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Clemson's board of trustees will meet at 4 p.m. today, but a school spokesman told me the only thing that will be voted on will be tuition. Yes, the board members will discuss the recent speculation surrounding the Big 12, but more than anything, it's an informative session to make sure everyone is on the same page. Don't expect any major news out of this meeting on the expansion front.

I've spoken with several athletic directors and ACC officials, and I'm constantly hearing the same thing: Nobody is expecting anything to change anytime soon.

I believe them.

If -- and that's a huge if -- anything were to change, it wouldn't happen until after the new playoff format has been decided upon.

Rumors, rumors and more rumors ...

• ACC commish John Swofford said talk of the Big 12 and any ACC schools are just rumors. I believe him.
• TCU's AD has since tried to clarify his comments.
• Virginia Tech AD Jim Weaver doesn't see change happening in the leauge anytime soon.
• Nor does Georgia Tech AD Dan Radakovich.
• What's going to happen with all of this? Don't be afraid to say, "I don't know."
• Gregg Doyel says Florida State will be the death of the ACC.
• One of the top prospects in the state of Maryland chose Georgia Tech over the Terps.
• Several Duke football players had a life-changing experience in Ethiopia.
• Former UNC running back Mike Voight, the second-leading rusher in North Carolina history and a two-time ACC Player of the Year, has died.

Heather Dinich talks about the comeback of quarterback Brandon Connette.

Going head-to-head is nothing new for Miami quarterbacks Stephen Morris and Ryan Williams.

They’ve been competing against each other since high school.

Who had the edge then? Depends on whom you ask.

“If you ask Ryan, I’m sure he probably did,” Morris said. “But that was a preseason game. During the regular season, we’re both 1-1.”

Who has the edge now? TBD.

Morris and his good friend Williams are both competing to be Miami’s starting quarterback this fall, and both are tired of watching from the sideline. Williams, a transfer from Memphis, had to sit out last year because of NCAA transfer rules. Morris took the backseat to former starter Jacory Harris, who won his job back last year after missing the season opener against Maryland because of the NCAA investigation. Morris has the edge in experience, but he missed spring practices to recover from a back injury. Williams took advantage of the extra snaps, but the competition will continue throughout summer camp.

“Me and Ryan have been together forever,” Morris said. “We came in in the same class and went through Nike camp together, and played against each other a couple of times. It’s definitely a lot more funnier, just because we go against each other with our records we had in high school and stuff like that.

“Just knowing Ryan and where he comes from, and knowing he has a great family, a great relationship with his parents, and a great relationship with my parents as well, it just makes things more comfortable,” Morris said. “At the same time, the flip side is that it could be a little more personal. But at the end of the day, we’re all going for the same position and we’re all behind each other.”

Morris, who had optional back surgery before spring practices began, said he has felt no lingering effects and that he has been able to do everything the coaches have since asked of him. It’s been a while, though, since he was leading the offense.

Morris played in five games and started one last season, the opener against Maryland. He completed 26-of-37 passes (70.3 percent) with no touchdowns and two interceptions. As a freshman, Morris played in six games and started four when Harris suffered a concussion. He threw for 1,240 yards with seven touchdowns and nine interceptions.

While at Memphis in 2010, Williams started 10 of 12 games and completed 165 of 290 passes for 2,075 yards and 13 touchdowns. In the spring game, he completed 15 of 27 passes for 167 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.

“It was a lot of fun, but it was a big learning experience for me, being able to go out there and run the offense, getting a lot of reps and just getting back on the field after sitting out a year,” Williams said. “I feel like I did pretty good. … If I go out and do what I’m supposed to and do what I’m capable of, I feel like I have a pretty good chance to win the job.”

So far, though, they’re both still even at 1-1 in this competition.

WEEK 5

Welcome back to the ACC’s ultimate road trip. In case you’re just joining us, this series is your ticket to each of the best games in the ACC every week. These are the games that -- if you had the money and the time -- you would want to be at this fall. The season is still a long ways off, but here in the blogosphere, we’re already into Week 5:

Saturday, September 29

• Clemson at Boston College
• Duke at Wake Forest
• NC State at Miami
• Florida State at South Florida
• Middle Tennessee at Georgia Tech
• Idaho at North Carolina
• Louisiana Tech at Virginia
• Virginia Tech at Cincinnati (FedEx Field, Landover, Md.)

My choice: Stay home.

Ok, ok, NC State at Miami.

Why: I’ve done the Landover/Virginia Tech thing, and it was a better matchup and game with Boise State. The Cincy game doesn’t exactly scream sellout. NC State at Miami should be a decent game, but if the Wolfpack is going to be a serious contender this year, it has to win some conference road games. Winning at North Carolina and at Clemson will be extremely difficult. This is a great opportunity for Tom O’Brien, as it is still early in the schedule for a young Miami team, and the Canes will have already played three of four games on the road, including two league games. This is also a good chance to get to Miami, and that’s one stop in the ACC you just can’t miss. Of all of these games, don’t be surprised if the Duke-Wake Forest game is the most entertaining, but that game will likely be more meaningful to Duke’s bowl chances than it will the conference race.

