Who is your 2nd favorite ACC team?

[Wander]

I'll be disappointed in you guys if Clemson doesn't win.

[PSurprise]

What? No UNC??? :)

[allenmurray]

The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Other than Duke no one hates UNC as much as the Wuffies. And Jimmy V and Coach K were good friends. and Sidney Lowe was a beast to break out that red jacket for his first game against UNC. And they have Kay Yow. And throatybeard is a NCSU graduate. For those reasons they get my vote.

[Bostondevil]

Had to go with BC. Sorry, but I am Boston Devil. They don't return the favor by the way.

[OZZIE4DUKE]

The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Other than Duke no one hates UNC as much as the Wuffies. And Jimmy V and Coach K were good friends. and Sidney Lowe was a beast to break out that red jacket for his first game against UNC. And they have Kay Yow. And throatybeard is a NCSU graduate. For those reasons they get my vote.
I too voted for State, for the reasons listed above, but mostly because they hate carolina as much as we do. :D

Wake would be my third favorite ACC team. Merland rates just above carolina on the pecking order. Does that raise them to "rival" level? :rolleyes:

[DukieInKansas]

Where is the option for whoever is playing carolina?

[jv001]

Was hard to vote for any team, but I went with Wake as I live in W/S and some of my good friends are Wake fans. It used to be NCSU, but not anymore. I liked Jimmy V, Fire & Ice, DT, and Tommy B. But it's all about Duke. So Go Duke!

[dukemomLA]

I voted for GTech since my nephew/godchild is currently an engineering Freshman. If you had asked me this question two years ago, I'd have voted for VTech as my other godchild/niece graduated from there.

If there were no family connections, I would vote for NCState. I LOVE when the Triangle boasts teams that can beat anyone. (Although I would never, never, ever, ever want UNC to lead the pack).

If the ACC doesn't get AT LEAST 6-7 teams in the NCAAs it will be a travesty. There is no team in the country who would want to face almost any of the ACC teams.:D

[geraldsneighbor]

In all honesty I don't really like any. I would say BC but I just can't do it. Im sitting this one out.

[Karl Beem]

Whichever team is playing the Tools.

[devil84]

I voted for State, too. My daughter goes there, and that, coupled with the fact that they hate UNC as much as we do...that seals the deal there. Wake Forest would be my third choice, as they are a fine academic school who also hates UNC. Though I could do without the tie-dye shirts and props...

[brevity]

Historically, it probably is NC State, but I voted for Wake because:

1. They've done more for us lately.
2. For what I can tell, Dino Gaudio has filled in admirably.
3. As the Tobacco Road team not in the Triangle, they could use the attention.
4. It's a similarly sized private school, facing an uphill battle in a big-money BCS world.

[Klemnop]

How come Duke is not an option? I can't participate in the poll!?!?!

[rsvman]

Wake is OK, NC State is OK, Clemson is OK. I would put Virginia at about the same level. So those four are my "favorites."

Georgia Tech is not deplorable, and I guess neither is Miami.

I don't like Boston College. Virginia Tech is about the same.

Now Florida State is pretty damned annoying. Don't like 'em at all; however, they're preferable to Maryland.

You-know-who is on the bottom of the list.

[SMO]

Wake is OK, NC State is OK, Clemson is OK. I would put Virginia at about the same level. So those four are my "favorites."

Georgia Tech is not deplorable, and I guess neither is Miami.

I don't like Boston College. Virginia Tech is about the same.

Now Florida State is pretty damned annoying. Don't like 'em at all; however, they're preferable to Maryland.

You-know-who is on the bottom of the list.

This poll should be followed up with, "Who is your 2nd least favorite ACC team". My vote would come down to Va Tech or MD.

[snowdenscold]

I answered UVa, but come to think of it, I was answering which is my 2nd favorite ACC-school, not team. Not really sure about the latter...

