ACC suffering public relations nightmare

CLEMSON -- Maybe the ACC picked the right time to negotiate a new television contract.

After signing a 12-year, $1.8 billion deal with ESPN this offseason, the conference celebrated by going 0-5 against ranked non-conference opponents in the season's first two weeks. Think ESPN might want some money back?

The ACC is suffering through a public relations nightmare this week.

In a year the conference was supposed to be stronger, bolstered by the rise of its Florida programs, featuring a Coastal Division some proclaimed the strongest in college football, the ACC has only one team in the Associated Press top 25 this week: No. 17 Miami.

Clemson can repair some of the ACC's tattered reputation when it travels to Auburn at 7 p.m. Saturday (ESPN). In other attempts to redeem a portion of respectability, N.C. State hosts Cincinnati at 7:30 p.m. today (ESPN). Also, Wake Forest plays at Stanford and Florida State plays host to BYU this weekend.

Three up

The U

There's not a lot to feel good about in the Greensboro, N.C., offices entering Week 3. Perhaps what was lost in a hurricane of criticism directed at the conference this week was Miami held its own on the road against the No. 2 team in the country. Had quarterback Jacory Harris not been victimized by two Travis Benjamin mistakes resulting in interceptions, Saturday's outcome at Ohio State might have been different. Nonetheless, Miami was competitive. A suspect Miami offensive line allowed just two sacks against Ohio State's defensive front, which includes first-round NFL prospect Cameron Hewyard. Ohio State Jim Tressel called Miami a "top-10 team" and the Canes still have the talent, and time, to finish as one.

T.J. Yates/North Carolina

North Carolina received a bit of good news when running back Shaun Draughn was cleared Monday to play. He was the first of 13 players sitting out against LSU to return. North Carolina athletic director Dick Baddour has said he is "hopeful" the Tar Heels will learn about some of their 12 other players under question before this weekend's ACC opener against Georgia Tech. With the way North Carolina competed against LSU, and with the way quarterback T.J. Yates elevated his play (412 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs against LSU) one wonders what the Tar Heels are capable of if they could get back a portion of their players in question.

Bobby Bowden

The former Florida State coach appeared as a guest picker on ESPN's "GameDay" last week. In a gesture of goodwill, Bowden picked the Seminoles over the Sooners. Oklahoma went on to rout Florida State, 44-7. But might Bowden have been smiling somewhere Saturday after being forced out by the school?

Three down

Virginia Tech

Even with their depleted defense, the Hokies were the media's preseason pick to win the conference, and were the highest ranked ACC team in the national preseason polls. Two weeks into the season, Virginia Tech is unranked. After falling behind 17-0 to Boise State, Virginia Tech appeared to be the superior team the final three quarters in a narrow loss. The bad news is Virginia Tech's national title hopes are gone, but the good news is it hasn't played an ACC game, and Tech avoids Clemson and Florida State from the Atlantic.

Heisman hopes

Remember when Harris, Christian Ponder and Ryan Williams littered Heisman watch lists? Their collective hopes took a big hit. Harris threw four interceptions at Ohio State (though only two were his fault). Ponder completed just 11 of 28 passes at Oklahoma, and Williams has just 131 yards (3.3 avg.) through two games.

Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech's loss against Kansas raises questions about how the Yellow Jackets will fare without Derrick Morgan, Demaryius Thomas, Morgan Burnett and Jonathan Dwyer this season. While no one will question Paul Johnson's game-day abilities, he'll need to prove his prowess as a recruiter. According to Rivals.com, Georgia Tech's 2010 and 2009 classes ranked 49th and 43rd in the nation -- each class ranked eighth in the ACC.

He said it

Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer searching for a silver lining following Tech's shocking loss to James Madison: "It's early in the season," Beamer said. "We haven't played in an ACC game."

Stat of the week

7: The ranking of the ACC among conferences -- below the Mountain West and WAC -- according to ESPN's conference ratings system.

Trav's takes

--John Swofford, Ari Fleischer is on line 1.

--I wasn't buying all the hype the ACC generated in the preseason, but I also don't believe the conference is worse than the Mountain West or WAC. Sure, Georgia Tech and FSU lost, but the Yellow Jackets have a roster depleted by departures to the NFL, and the Seminoles are still in a rebuilding mode and are not ready to tangle with a top-10 team on the road. I think Miami will be back in the top 10 picture. The major black eye was Virginia Tech's debacle against James Madison.

--With the rest of the conference faltering, Clemson has an opportunity to save the day with a win at Auburn. With Florida State expected to be back soon in the Atlantic Division, every win on the national stage is critical for Clemson's recruiting purposes.