More in this series

Is anyone else ready for a game more than usual this year?

• Is Florida State back as a national title contender? Athlon Sports debates.
• Ivan Maisel and Beano Cook discuss big news happening in the Big 12, including possible expansion.
• First the BCS commissioners have to hammer out how the playoff will work.
• No. 52 is a tough jersey number to live up to at the U, but Denzel Perryman is ready to try.
• This is awesome. Talk about making good use of the offseason.
• Suspended Virginia Tech kicker Cody Journell won't find out his fate until this summer.

Our series taking a look at the most important game on the schedule this year for each ACC school continues today with Maryland. For those of you just tuning in, this is a look at which games will reveal the most or have the biggest impact on the 2012 race.

Maryland

Most important game: at Temple

Why it’s important: Because if the Terps are going to be perceived as any better in Year 2 under Randy Edsall, they simply cannot afford to lose this game -- not after losing to Temple at home last year, 38-7. This game was picked with the assumption that Maryland will not be a factor in the ACC race -- not with how strong the rest of the division is looking, including Wake Forest and NC State. The ceiling for Maryland this year hovers somewhere around a bowl game, but in order to reach that six-win mark, the Terps can’t afford to have a losing record in their nonconference schedule. With Connecticut and a road trip to West Virginia rounding out the month of September, there’s not much margin for error in Philadelphia. This game was an embarrassment for Maryland last year. Temple had a 31-point halftime lead. So much for protecting the house. Now the Terps will have to travel to Temple and prove they’ve put the ugly 2011 season behind them.

More in this series:

Boston College

Clemson

Duke

Florida State

Georgia Tech

Don't you just hate it when a coach suddenly leaves, and your team is left in the lurch? The future of the program seems to hang in the balance without a sense of direction or leadership.

Imagine how North Carolina’s players feel. First Butch Davis was fired, and then they had to prepare for and play in a bowl game knowing interim coach Everett Withers was leaving for Ohio State.

Our “coaches we love to hate” theme continues today with coaches who have left teams in a lurch -- at unexpected or awkward times. It might have been for another job, because of a scandal, or a disagreement with the administration. Whatever the reason, they’re no longer coaching in the ACC.

Here are three of the more memorable departures in recent years in the ACC, and you'll notice a trend here: They're all in the Atlantic Division:

1. Former Clemson coach Tommy Bowden: There’s getting fired, and then there’s getting fired in October. In 2008, Bowden was fired four days after Clemson lost to Wake Forest. The Tigers were ranked No. 9 that year in the Associated Press preseason Top 25 and had been favored to win the ACC. Instead, Clemson started out 3-3, including a thud on the national stage with a 24-point loss to Alabama. Quarterback Cullen Harper added to the drama when he said Bowden deserved to be fired. After a decade of coming up short, Bowden offered to resign. Even though it happened midseason, it didn’t come as much of a surprise, considering Clemson had lost to Maryland and Wake Forest, starting out 1-2 in conference play. Dabo Swinney was named interim head coach for the rest of the season and took over the team heading into the Georgia Tech game. It was an emotional week for the Tigers, who lost to the Jackets 21-17. Swinney instituted a new tradition in the Tiger Walk. He started a new quarterback, Willy Korn. And eventually, he did what Bowden could not, and won the school’s first ACC title since 1991.

2. Former Boston College coach Jeff Jagodzinski:This story was about defiance. Athletic director Gene DeFilippo had specifically told Jagodzinski he could not interview with the Jets. He would be fired if he did. Jagodzinski did it anyway. And he was fired in January 2009. “I did everything in the spirit of the contract,” Jagodzinski told ESPN that year. DeFilippo said Jagodzinski was fired “without cause.” Jagodzinski lasted only two years at BC, and he had three years remaining on his contract. He was a smug coach, but he was also successful. In just two seasons, Jagodzinski led the Eagles to back-to-back ACC title games, losing both to Virginia Tech. They were 11-3 his first season, and ranked as high as No. 2 nationally. (Yes, we’re still talking about Boston College). It was Jagodzinski’s first head-coaching job. A year later, Jagodzinski was fired by Tampa Bay. The following year he was fired by the UFL’s Omaha Nighthawks. Interviewing with the Jets was one costly decision.

3. Former Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen (and his coach-in-waiting): This one is still puzzling. The ACC’s 2010 Coach of the Year was fired and replaced by the Big East Coach of the Year. The ACC’s 2010 Rookie of the Year was benched in favor of an inexperienced backup. Under that game plan, a nine-win bowl season deteriorated to a two-win disaster.

