Rivalry Week

It's the greatest week of the college football season, rivalry week. Huge games take place all around the nation this week with bragging rights on the line. Records are thrown out the window and predictions are difficult to make. When rival teams meet, nothing is guaranteed, except an intense 60-minutes of football. Some of the best rivalry games played in the final week this season include Auburn-Alabama, South Carolina-Clemson, Florida-Florida State, Oklahoma-Oklahoma State, Michigan-Ohio State and Notre Dame-USC. So sit back, relax, and enjoy your Thanksgiving leftovers this weekend as rivalry week 2010 kicks off.

Rivalry fact: The last time Florida State has defeated both Miami AND Florida in the same season was 1999. It was the same year as FSU's last national championship.

ACC Predictions Week 13

Happy late Thanksgiving folks. The blog has been slow due to the holiday but this is Florida week and rivalry week so here are my predictions for the final week of the season:
Last Week's record: 5-1
Season record: 44-13 (77% correct)

Syracuse 13 Boston College 10
South Carolina 27 Clemson 24
Florida 24 Florida State 27
NC State 28 Maryland 24
Vanderbilt 21 Wake Forest 13
UNC 28 Duke 14
Georgia 31 Georgia Tech 27
Miami 27 USF 17
Virginia Tech 28 Virginia 13

ACC Predictions Week 12

Due to there being no ACC games on Thursday this week, I decided to wait as long as possible before making my picks for this week. Last week I went 5-1, picked GT to upset Miami but that didn't happen, so I am now 39-12 for the season. This week in the ACC all 12 teams play an ACC opponent meaning there are once again 6 games to pick. However, this week and next week are likely the two tougest weeks to pick games due to all the good match-ups. Here we go:

Boston College 17 Virginia 10
Florida State 27 Maryland 21
NC State 24 North Carolina 27
Clemson 24 Wake Forest 6
Miami 28 Virginia Tech 31
Duke 17 Georgia Tech 24

Gameday: #25 FSU @ Maryland

It's the final game of the ACC regular season for the Seminoles as they travel to Maryland to take on the Terps. As mentioned in earlier posts, this is a must-win game for the 'Noles if they want to have any hope of reaching the ACC title game. The NC State-North Carolina game kicksoff at noon so the 'Noles will know the results of that game prior to the 8pm kickoff in Maryland. The Seminoles are pulling for a Tar Heel win tomorrow afternoon.

Christian Ponder has been practicing all week and he is expected to start at QB. However, E.J Manuel will be available if needed. It's a late November night game in Maryland so the temperature will be pretty chilly so it'll be key for FSU to start off to a quick start unlike last week. Another key to the game would be to control time of possession. The 'Noles struggled greatly against Clemson with time of possession and it almost cost them. So getting an early lead and controlling the ball are my two keys to victory.

Don't overlook Maryland. They are a program that FSU has had much success against over the years but this Maryland team is much improved from last year's team, as seen by their 4-2 conference record. Many people credit Maryland's easy schedule for their good record but that shouldn't prevent the Terps to put up a great match against the Seminoles. There's no doubt that the 'Noles must be 100% focused on this game and not looking ahead to next week's rivalry game against the Gators.

News and Notes

• Chris Singleton had the 3rd triple-double in FSU basketball history on Sunday night in a win against UNC-Greensboro. FSU is now 2-0.
• The men's team returns to Tallahassee Tuesday night to host Gardner-Webb.
• Christian Ponder is expected to start on Saturday against Maryland, according to his interview on Seminoles.com
• Ponder had enough fluid drained from his elbow last week to fill a 16 oz. soda bottle, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
• The FSU-Florida game on November 27th will either kickoff at 3:30 or 7pm, ESPN and the ACC announced today. The official time will be announced on Sunday.
• In addition to a World Series ring, Florida State grad Buster Posey won the 2010 NL Rookie of the Year award.

FSU-Clemson Photos

All photos were taken by Chris Alford

Updated ACC Atlantic Division standings

As we enter the final two weeks of the regular season, three teams remain in the Atlantic Division race. N.C State and Maryland are both 4-2 and Florida State is 5-2 in the conference. N.C State plays at North Carolina this week while Maryland and Florida State face-off head-to-head. Then, in the final week of the season, Maryland will then play N.C State. Florida State still has a slight advantage in the race as they already have 5 wins. However, the Seminoles are the only team that doesn't control its own destiny. If Maryland or N.C State wins-out, they will represent the Atlantic Division in the championship. Here are the scenarios for Florida State to win the division:

• First, Florida State MUST defeat Maryland this weekend. Otherwise, the 'Noles will be eliminated.
• Second, N.C State MUST lose to EITHER North Carolina OR Maryland.

A Florida State victory paired with an N.C State defeat is required for the 'Noles to participate in the 2010 ACC Championship game.

Florida State returns to the BCS standings

After dropping out of the rankings last week following the loss against North Carolina, the Seminoles climb back into the rankings at the #25 spot. Here is a complete look at the rankings courtesy of espn.com:

1. Oregon
2. Auburn
3. TCU
4. Boise ST.
5. LSU
 6. Stanford
 7. Wisconsin
 8. Nebraska
 9. Ohio State
10. Oklahoma St
11. Alabama
12. Michigan St
13. Arkansas
14. Oklahoma
15. Missouri
16. Virginia Tech
17. South Carolina
18. Nevada
19. Texas A&M
20. Iowa
21. Miss ST.
22. Arizona
23. Utah
24. Miami
25. Florida State