Locked On ACC - Daily College Football & Basketball Podcast - Four ACC Teams in Final AP Top 25 + Louisville Basketball is on FIRE, Pat Kelsey Coach of the Year?

Starting point is 00:00:00 The final AP poll is out and Louisville basketball is on fire. You are Locked on ACC, your daily podcast on the Atlantic Coast Conference. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. Hello, everyone, and welcome into Locked on ACC. I'm Jackson Holzer, filling in for Alex Dono. I'm the host of Locked on Syracuse. And as always, I'm joined by Kenton Gibbs, former NC State defensive tackle, and now the host of Locked-on Wolfpack,

Starting point is 00:00:37 and we got a busy show for you all this evening. The final 2024 college football AP poll has been released, so we're going to talk about that. Louisville basketball, are they back? Comment in the comment section below right now, Louisville basketball, especially you fans, you should be excited about your team. And who else in the ACC besides the Duke Blue Devils?

Starting point is 00:01:00 So we got football and basketball on this edition of Lockdown, And before we get to everything, today's episode is brought to you by Game Time. Download the GameTime app, create an account. Use to go locked on college for $20 off your first purchase. Kenton. Thanks as always for joining me here on Locked-on ACC. You know, we tend to disagree on a lot of things, but I have a feeling we're going to agree a lot here on this show. But let's start off talking about the final AP poll.

Starting point is 00:01:27 We got four ACCC teams in the top 25, SMU at 12, Clemson F-14, Miami at 18. and my Syracuse Orange are at 20. Louisville finished in 28th for what it's worth with 38 votes. Kenton, what stands out to you? You know, what stands out to me more than anything else is that not only is the ACC finally getting respect, but I was surprised that SMU did not drop more with their showing against Penn State. There were already a team that people were talking about, you're on the verge. Should you make it, should you be there? Should you, what should that situation look like?

Starting point is 00:02:02 And Penn State dominated. there is no if-ends or buts about it. And anybody who knows me knows I love me to SMU, SMU was flatly outclass. They were shown to be a lesser team in that game. And so, you know, this is a moment where I sit here saying, wow, SMU still gets the benefit of them, still get some love in this poll, being at number 12,

Starting point is 00:02:25 despite the fact they had a much worse showing the number 14 Clemson, who came in right behind them against Texas. You know, they had a more. much, much better showing that game was actually competitive at multiple points in time. And yet, you know, they still end up with, with four, at 14 there. The final A people seem to weigh in the head, the regular season a little bit more than I would have thought. Yeah. And the reason why I think SMU is getting a lot of benefit of the doubt here is because Penn State,

Starting point is 00:02:55 it turns out they're pretty good, right? You know, right? Right. made that final four. So they are pretty good. I guess if I have a little bit of, I guess, not controversy isn't the right word, but my disagreements here are,

Starting point is 00:03:07 why is Clemson behind SMU and why is Syracuse behind Miami? I get it. It's about full totality of work. But at the same time, I mean, head to head has to count for something, right? Absolutely. Absolutely. And that's why I said,

Starting point is 00:03:23 I'm surprised that SMU is getting that much love because if you think about it, Clemson beat them in the postseason, technically speaking. That was a postseason win for Clemson. That wasn't a regular season win. But even by that logic, you're right. Syracuse should still hypothetically be in front of Miami. That's just a factual statement.

Starting point is 00:03:40 Even if, you know, unless you completely discount what we saw down the stretch, unless you completely discount those last couple games, then yes, Miami should still be in front of Syracuse. But the reality is those are two teams with identical records that have a head-to-head game, that one of them won. And they're in the same conference, by the way. This isn't like, oh, well, you know, they have the same record, they have the same record, but this team has a, you know, they play in a tougher conference and this team may have won the head to head, but they couldn't have gone through their schedule and did what they did.

Starting point is 00:04:13 No, this is literally one-to-one, hey, same conference, same record, virtually everything being identical, but Syracuse doesn't get the benefit of doubt here. So I guess you were right, Jackson. I guess we are going to agree a little bit here. because I agree with you. Head to head does matter a lot to me. What happens when you line up and, you know, when you lace up those cleats, get on the line and see what happens,

Starting point is 00:04:35 that matters a lot to me. And so to me, if you're going to be in front of a team that beat you, you have to be resoundingly better than them all throughout the rest of the year to where you could clearly point to that game and say, hey, that game is the aberration. Other than that game in particular, they've shown who they are and this team is superior to that one. I think the big thing that you hit on right there is identical records,

Starting point is 00:04:56 identical conference because head to head, I want to be very clear to you all, right? It shouldn't be everything, right? We know that Michigan beat Ohio State. I am not going to sit here and argue that Michigan is a better team than Ohio State. It's a mix of head to head and also totality of work. But when you're looking at Clemson and you're looking at SMU, I'm going to take Syracuse out for a moment. I mean, they played in the ACC title game. Everything was on the line in that game.

Starting point is 00:05:25 Yeah. Everything. I mean, Clemson needed to win because they weren't going to get in at large. And SMU, if they get blown out, it's possible they're left out of the playoff entirely. So you know they were trying as well. Similar records. I think SMU, correct me if I'm wrong, they were a game ahead of Clemson? I believe so.

Starting point is 00:05:45 Yeah. Since when has that stopped the AP poll from ranking one team ahead of another just because they have a worse record? Since when? Ever? I mean, we talked about it throughout the end. entirety of the season how they usually do that. And then when you look at Miami and Syracuse, they finish with the same records. Same one.

