have scored 118 against 2 teams that beat us.
Whoever or next coach is had his work cut out for him. We can't afford to lose recruiting battles against them anymore. They are on the verge of becoming a legitimate national power and they have the funds to take them to build on this momentum. We have to get this hire right, because it we don't, we could fall so far behind the likes of Clemson and UNC that we may never catch up.
Comments
Well, at least there's one positive to it...
You know if Game Day comes they will almost certainly only talk about the season UNC is having and all but ignore Frank until the one prepared segment. It'll be 85% UNC, 15% Frank in terms of discussion about the game itself.
I highly doubt that, if they do come, its because of Frank, not UNC lighting up the scoreboard or their record/ranking.
If they come, it's going to be because UNC is the high-flier trying to clinch the division going up against an emotional team with a legendary coach playing for a 23rd straight bowl. Now that is a damn good narrative.
And VT football comes up with an even more interesting thought:
Fedora will not be there long enough for them to be a national power.
The way they are playing, I want him at Tech.
But with what he has going there, why would he jump ship to us now? Hopefully Texas comes calling.
Not saying he comes to us, but I talked to a UNC fan last week that has connections within the athletic department. He seems to get the feeling that Fedora views UNC as a stepping stone job and will bolt at anytime. No matter how good they could become, they will always be a basketball school first and they seem to think that Fedora is not exactly on board with that.
Look out for Mizzou with Fedora, and I don't think that Whit pursues him heavily but if he does it could get interesting.
If Fedora bolts, I bet they just plug Chizik in and keep it moving.
I hope so. He's a very mediocre coach at best, and ran into the best situation possible at Auburn with Gus Malzahn and Cam Newton, but once they left reality kicked in on what kind of coach he really is.
Didn't they have Loeffler?
Loeffler wasn't there when Auburn won the championship.
During Chiziks last year after Malzahn left, yes.
The last time they tried that experiment it didn't go so well /torbush.
They were 6-7 last year, let's see if he can put together back to back 9 win seasons.
No joke.
UNC is the official Texas coaching prep school.
Actually UNC is the school to go to if you want to move on to bigger and better things (Mack Brown) or if you want to gain redemption for a failed NFL career (Butch Davis) or if you want to move on to something new and different, like being the coach AND the AD (Bill Dooley). But not if you want to build the program and stay there for your career. Pity because Brown and Davis both showed you can build a powerhouse there through recruiting.
Chizik > Fedora
... and it won't last (unless they pony up big... which they < historically > won't)
Negatory sir
I want UNC to be great in football. I still hope we beat and out recruit them, but having more teams on a bigger national scene, will only bode well for the Hokies and bias towards the ACC. I'd rather play this year's UNC vs. when they were fighting Duke at the end of the year to determine who would get last and 2nd last in the Coastal/ACC
Somewhat unrelated, but I think I shared an elevator with Ryan Switzer on Thursday.
And you didn't fall down into his knee??
I didn't realize it was him until I got to my truck.
I'm too nice a guy anyway.
We'll be saying same ol' UNC after we kick their ass next week (fingers crossed).
And then in the post game hand shake, Frank pulls keys out of his pocket and hands them to Fedora. Whit then comes down onto the field with a piece of paper and Fedora signs it. UNC fans cry for five minutes, then remember they don't care about football.
Why do people want Fedora??? He blew the USC game to start this year, UNC was 6-7 last year, 8-4 the year before that. Has one season with a team getting more than 8 wins.
I gotta give him credit because this is his 4th year. These are finally all of his guys and he's doing a good job. IDK if he blew the South Carolina game, I just think his QB self destructed. If he did blow the SoCar game, then I give him credit for getting his team to bounce back from it. That was a tough loss but they've gotten better each week.
And look at what he did at Southern Miss...took over a solid program, kept it solid...then in his 4th year, he took it to a new level. He went 12-2 his final year. The very next year, Southern Miss went 0-12. I see why people would want him.
