They are one of the six conferences (SEC, Big 12, Big 10, Pac 12, Big East, ACC) granted an automatic bid for its league champion in the Bowl Championship Series each year. These leagues have the inside track to gaining bids in the national championship game.
All six conferences have been represented in the national championship game since the BCS was established in 1998. The SEC has become the dominant conference as it enters this season as the 5-time defending BCS National Champions.
The league with the longest championship drought?
That would be the "little brother" of southern football, the ACC.
The ACC has not been represented in the BCS Championship Game since Florida State lost to Oklahoma in the 2001 Orange Bowl (an ugly 13-2 affair, and no that score is not a typo). That game marked Florida State's third straight title game appearance. The Seminoles won the 1999 National Championship (defeating Virginia Tech in the 2000 Sugar Bowl) during that stretch and were just completing one of the greatest runs in college football history:
14 Years (1987-2000)
2 National Championships (1993 and 1999)
10+ wins each season
Top 5 in the AP poll each season
9 Outright or shared ACC Championships
From their entrance into the league in 1992 through 2005 the Seminoles WERE the ACC. They won 12 league championships in their first 14 seasons in the league. They gave the league national exposure and prestige.
One problem.
A run like that can only last so long.
Since Florida State's run ended the ACC has been looking for a team to step up and bring back some of that prestige. The conference has seen itself expand (adding Miami, Virginia Tech, and Boston College) but it's also seen a reputation for mediocrity bestowed on it.
That reputation has been well-deserved, as the league has only had one team finish with fewer than 3 losses since 2005 (Virginia Tech in 2005). To make matters worse the Hokies weren't even the league champions that year; they were upset in the inaugural ACC Championship game by Florida State.
Miami, Florida State, and to a lesser extent Virginia Tech were expected to be the league's marquee teams when the 12 team "super-conference" was formed. Only Virginia Tech has held up their end of the bargain. The Hokies have played in 4 of the 6 ACC Championship Games, winning 3 of them. Meanwhile Florida State has played in the game twice (winning once) and Miami has never made it.
So as the 2011 season dawns the ACC once again finds itself trying to regain some semblance of national respect, an acknowledgment that they belong with the other "power" conferences.
They can do that in one of two ways:
1- produce a legitimate National Championship contender
2- win a marquee inter-conference match up
Both have proven to be easier said than done for the conference in recent years.
Since 2005, Boston College (2007) and Virginia Tech (2005) are the only teams from the ACC to make it through October undefeated, but neither team ended up winning even the conference championship.
And one needs to only go back to last season to see how the conference has fared recently in big-time out of conference games. The first two weeks of the 2010 season saw North Carolina lose to LSU, Virginia Tech fall to Boise State, Florida State get blown out by Oklahoma, and Miami handled by Ohio State.
2011 won't provide as many potential statement games, but Florida State and Miami do get shots at redemption against Oklahoma and Ohio State, respectively.
The Oklahoma game looms the largest for both the Seminoles and the ACC. Oklahoma is a projected top-3 team, a true title contender. If Florida State can win that game (at home) they could have an inside track to the National Championship game. The Seminoles don't play Miami or North Carolina this season, catch Florida in a potential down year, and play 4 of their final 6 games at home.
Virginia Tech could also quietly sneak into the title chase this season. They have softened their non-conference schedule and the league schedule provides some perks as well. They play Clemson, Miami, and North Carolina at home and their toughest conference road game appears to be a Thursday night trip to Georgia Tech in November. It is not an easy schedule, but their toughest games will be in Lane Stadium.
The ACC will not have the top to bottom depth that the SEC has but the opportunities are there to gain some national prominence.
Ultimately the ACC would like to finally realize the vision they had of a "super conference" back in 2005.
For this year though they would just like to be back in the national discussion.
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