[jv001]

This poll should be followed up with, "Who is your 2nd least favorite ACC team". My vote would come down to Va Tech or MD.

Of course my least favorite team is the one left off this poll. Then comes the twerps. Now that is an easy choice. Go Duke!

[MADevil30]

Grew up a five minute walk from the Heights at Chestnut Hill so its an easy choice...on a side note, thank god Duke doesn't have hockey, then I'd be conflicted

[throatybeard]

The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Other than Duke no one hates UNC as much as the Wuffies. And Jimmy V and Coach K were good friends. and Sidney Lowe was a beast to break out that red jacket for his first game against UNC. And they have Kay Yow. And throatybeard is a NCSU graduate. For those reasons they get my vote.

Aw shucks.

I'm contractually obliged to put State, so I did. But I really like cheering for VT and WFU in football.

[BoC]

Had to go with N.C. State, mainly because of Jimmy V. Also, a niece is enrolled there (although, another niece goes to you-know-where, but that can't be helped...).

Wake and Clemson would be next in line, with Va. Tech and Maryland battling it out near the bottom.

[guybrush]

i don't have one, my "second" team is Gonzaga but far far away from Duke... I like the Hokies anyway

[Dukerati]

I just tried to pick the team with the highest combination of the following two factors:

1) Classy Play
2) Willingness and ability to lose to Duke

I came up with UVA.

[SupaDave]

How come Duke is not an option? I can't participate in the poll!?!?!

It would totally defeat the point of where you are posting...

Oh yeah - Georgia Tech grad here. Be prepared to hear me go on and on about Derrick Favors soon... LOL!

[dball]

Have to go with the Hoos. Always liked the Pack as well.

[mgtr]

I went with Wake because it is the most similar to Duke. I couldn't possibly vote for Clemson, because, while it is a fine school, their fans (particularly football) are nuts.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Where's ABC? I have only one team that stokes my fire.

[Saratoga2]

There are a lot of really good teams in the ACC this year, and anyone can beat anyone else, as demonstated by UNC going down to BC. Of the top tier, I like Wake as the most capable without being overhyped.

Duke has a very tough stretch of games coming up with Wake, Clemson, Miami and UNC all in the next couple of weeks. Any or all of those could be losses if we don't bring our A game and even Maryland and Virginia cannot be overlooked.

One postulate is that the guys who seem to have off games and be in slumps may just be off due to the level of competition and defense in the ACC. A shot which may have been open earlier in the year may now have a defender withing a few feet. Also, the pace of the game and pressure of the defenses may be racheted up from our earlier opponents, not to mention bigger and stronger teams.

[wallyman]

it's a shame they're so good this year (i obviously rooted for va. tech this week), but definitely the second classiest school, campus and athletic program in the acc.

[EarlJam]

I grew up loving N.C. State and Duke. State's run in '83 was amazing.

I cannot for the life of me figure out why the official state school of N.C., who claims such a proud legacy, cannot seem to get its act together to rise to the top levels of the NCAA again. Just no excuse for it.


-EJ

[msdukie]

This is an easy poll. State, for the reasons mentioned above. I spend my life hating UNC. They spend their lives hating UNC. It's a brotherhood and I consider State to be Duke's closest relative.

And Mr. and Ms. Wuf are cool, mostly because they plot with the Devil and I on ways to destroy Rameses......

BTW, State is not the "official state school" of North Carolina, it is part of the UNC system. The state's flagship school is, unfortunately, the self-described "University of the People" - a.k.a. UNC-CH (or NCU per their fight song). Back in the day in Carmichael, the scoreboard used to use UNC-R for State just to further irritate them.

[Cell-R]

Wake Forest. I have family that went there. There is also a good chance i'll be attending Wake because Duke is hard to get in to.

[-bdbd]

We need a "whoever's playing Carolina" option....
A sure-fire winner!!!