So he took a team that was doing fine before he got there and got one great year out of them and then used that to move up in jobs. Still don't see why we should want him? I thought we wanted to get better not stay the same.
But once he gets his guys into the program, the program isn't the same. It's better.
Agreed. No doubt they are rolling now but I haven't seen anything else positive to think he is absolutely our guy. Not saying he wouldn't be a decent hire but I don't see how you can put him ahead of Herman or Fuente.
Because he's a good coach. Who do you want? Or are you still just poo pooing?
Based on two good years of his entire coaching resume. He hasn't put together two back to back 9 win seasons. I'd rather try someone up and coming than with a guy who has done "just enough"
Frank making the key play, what a boss.
UNC is going to have to look good for back-to-back seasons before I think they're "deadly long term."
I agree with the W-L comments. But looking at their recruiting is painful (for us). They've been coming in our yard and kicking our a$$es for a couple of years. Their roster is littered with players we offered and didn't get.
Well Beamer wasn't going to allow them to get no show degrees.
Excuses are like.... Well, you know
They're like earning a B.A. in Playing Football?
That's not an excuse...they cheated. Blatantly, and were never punished, all under Fedora's watch.
Suppose we lose to them on Saturday, and then, after the season, the NCAA comes down hard. Vacating all wins and serving them the death penalty. Still doesn't help us. Frank Beamer's win count doesn't increase by 1 and we can't undo time and get sent to a better bowl game.
USC might've 'cheated' but Texas still beat them. The 2003-2005 USC dynasty is still remembered one of the most dominant college football teams of all time.
If we just out perform UNC on the recruiting trail and on the field, then none of this is an issue for us.
I'm not saying anything about how it affects our win/loss record against them, or how we should feel about the end-result of the game. If we lose I'm not going to go around saying it's because they cheated. But when you say that them cheating isn't an excuse for why we may have been at a disadvantage, that's dead wrong. You can't have pride in Beamer running a clean program and being a good person, then turn around and admonish the coaching staff for losing recruiting battles when the opposition cheated.
Well I mean we have a ton of players on our roster that got offered by UNC as well. They haven't been as much of problem as FSU or Clemson has been (they have still been a problem though.) Just seems like to me that Fedora has finally gotten his players into the program.
Not really. VT and UNC have been pretty comparable in recruiting the last few years.
They've been comparable, but without football accolades. If they start having some actual success, I'd be worried about them.
I watched the game. Sure, UNC looked good but they beat a listless Miami team playing for an interim coach. If we don't make stupid mistakes the Hokies win. I sure hope that is the case because two of my boys and I are driving up from Texas see the game at Lane.
If we had an eight team playoff, they win out and beat Clemson they make it in. Peaking at just the right time.
Depending on how they do the next 2 weeks, they could still make a strong case with a win over Clemson to get in as is.
Don't think it happens, but if they keep this up, you have to find reasons to keep them out rather than find reasons to put them in.
Reasons like OSU, Notre Dame, Baylor & SEC Pick-em?
i think the Big 12 gets left out again
Yup... the BigXII? was already on the outside looking in. Baylor's (not unexpected) loss tonight all but assures they're left out of the playoffs.
CCGs matter...
Here's the current CFB playoff pecking order:
1) The P4
2) The Big XVii?
3) Notre Dame
And really, anything after #1 doesn't have a chip in the game.
Edit: my brilliant 2am hot take didn't account for the PAC 12 going all ACC Wheel of Destiny.
Alum, I am feeling for you brother. It seems like you're pretty down on the program. I think a lot of people are, but I think if we remain patient VT will re-emerge, perhaps better than ever.
In terms of UNC being deadly long-tern, UNC has a lot of experienced players (4 year starter at QB?) and they run a high powered offense. They are good this year. Pretty damn good. We now have to live in a world where teams in the ACC are occasionally relevant. I dont know who they've got in the hole, at QB but when Marquise (who we OWN) moves on, I wouldn't be surprised to see a noticeable dropoff.
