Herausforderungen » e Jayhawks mustered. The Bo

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Clemsons Deshaun Watson still thinks about carrying an unbeaten record into the final game of the season before losing to Alabama with a national championship on the line.The Tigers and their star quarterback are the preseason favorite to win the Atlantic Coast Conference and be positioned to return to the College Football Playoff, but theres another team -- Florida State -- that enters the season with a playoff shot within reach.In fact, its not impossible that both teams could find themselves in playoff position coming out of a league where the balance of power is tipped heavily toward the Atlantic Division that includes both the Tigers and Seminoles.We know how to get there, Watson said of last years title-game loss. Weve experienced it and weve got to start over this year and try to get back there.Clemson (14-1) and Florida State (10-3) have combined to win the last five ACC championships. Theyve combined to go 57-3 against the rest of the league, while the last time either lost to a division opponent came nearly four years ago.Weve been able to recruit well and have very good players and weve been able to coach them well, Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher said of the gap between the Atlantic powers and the rest of the league. Not that other guys havent, but weve been able to be fortunate in certain games. I mean, weve created a culture that right now were both playing pretty well.THE FAVORITESAtlantic DivisionClemson. The Tigers were the preseason pick by media members over the Seminoles. While Louisville is poised to make a leap in Year 3 under Bobby Petrino, it would be a shock if the Tigers and Seminoles dont finish atop the division.Coastal DivisionNorth Carolina. The Tar Heels are coming off an 11-win season and are trying to become the first repeat Coastal champion since 2011 in a typically wide-open division.TOP PLAYERSWatson, Clemson. Last season, he was ACC player of the year, third in Heisman Trophy voting and the Manning Award winner as the nations top quarterback. All as a sophomore.Dalvin Cook, Florida State. The Seminoles have their own Heisman candidate with a junior running back who ran for an ACC-best 1,691 yards and 19 touchdowns last year.Elijah Hood, North Carolina. The junior is a physical presence for the Coastal champions after running for 1,463 yards and 17 scores.NEW FACESMark Richt, Miami. He spent the past 15 seasons at Georgia but is now at his alma mater, trying to provide a jolt to a one-time power that has yet to win the Coastal title.Justin Fuente, Virginia Tech. The former Memphis coach is replacing longtime Hokies coach Frank Beamer, taking over a program that had gone from annual 10-win seasons to consecutive 7-6 finishes.Bronco Mendenhall, Virginia. The Cavaliers have one winning season in eight years. Now its up to the former BYU coach to turn things around.Dino Babers, Syracuse. The former Bowling Green coach takes over a Syracuse program that has seven wins in the past two seasons.Eli Drinkwitz, North Carolina State. Drinkwitz is the Wolfpacks new offensive coordinator after leading one of the nations top offenses at Boise State. He inherits a team looking for a new quarterback.James Conner, Pittsburgh. This is a welcome-back season for the running back and 2014 ACC player of the year who went down with an opening-game knee injury, then battled lymphoma.ON THE HOT SEATBoston Colleges Steve Addazio is coming off an 0-8 ACC season.PICKSAtlantic: Florida State. In what could be a coin flip between two talented teams, the Seminoles home-field advantage for the Oct. 29 meeting with the Tigers could be the difference.Coastal: North Carolina. The Tar Heels are breaking in a new quarterback but have several key pieces back from an offense that averaged 40.7 points and 486.9 yards per game. That could again provide cover for a questionable defense, though its matchup with Miami and quarterback Brad Kaaya comes on the road Oct. 15.League champion: Florida State.