-BDBD :p

[devildownunder]

Growing up in Virginia during the

RALPH!



days, I have always been a big fan of the Cavaliers but, let's face it, some of those Wahoo teams in recent, ahem, decades, haven't been the most thrilling units ever. I've always enjoyed Georgia Tech games. Cremins' teams were fun to watch, no matter how good or bad they were and Hewitt's FF team of 2004 was one of the most entertaining teams anywhere in the country in recent memory, IMO.

[Edouble]

I grew up in Atlanta. Great memories of the Cremins' mop and his inability to talk. If Dion Glover hadn't gotten injured, sat out, and then gone pro, Bobby might still be at Tech.

I loved the 2004 FF team, although I never understood why Hewitt thought BJ Elder was the best player in the ACC. A few years before that, I saw Ish play my old high school and do a 360 windmill with his left and then the same dunk later with his right. So, it was fun to see his career at Tech.

I'm not a big fan of their rough play under Hewitt, but I can't think of a team that I like better.

Buzz is generally the funniest mascot in the conference too.

Sidenote: I was appalled to hear the announcer during this year's Duke/Tech game refer to Tech's old "Lethal Weapon 3" as "The Lethal 3". Um, way to completely destroy the cleverness of the name.

[CameronBlue]

For me this can't be about anything that has ever happened on the court. Okay I take that back, April 4, 1983 was pretty memorable and I drove 45 miles to experience the celebration on the Brickyard, which has yet to be equaled, at least among Triangle area schools. Who can forget the Cardiac Pack's improbable run to the title and the mad celebratory dash of Jimmy V? The team that coined the term "survive and advance" gave March Madness its first and only truly genuine Cinderella team. Until it was eclipsed by "The Shot" CBS lived off the promotional hype generated by State's magical run to the title.

But it's the collective force of the personalities that interests me. State had the inspirational Jimmy V, Stormin Normin, Julius Hodge (sorry but I loved his comment about the Duke student body), Cozell "amphibious" McQueen, and even Chris Washburn, whose self-destruction was mesmerizing in that carnage on the interstate kindof way. Then there was the 74 team which resembled a midway freak show featuring the super-human talents of Thompson and the oddities of Burleson and Towe. But for their idiotic fans, tormented by an irrational fear of pale blue and the worst inferiority complex since Richard Nixon (signed letters to his mother "Your Good Dog Dick", yeah, let's elect THIS guy), they'd be my 2nd favorite.

So I've got to go with Maryland. Lefty, the Crazies' perfect foil, that red-haired guy we used to call "Bozo", Gary Williams who apparently meets up with Sylvia Hatchell on weekends to go dumpster diving for their wardrobes, John Lucas, the two-sport star whose rise, fall and rise again offers its own inspirational message, Senator Tom McMillan, Len Bias' destruction of Carolina preceding his own tragic self-destruction...Maryland has brought a lot to attention to the league, some bad, most good.

[Buckeye Devil]

I have followed Duke for about 30 years and only watch and like Duke in the ACC. I watch UNC when they are getting beat, don't like BC and detest the Twerps. Living in Big 10/11 country, Gary Williams broke my heart when he left OSU as I went to almost every home game at the time. So I particularly enjoy watching Maryland's recent demise.

[gotoguy]

I moved to Atl in 1982. My 14 yo son is a big Tech fan. Only in the last year has he come around to rooting for the Devils when they play Tech. We also cheer for UGA since my wife is an alum.

[brevity]

We need a "whoever's playing Carolina" option....
A sure-fire winner!!!

-BDBD :p

That's exactly why we DON'T need that option. No one wants to see a poll that's noncompetitive. ESPN SportsNation has this problem sometimes.

To go off-topic for a moment, which poll question do you think would be more informative?

1. Who was your favorite performer in The Dark Knight?
2. Aside from Heath Ledger, who was your favorite performer in The Dark Knight?

Back to the ACC: I do wish UNC had been an option. Just to see a big fat zero next to it.

[whereinthehellami]

Aw shucks.