Side note: the bigger they come, the HARDER THEY FALL. Let's go knock those martini-sipping, argyle-wearing, no good, dirty rotten cheaters out of their fucking cleats. FUCK UNC. Those arrogant assholes have been in the ACC for 60 years and have managed to amass only FIVE acc titles - the last one being THIRTY FIVE years ago. It is our job to help keep those raging tools in their place. I will be there and boy, I cannot wait.
Rivals Cowherd rant and I like it.
I hope we don't see UNC drop off. A strong UNC is good for the conference. VT just needs to be better.
VT needs to be......a lot better. Fielding good recruits isn't going to get it done even in our own division any more, certainly not if we want to compete with FSU and CLEM in the championship games. If VT isn't fielding top-15 recruiting classes, you can kiss our chances of winning the conference goodbye. The playoff would be out of the question.
Side note: does the playoff NOT need to include the champs of all p5 conferences? Can we just simplify this shit? Dont care about yer votes, polls and god-blessed decimal points. Tell you what, if we want to keep the subjectivity involved, let them vote on the 6th qualifier so Boise state can get their shot every couple years.
We will beat UNC.
Weren't people saying similar things about Georgia Tech just 3 months ago?
There's that Brazzers logo again. You guys have a problem.
UNC will never pony up to keep Fedora if/when bigger programs come calling. Football will always be second fiddle in Chapel Hill. They will never be a perennial contender in the Coastal, because as soon as they get a coach who could make them one, they lose him to a football school.
I'm still not buying the UNC hype. They choked it big against a not very good SCe team, and Miami flat out quit today after Switzer ran back the punt.
But that's OK. Let them swagger on into the buzzsaw, I mean Lane Stadium on Saturday.
UNC has been a sleeping giant for some time. They have all the resources ($), facilities, location and fan base (size) to compete with OSU, UF, and other schools of the like. They just needed the right staff. I think they'll need to maintain staff continuity, but the fire has been lit.
Did you just compare fan base size of UNC football to anOSU???
Not UNC football specifically, but UNC athletics, as a whole, has a comparable following to OSU. They have arguably the strongest basketball brand in NCAA. They have a lot of potential, and they are finally starting to make something of it.
I don't see a lot of their national basketball fan base moving over to the football side. It's a national long term bandwagon thing and football doesn't have that.
OSU, Texas, Tennessee, Florida and Oklahoma are all football schools who have used resources (fans, money, etc) generated in large part from football to stimulated their basketball program. We are currently attempting to do the same.
Who's to say UNC can't do the opposite? It won't be easy, but with the right football staff and athletic director, it can be done.
anOSU, Texas, UF have all used their MASSIVE student body size to gain alumni and parental fans along with being in states/cities with large populations.
I would call it UNC brand recognition. It's probably top 5 for NCAA brands. Quite powerful.
I think that might be a reach, but you have to admit that he has a point. UNC has a pretty large fan base, they've done a great job of recruiting even under the threat of sanctions (sanctions? WHAT sanctions?), and they're finally looking like they have a football team.
VT can't pussy-foot around on it's coaching choice. They have to take the process seriously, and get the best coach they can. VT has already let the football program slide a bit. Now is the time to look forward, not back.
Yes, we take VT football seriously, but go outside of Virginia, and there are lots of doubters.
If they had a such a large fan base, how come they always fill up around 70% of football games even when they are good but can fill up basketball when they are playing some terrible mid major team?
They have a large basketball fan base, but their football fan base is more comparable to UVA than OSU. Now if their basketball fans converted to being football fans, then they would also have a big football fanbase.
Well, first off all, the basketball arena seats over 20k people. The football stadium holds about thrice that amount.