---Follow Aaron Beard on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/aaronbeardap and the APs college football site at http://collegefootball.ap.orgKodi Medeiros White Sox Jersey . According the Toronto Star, a knee injury will keep Sundin out of the lineup, which includes former teammates Gary Roberts, Darcy Tucker, Tie Domi and Curtis Joseph. Luis Aparicio White Sox Jersey . He was followed closely by David Clarkson, donning red, seconds later. Clarksons actions one night earlier, leaping off the bench in defence of Kessel during a pre-season game against the Buffalo Sabres, will cost him the first 10 games of the regular season. https://www.cheapwhitesox.com/2024e-tom-seaver-jersey-white-sox.html . Bryant, who signed a five-year, $34 million contract as a free agent with Cleveland in March, reported symptoms on Monday morning, a team spokesman said. Harold Baines White Sox Jersey . The Vikings announced Thursday that Priefer will be one of seven holdovers from the previous staff, along with offensive line coach Jeff Davidson, wide receivers coach George Stewart and others. Norv Turner will mark his 30th year of coaching in the NFL as the offensive co-ordinator, as widely reported for weeks, and George Edwards will be the defensive co-ordinator. Paul Konerko Jersey . In the response filed Wednesday to the complaint by 30-year-old Alexander Bradley, attorneys say the former University of Florida player is invoking his Fifth Amendment right that protects people from incriminating themselves.LAWRENCE, Kan. -- Last weekends loss to Ohio was eerily familiar to Kansas fans beaten down by years of ineptitude, but it also overshadowed something not so familiar: signs of progress.Yes, even in a 37-21 defeat.The Jayhawks did just about everything wrong in falling into a 25-0 first-half hole, muffing a pair of punts, getting stopped for a safety and struggling to pick up first downs. It was precisely the kind of start that would have doomed them to a lopsided defeat under Turner Gill or Charlie Weis.In the past we would have seen everybody get in their shells, junior quarterback Montell Cozart said afterward, and the score could have been worse than it was.This time, the Jayhawks channeled exuberant coach David Beaty and showed a little fight .LaQuvionte Gonzalez returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown to give them some energy, but it was the way they came out of halftime that nearly turned the game. Cozart hit Steven Sims Jr. with a 74-yard touchdown pass, then found him again on a 22-yard strike to get within 31-21 in the third quarter.Kansas had chances to get even closer, only for the offense to again misfire. But it was still a close game midway through the fourth quarter, subtle proof of a changing attitude.We are still in that process of building this program. Were still there, Beaty said. One win does not make you something special . Youve got to go back to what got you there.Players can get bigger and stronger in the weight room. Coaches can make them better on the practice field. And the reality is only some savvy recruiting will bridge a talent chasm that separates Kansas from college footballs elite.But there is evidence of progress in all those areas as Kansas (1-1) prepares for a game at Memphis (1-0) on Saturday.Sims already has four touchdown receptions, despite being a sophomore. Gonzalez is playing his first season for Kansas after transferring from Texas A&M.dddddddddddd. Five freshmen are on the two-deep roster along the offensive line, including starters Hakeem Adeniji and Mesa Ribordy.The defense also has made strides, particularly in the weight room, where a group comprised mostly of veterans has quickly learned that life in the offseason was a little easier under Gill and Weis.Our guys probably lift more (in-season) than most teams because we know we have to get stronger and have to get faster, Beaty said. Weve got a lot of young guys playing. I get that. But the only way you get stronger is to continue to lift.As for the changing attitude, that process began the moment Beaty walked through the door . The Jayhawks no longer have a defeatist mindset, replaced instead by a sense of confidence. Even when they were in a hole on Saturday, they felt like they had a chance.If we start a little faster, Sims said, we know we can compete with anybody.Make no mistake: The box score was still ugly.Ohio ran for 329 yards and piled up 496 yards of total offense, more than double what the Jayhawks mustered. The Bobcats controlled the ball for 46 minutes, 4 seconds, three times more than Kansas. The had 27 first downs to nine for the Jayhawks, and Kansas failed to convert all eight of its third downs and both of its fourth-down tries.And you cant dismiss the muffed punts, the poor snaps, the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and the myriad other miscues that ultimately led to another defeat.Still, the rebuilding Jayhawks were in the game at the end.I still love that team. I love our guys. Theyre resilient, Beaty said. There was a lot of disappointment in that locker room, but you can tell theyre ready to go back to work, which is what I love about this team. I like our guys, and well be OK moving forward. ' ' '