I'm contractually obliged to put State, so I did. But I really like cheering for VT and WFU in football.

With WVU in your avatar. That is different, don't see that much.

[Wander]

Back to the ACC: I do wish UNC had been an option. Just to see a big fat zero next to it.

I was afraid some fool would embarrass all of us and vote for UNC and try to justify it with the idiotic "the rivalry is better when they are good, I have so much respect for their program, blah blah blah" drivel.

[BluDevilGal]

I went with Wake Forest... hearkening back to my high school days with Dave Odom, Tim Duncan, Rusty LaRue, etc etc. (GT was also high on my list back then with Bobby Cremmins and Drew Barry.)

[RainingThrees]

I was afraid some fool would embarrass all of us and vote for UNC and try to justify it with the idiotic "the rivalry is better when they are good, I have so much respect for their program, blah blah blah" drivel.

I saw every team had at least one vote and then I got really pissed off for a second, till I saw that UNC wasn't an option.

[willowglen]

The folks (and athletes) in Raleigh were truly friendly back in my day. Anyone remember the WolfPack Inn (State's athletic, errr, hotel, ah, dormitory)? A wild place, to be sure. But as I say, the residents were generous and friendly, even to us strange Yankees who visited there.

After I graduated, it did not surprise me that whatever his faults they hired Jim Valvano, a man impossible not to like. It fit.

And their support of Kay Yow, and her clear and consistent goodness and decency all the years, reflects immeasurably well on the school.

My only knock on them is that I don't think they appreciated Herb Sendek, who could get more out of talent than most coaches. But again, Sendek was another principled man.

[PumpkinFunk]

Gotta say VTech... grew up watching them. State is probably 3rd because of their hatred of Carolina, but VTech has to win for me.

[DukePA's Mom]

Is Wake.Our youngest grandchild,Max,comes from a "house divided.He pulls for whoever is home when Duke & Wake play. Smart kid. We do make sure he gets to

[DukePA's Mom]

Sorry, cat jumped in my lap & onto my laptop.

We make sure Max has way more Duke stuff than Wake.Also make sure he gets to Duke games. We took him to the Meadow Lands for the Dec. game. I do have to pull for Wake if we are not playing them for Max (11 yrs old).

[rockymtn devil]

I nearly went to Wake, so I had to go with the Deacs. Great campus and, from all my experiences, nice people (I remember getting a call my senior year of HS from a Wake student wondering if I had any questions about the school that could help in my selection process; no other school called me). Of course these fond thoughts will be put aside for the entirety of next week.

[3rd Dukie]

I grew up in ATL, and my Dad thought Bobby Dodd and Whack Hyder hung the moon. Gotta go with the Jackets for Dad's sake (RIP).

[SupaDave]

I grew up in ATL, and my Dad thought Bobby Dodd and Whack Hyder hung the moon. Gotta go with the Jackets for Dad's sake (RIP).

You don't know Tech if you don't know Bobby Dodd.

Hell, to tell you the truth, I was ignorant to the fact that Heisman was our first coach until I was walking around the Dodd offices and looking at all the trophys. It is truly remarkable.

[Son of Jarhead]

I went with GT since one of my brothers went there, plus they have a cool fight song. Close behind would be Wake & NC State cause they're both in-state & they are not unc.

[Cameron]

To be honest, I don't really have another ACC team that I find myself wanting to watch in a "fan-like" manner. I cheer for the ACC in general, as I have great pride in believing that our conference in the best in America, and just hope everyone -- outside Carolina, of course -- wins against non-conference foes.

For poll purposes, however, I selected Clemson, since I enjoy great outside shooting, especially from shooters with unlimited range. And Terrence Oglesby has that.

In the past, I might have said Wake Forest, as I absolutely loved the game of Randolf Childress, what he did to us in the '95 ACC Tournament notwithstanding.