It's a building process. I'm not saying that fans are going to immediately start packing the stadium. I'm saying that the UNC athletic department has the financial resources to compete with the best. The UNC Brand has a national following. They have the potential. Whether they can take advantage of it - Time will tell.
I think that if Fedora is committed to staying you could very well be right, but all signs point to that he will bolt to a bigger football school whenever he gets offered the job.
Yes this. UNC has a very large national fan base. The reaches of their basketball fandom goes coast to coast and it will only take a couple seasons of this kind of play to see these fans convert in football as well. Do not underestimate the reaches of UNC. The 757 in particular could easily become a pipeline to Chapel Hill if we aren't careful. Lots of Tar Holes out there.
All those unc basketball fans are already Alabama, Ohio State, and USC football fans. Bandwagoners don't suddenly gain loyalty. Even if they start caring about unc football at most they'll buy a hat and watch games when they're on prime time. Casual fans don't go to games. They don't donate. They don't build a program.
Even I dare say VT football fans.
I think you may be onto something but just to play devil's advocate...
GT is unexpectedly terrible this year, we are down, Duke is good but can easily be surpassed on any given year, Miami has been consistently defeated, and LOLUVA. Pitt was the only team in our division that was going to put up a fight against them this year. They're the best of a mediocre bunch, lost to USCe, who isn't good, and hasn't played Clemson or FSU in conference, or ND in pseudo-conference. They HAVE been putting up boatloads of points against teams that can't defend them, and I expect they will beat us and NCSt to finish the regular season 11-1.
So they may be good, and I think they can continue to improve, but I'd need to see a few more years of consistent production before I believe they'll be a national threat. They could prove some of that this year if they beat Clemson in the ACCCG.
At this point, they're more a threat to VT than a national threat.
But, as pointed out above, they are not without some assets.
So they have become 2010 VT?
I happen to think that was a really good team. Defensively we weren't excellent, but that offense was great. We were a few plays in that Boise game from going undefeated (the unmentionable loss doesn't happen after Boise win) Stanford was just a BAD matchup for us.
I think something we can all agree on, is that if the NCAA is still adamant doing nothing to them, hopefully karma bites them straight in the ass. There isn't a program in the country right now, that deserves nothing more but a terrible football program than they do.
...and they built it all on the foundation of years of academic fraud.
Yes, they look impressive in football this year, but I refuse to be truly impressed. How many of those top recruits would they have if their athletic department had suffered through some lean years over the past 1.5 decades? If the UNC "brand" had been damaged by lackluster results over the past decade within the athletic department, would Marquise Williams have gone elsewhere? Don't overestimate the allure that those UNC basketball National Championships have on kids in other sports.
UNC's success through cheating has been at the expense of the rest of the ACC. All of the ACC teams (all sports) can look at the last 15 years of UNC championships and wonder if UNC stole championships and wins from them by having players that otherwise would not have been eligible or having players that were athletically better prepared because they had a lighter academic workload.
I will never respect anything that UNC does athletically. Their entire athletic program is built on a foundation of academic fraud and cheating.
While I can't disagree with anything you said, they still have talented players on the field and smart coaches on the sideline. In the short term, we need to find a way to win on Saturday. In the long term, we need to secure a coach that can recruit and train players so we can beat UNC (and other ACC Coastal opponents) in the future.
Don't disagree. But... I will take every opportunity to remind anyone who talks about how impressive they are (and they have been impressive), that part of their success was acquired via cheating and their success doesn't deserve the respect of the rest of the ACC.
I also think that, within the context of the ongoing UNC academic fraud scandal, everyone should be regularly reminded of what the UNC Faculty Council Executive Committee Chair (Sue Estroff) had to say publicly about VT when we were being admitted into the ACC:
"Our faculty are very concerned about the reputation of Virginia Tech's players and Virginia Tech's team"
"Part of our concern all along has been the way that sports and athletes fit into the university. There is very little tolerance on our campus for misdeeds and misbehavior by athletes."
