Orange Watch: ACC has some early championship contenders

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The ACC can't come soon enough

Item: An early look at odds to win the 2014 BCS national championship finds five ACC schools among the 30 in the mix.

First of all, until proven otherwise on the field (Johnny Heisman), someone has to knock off two-time defending champion Alabama, winners of three of the last four titles, and the pre-spring ball favorite at 3-1 odds by the folks at the Vegas sports books to hoist the trophy at the Rose Bowl next Jan 6.

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The ACC has some early favoritesh

Tied for sixth at 15-1 odds is ACC division foe Florida State, while Dome invader Clemson is right behind at 18-1. Miami (25-1), North Carolina (75-1) and Virginia Tech (100-1) are the other conference schools listed among the top 30, and those schools do not appear on the ‘Cuse schedule this season.

» Related: Questions loom as SU heads to ACC

(Future ACC member Louisville is 22-1 to win it all, future quasi-member Notre Dame is listed at 25-1, while Pinstripe Bowl victim West Virginia also made the list at 100-1).

So where does that leave Syracuse football in 2013? Well, besides knowing that the Orange are the most longest of long shots in a national championship discussion, settling on one of six ACC bowl tie-ins would be a good start.

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About Brad Bierman 848 Articles
Now in his sixth decade of covering SU sports, Brad was sports director of WSYR radio for eight years into the early 1990s, then wrote the Orange Watch column for The Big Orange/The Juice print publication for 18 years. A Syracuse University graduate, Brad currently runs his own media consulting business in the Philadelphia suburbs. Follow him on Twitter @BradBierman.