[Newton_14]

I have to go with NC State. Growing up in the middle of tobacco road, I always rooted for State anytime they were not playing Duke. Plus like us they hate the holes with passion. I wish they could right the ship over there and get the men's bball program to a consistent NCAA tourney team. But I am not sure they can achieve that with el Sid at the helm.

Sad to see Kay Yow pass, she was a remarkable person and coach. Rest In Peace Kay...

[jimmymax]

I gotta go with Duke's 2nd five.

[Devilsfan]

Me too! It's Dave, Lance, Greg, Elliot, and #5.

[kmspeaks]

The bf is a huge Miami fan so i went with the Canes. I do enjoy watching McClinton play and had a good time watching/rooting for their baseball and football teams this past season.

Md is definitely at the bottom of my list (well as far to the bottom as you can get without being lower than UNC, that's a given of course) along with VT (mostly because my Dad and Sister are huge UVA fans).

For the rest of the league I'm pretty much apathetic. I root for them outside of the conference of course but in ACC games I want the result that best benefits Duke.

[DukeUsul]

UVa was my alternate favorite ACC school a while back. My older sister went there and I learned to like the school through visiting her and the ensuing osmosis. Today though it's NC State. Got to know State well as my wife got her PhD there and now I'm getting my Master's.

[hurleyfor3]

Looks like State is edging this one out.

Thanks to a high school friend who went there I managed to see several games in Reynolds, including three Duke games. (I returned the favor by sneaking him into Cameron a couple times. I will now accept my punishment.) This included the tail end of the Valvano era.

The sightlines in that building were awful, but it was always a boisterous crowd, and it felt even more old-school that Cameron. A strong NC State makes the ACC more fun. I hope they return to greatness, as long as said greatness don't involve reatedly defeating us.

Wake, OTOH... there was a post I read on a Wake board once that sums my feelings up: "A lot of programs that we think we're superior to have gone to a Final Four more recently than we have."

[Lavabe]

I chose Clemson, PURELY because of Klemnop.

Otherwise, I'd like to see the "none of the above" option.;)

[devildeac]

How come Duke is not an option? I can't participate in the poll!?!?!

Funny.

[devildeac]

Hmmm, 2nd favorite ACC school. Let me think about that for a nanosecond or two...

Actually, any school is a FAR, FAR distant 2nd...

[Lavabe]

I don't understand the love of Wake.

Sorry. No way. Let me remind all of you who voted Wake:

Chris Paul.
Billy Packer.

[Uncle Drew]

Back in the mid 80's when Wake Forrest was truly bad I think they were a lot of ACC fans second favorite team. People pulled for them sort of as the lovable losers. But I have to say having gone to every Duke vs. Wake game the last eight years at LJVMC I have really come to dislike Wake AND their fans. Every game Duke has had with them the last however many years there has been a rough, physical bruising game. The type of game that I think refs allow to go too far, allow too much contact and are apt to end up with a fight or somone injurred. At the games their fans would boo loudly whenever Duke got any call even if it was obvious Wake fouled. If the call was remotely close Wake fans would be near the point of riot. I thought this was just anti-Duke bias but after watching UNC play Wake earlier this season I realized something. Either Wake fans honestly think they should get the benefit of every call at home or they are the least knowledgable fans in the ACC. Either they wouldn't know the difference between a charge and a foul if it happened to their own mother or they think if the game happens in their building all calls should go their way. Throw in the fact Reddick's senior year several students were screaming out "F%#$ you JJ" durring the singing of the national anthem and Wake is close to being my least favorite ACC school. But no school could ever pass UNC for that honor.

UVA being founded by Thomas Jefferson has always been impressive to me. It doesn't seem Duke and UVA go head to head for recruits or run into one another to rag each other after a loss. Sure they handed Duke it's worst loss ever with Ralph Sampson and company. But Duke has pretty much owned the rivalry the last twenty years, and it's a lot easier to like a team Duke beats the majority of the time that doesn't seem to try to turn games against Duke into a brawl.