The sour grapes are strong with this hot take
Pot, kettle, etc
I haven't forgotten this comment as well. While Estroff may not represent the feelings of all folks associated with UNC, she became the de-facto spokesperson when she agreed to stand in front of a microphone and make these comments - arrogant and elitist and, as we now know, hypocritical.
While I understand the sentiment of those folks expressing desires for UNC to be good in order to bring games of consequence to Lane Stadium and the coastal division, let's choose a program that we can at least feel like is playing on a level playing field. Pittsburgh, GT, and, dare I say it, UVA are all choices of programs I could stand to be top 25 before I would choose UNC. If UNC lost every game from now until the end of days, it would be appropriate and satisfying.
Yes they look good now, but part of being a student-athlete is knowing how to trick the NCAA into thinking you are going to class enough, and UNC does that VERY poorly. They will blow this.
Screw them. They have accomplished NOTHING.
They STOLE whatever they have from other schools.
Cheating, lying bastards, every one of them.
They deserve the Death Penalty.
I give them zero credit and less respect.
A worthless $#!+ hole of a university.
But I don't feel strongly either way.
I don't know if they have the sort of staying power you're suggesting. Basketball schools don't tend to sustain football success. The biggest reason for their turnaround this year seems to be Chizik's work on defense. They've gone from putrid to pretty good in just a year. Given the large volume of head coaching vacancies this year, I suspect he'll be a head coach somewhere next season. I wouldn't bet on Fedora sticking around in Chapel Hill long term either. He'll probably get a job at a better football program pretty soon too.
My thoughts exactly. If this same coaching tandem was at Miami and having the same success, I'd be worried. UNC football is something to pass the first half of fall semester until basketball begins.
I mean, they once looked good back under Butch Davis, but the best they could ever amount to was 8-5, partially due to many suspensions due to NCAA violations, but also because they underachieved greatly. Now they have their best season since Mack Brown was there and they have staying power? I'll wait until they do it twice in a row to say they are here to stay. As it was said above, a few months ago, people thought GT was going to be a force. And now their bowl streak is gone.
I personally do have a lot of faith in the coaching tandem of Fedora and Chizzik. I think that pair at a school committed to football excellence could have sustained success. To me, it's more a question of UNC just not investing enough to keep them when bigger programs come calling.
I do believe there will be dropoff when Marquise Williams graduates, but that's true of most programs. But you're right, they haven't even proved anything yet.
I definitely think they are a formidable pair as long as they are around, but as you said, they don't invest enough to keep them around. But losing Williams, Quinshad Davis, potentially Switzer if he leaves early (possible, not probable), and Landon Turner (one of the best guards in the conference) will very likely set them back. Otherwise, they return a lot of their team so there's some potential, but Williams is legit and so I have a hard time believing Alum's thought that Trubisky is the better of the pair. And besides, Fedora gets too cute and won't do what they can do well and relies on Williams, Switzer, Davis, and Hood out-talenting the opponent. Hood is a baller and doesn't get to show it because of the way Fedora uses him, or rather doesn't use him enough. I just need to see more than one year of wins.
I watch Clemson every week, as I live in the upstate, most of my friends are clemson fans. They have HUGE weaknesses on defense that most teams haven't had the talent or scheme to expose. I would not be the LEAST bit shocked if we beat UNC, but UNC beats Clemson in the ACCCG. If Clemson gets into a shootout with UNC like they did with NC State, they are done for because UNC actually has some legit athletes. HOWEVER, I don't really believe in UNC and I could see them crumble on the big stage (ACCCG) as well, and that wouldn't surprise me.
I am with you in that I think UNC is going to roll over Clemson. That being said, we have been kryptonite to a Fedora offense pretty well.
2012 Gio Bernard debacle aside, I think we gave Fedora his statistically worst offensive performance of both 2013 and 2014.
Like many programs with some near term success, they're just 2 or 3 key injuries/departures from quickly reverting to average.