Huh?

“It didn’t need to end this way,” Friedgen told Mike Wise of the Washington Post.

Ironically, it didn’t end after his 2-10 season in 2009. Instead, Friedgen was given the opportunity to pull the program together, and he managed to do that with a respectable eight-win regular season and a win in the Military Bowl, Friedgen’s final game as head coach.

Athletic director Kevin Anderson, who at the time was new to the job, originally told Friedgen he would return for 2011. Anderson had issued a written statement saying that Friedgen would be allowed to coach the final year of his contract.

Friedgen called for an extension, and Anderson called an audible and gave Friedgen his buyout notice. Meanwhile, Friedgen’s successor, James Franklin, left to become head coach at Vanderbilt. In a matter of a week, Maryland went from having the coach of the year and his successor, to having no coach at all -- intentionally.

WEEK 4

Welcome back to the ACC’s ultimate road trip. In case you’re just joining us, this series is your ticket to each of the best games in the ACC every week. These are the games that – if you had the money and the time – you would want to be at this fall. The season is still a long ways off, but here in the blogosphere, we’re already into Week 4:

Saturday, September 22

• Memphis at Duke
• Clemson at Florida State
• Miami at Georgia Tech
• Maryland at West Virginia
• East Carolina at North Carolina
• The Citadel at NC State
• Virginia at TCU
• Bowling Green at Virginia Tech
• Army at Wake Forest

My choice: Clemson at Florida State

Why: Without question this will be the game of the week and one of the most important matchups in the Atlantic Division race. It will feature two programs with top 10 recruiting classes and two experienced quarterbacks in Tajh Boyd and EJ Manuel. Both programs have questions to answer on the offensive line. Miami at Georgia Tech will be an important game for the Coastal Division race, but expectations aren’t nearly as high for those two programs as they are for Clemson and Florida State right now. This will be the first ACC game of the season for Clemson, but a win over Auburn in the season opener and the Tigers could be rolling into Tally with a 3-0 record. With a win over Wake Forest, Florida State should also be 3-0 after beating up on creampuffs Murray State and Savannah State. Both Clemson and Florida State are bringing in the kind of talent that could contend for a national title, but they’re also in each other’s way. Who will get stepped on first?

More in this series:

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3

With rumors and speculation continuing to swirl around conference realignment scenarios, Virginia Tech athletic director Jim Weaver made it clear the Hokies aren't going anywhere. When asked on Tuesday how seriously he has considered leaving the ACC, Weaver said, "We have no interest in leaving the ACC."

"Virginia Tech is in the middle of the footprint of the conference," he said. "We have wanted to be in the Atlantic Coast Conference since its beginning in 1953. We're happy with our membership and the quality of the academic institutions we associate with and we believe we are in the proper conference for us."

Weaver said the ACC athletic directors aren't concerned about the Florida State rumors.

"I don't really think there's anything going on," Weaver said. "I think it was an individual who made some comments from his perspective that got things riled up a little."

It's OK to be a hater -- at least this week.

The theme at ESPN.com is the coaches we love to hate, and your opinion counts. Tell me, which coach in the ACC do you love to hate? From my esteemed colleague Mark Schlabach's column ...

Clemson fans hate Dana Holgorsen for putting up 70.

Clemson fans hate Dabo Swinney for giving up 70.

Wake Forest's opponents hate Jim Grobe for beating them with less.

Florida State fans hate Jimbo Fisher for losing to Wake Forest with more.

Who in the ACC gets your vote for the hate and why? It can be a current coach, or it can be the most hated coach in ACC history. Hmm. Give it some thought and then drop me a line in the mailbag. I'll check them out and on Friday we'll crown the most hated coach in the conference. Consider this your invitation to send me some "hate" mail.

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Chat!

• Georgia Tech WR Micheal Summers was set on the Jackets from the start.
• Miami running back Mike James has earned his way to the top of the depth chart.
• ESPN Insider Travis Haney took at look at Clemson's BCS chances.
• Miami has made drastic improvements in the weight room this offseason.
• At least two athletic directors in the ACC don't sense any real change in the league anytime soon.
• This just in: ACC football is relevant, and it's paying off.
• Clemson coach Dabo Swinney saw red flags during Mike Bellamy's recruiting process.

It's time we had a little talk, ACC fans.

Florida State. Big 12. Villians. Top 10. Oh, and the 2012 season.

But you know how it goes -- your time, your topics.

Join me at 1 p.m. ET today for our weekly college football discussion. We're always in-season here. See you in the chat.

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Out with the old, in with the new. The ACC has lost a lot of talent from 2011, including arguably the best player in the conference in former Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly. There are still a lot of names for fans to be excited about, though, as we get closer to summer camp. Which players in the conference will emerge as the best? Well, based on past performances and their bubbling potential, here’s the first guess. As part of “College Football Live’s” 100 Days Till Kickoff countdown, here’s a look at the top 10 players in the ACC:

1. Sammy Watkins, WR, Clemson: He broke all of the ACC’s single-season pass receiving records, finishing the 2011 season with 82 catches for 1,219 yards and 12 touchdowns. He was one of the most exciting, explosive players in the country as a true freshman. Watkins averaged 25 yards on 33 kickoff returns, including an 89-yard touchdown against Maryland.

2. David Amerson, CB, NC State: He led the FBS with 13 interceptions -- six more than any other player. It was the most in the FBS since 1968 and tied as the second-best total in FBS history. He broke the ACC’s single-season interception record in the upset of No. 7-ranked Clemson. He also broke the school’s 73-year-old single-season interception record of nine.

3. Giovani Bernard, RB, UNC: He was the leading freshman rusher in the nation. His total of 1,253 rushing yards was the third best by a freshman in ACC history. He also had 13 touchdowns on 239 carries, and was third in the ACC with 96.4 rushing yards per game. He had 45 catches for 362 yards and a touchdown.

4. Logan Thomas, QB, Virginia Tech: Thomas set a school record for rushing touchdowns in a season by a quarterback with 11, and he broke the school's single-season total offense record set by Tyrod Taylor in 2010. His 234 completions, 391 attempts and 3,013 yards passing all rank second in school history for a single season.

5. Tajh Boyd, QB, Clemson: He completed 298 of 499 pass attempts for 3,828 yards, 33 touchdowns and 12 interceptions over 14 starts. He completed 59.7 percent of his passes and had a 141.2 pass efficiency rating. He also had 218 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns. He had 4,046 total yards and was responsible for a school-record 38 touchdowns.

6. Kyle Fuller, CB, Virginia Tech: Fuller played at nickel back/whip linebacker and corner. He had an interception in the Sugar Bowl against Michigan, and eight tackles against Clemson in the ACC title game. He finished 2011 with 14.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. He also had two interceptions, nine passes defended, five quarterback hurries, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble.

7. Joe Vellano, DT, Maryland: Vellano led the FBS in tackles by a defensive lineman with 7.8 per game. He finished third on the team with 94 tackles, had 7.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, four pass breakups, two fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. His jaw-dropping 20 tackles against Georgia Tech was unforgettable.

8. Brandon Jenkins, DE, Florida State: He was second in the ACC with eight sacks for a loss of 62 yards, and had 12 tackles for a loss of 79 yards. He finished with 41 tackles, one pass breakup and five quarterback hurries. He was the team defensive MVP of the nation’s No. 4-ranked defense, and he was still disruptive despite facing double teams throughout the entire season.

9. Bruce Taylor, LB, Virginia Tech: He only played in eight games in 2011 before a season-ending injury, but Taylor still had 53 tackles, seven TFLs and five sacks. He led Tech in tackles in 2010 with 91 and in TFLs (15.5) and was second in quarterback sacks (6.0). He also had four pass breakups and eight quarterback hurries.

10. Rashad Greene, WR, Florida State: Despite missing four games with injuries, Greene led FSU in receiving with 38 catches, 596 receiving yards, and seven touchdown catches as a true freshman. He averaged 15.7 yards a catch and 14.7 yards on three runs from scrimmage.

Welcome back to the ACC’s ultimate road trip. In case you’re just joining us, this series is your ticket to each of the best games in the ACC every week. These are the games that -- if you had the money and the time -- you would want to be at this fall. The season is still a long ways off, but here in the blogosphere, we’re already into Week 3:

Saturday, September 15

• Boston College at Northwestern
• Furman at Clemson
• North Carolina Central at Duke
• Wake Forest at Florida State
• Virginia at Georgia Tech
• Connecticut at Maryland
• Bethune-Cookman at Miami
• North Carolina at Louisville
• South Alabama at NC State
• Virginia Tech at Pittsburgh

My choice: Wake Forest at Florida State

Why: In theory, this should not be one of those years the lil' ol' Deacs get the edge. If Florida State is as good as many expect it to be this year, the Noles shouldn’t have to worry about beating the smallest school in the BCS, right? Florida State’s defensive line should be the difference against a Wake Forest offensive line that will feature four new starters. But ... BUT ... this is the ever-unpredictable ACC, where Wake Forest beat Florida State in 2006, 2007 and 2008. And 2011. The Deacs have won in Tallahassee before. They were a surprise contender in the Atlantic Division race last year, coming within a field goal of playing for the title. Jim Grobe has made it clear not to count his teams out. Another win over the Noles and they're right back in it again.

More in this series:

• Week 1
• Week 2