Starting point is 00:06:04 I forget the bowl game, though. If you're just going to talk about the regular season, same records, basically. Miami 10 and 2, Syracuse 9 and 3, Syracuse beat them at home. Miami had a 21 point lead in that game. And from then on, circus dominated them after that. So I guess that's my gripe of the AP poll. but at the same time, I mean, none of them won the national championship. None of them came particularly close.

Starting point is 00:06:29 So at the end of the day, is it the end of the world that Clemson's behind SMU and Syracuse is behind Miami? No, I think the big point here, honestly, is that four teams got in the top 25, which is pretty good. And Louisville was knocking on the door. But you know what I feel sorry about? They should have lost to Syracuse. I meant to Stanford, but proceed. Well, that's from Syracuse perspective, of course. They weren't going to get in the way.

Starting point is 00:06:52 No, no, not Syracuse. I'm talking about Louisville. Louisville also lost to Stanford. That's what kept them out. That's true. It seems like nobody can beat Stanford these days, but I was going to make fun of you a little bit and say, your pit panthers did not make the top 25.

Starting point is 00:07:06 Oh, here we go. Here we got. They're my pit panthers now. Y'all see how he does this America. Everybody is on the same page. Me and Jackson getting along and now he got to bring up old stuff. Are you a sports analyst or are you a historian? Because why you always bring it up the old?

Starting point is 00:07:22 stuff. Okay. Hit was undefeated at the time. They were playing great ball at the time. There was no evidence in my mind to say, oh, this team's going to be, they're going to finish the season. What was it? Oh and six or one in six down the struck? Who could have predicted that? You know, you as a Syracuse guy should know better than anybody. I didn't predict that. I didn't think they were going to go winless. I had that I'll tell you. I just like to make it funny. You as a Syracuse guy should know better than anybody because weren't you all the last team in ACC to start off 6 and 0 and then not lose not winning game down the stretch. Well, they did win one.

Starting point is 00:07:55 They won one game. They won one down the track. But either way, you can't predict that type of stuff. When Syracuse was 6 and 0, there was no way you were like, this team's a little fraudulent, a little fishy. They're going to lose everything down the stretch. There was no way of knowing that. And Pitt came out there and showed that, you know, Pat Narduzzi is the pinnacle and the abyss

Starting point is 00:08:18 of coaching all at once. He shows highest of highs, great coach, great playing called, great scheme. And then he also shows refusal to adjust. You know, there's absolutely no creativity in the game playing. It's just like, man, what's happening? There's probably a Pitt Panthers fan that's watching or listening to this podcast that probably turned it off. But that's okay.

Starting point is 00:08:38 It's all right. I had to tease Kenton a little bit about Pitt. But that about does it for the college football season. We're done talking about 2024. For the rest of the time, we're talking about 2024. it's in regards to the fact that we're going to bring up 2025 and using the past to predict the future and everything like that. But that is it. No more debates about 2024. The final AP poll is out. Leave your thoughts in the comment section below. We'd love to hear from you here on lockdown ACC because coming up, we're not going to be talking about football.

Starting point is 00:09:08 We're going to be talking some hoops. And Louisville basketball, they're back. So stick with this here, a locked on ACC. Therapy is a game changer. It can help manage stress, improve sleep, and communicate more effectively. But finding the right therapist and fitting sessions into a busy schedule can be a challenge. That's where Talkspace comes in. Talkspace, the leaving virtual therapy provider makes getting the help you need easy, accessible, and affordable. With Talkspace, signing up is simple.

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Starting point is 00:10:17 slash Lockdown College promo code space 80. Thank you for making Locked on ACC, your first listen to every single day here on the Lockdown Podcast Network. It's your team, your conference every single day. And you know what, Kenton, before we continue with this segment here, all right, I got to change my background because it's a football background. And now we're going to be talking about basketball from here and out. So here we go.

Starting point is 00:10:41 Don't you do it. Those that are watching on YouTube, there it is. We're talking basketball now, right? The way that Syracuse has been hooping in 2025 so far, I would have left it. I would have left it right where it is. Same thing with NC State. We're not going to be talking about it.

Starting point is 00:10:54 I agree. I agree. You see I think I know NC State basketball background, okay? It's a more neutral background for you. Unless it's a big boy, DJ Burns, I really don't care to talk too much at C State right now. I'm just not there mentally. All right. Well, there's one program that we really should talk about.

Starting point is 00:11:14 And that's the Louisville Cardinals. This is a team that has not been ranked in the APP. poll since January of 2021, but here they are. Last two seasons with Kenny Payne. Sorry, Louisville fans. I have to bring it up because it's part of the story. Louisville basketball won 12 games combined. They were the absolute joke of the ACC. And now they've won nine straight. They're in the top 25 and they're doing this without case in prior. Kenton, what do you think that teams can learn from Louisville going forward about their turnaround? teams can learn from their turnaround how much effort can get done for you this louisville team

Starting point is 00:11:51 is a team consisted of a bunch of guys who just try hard as hell there if you watch their games and you're saying what is louisville doing particularly spectacularly what are they doing in a way that nobody else can replicate it what have they done to win all of these games in a row every game has not been a blowout. Every game has not been against good teams. Every game has not been them playing great, but every game has seen them fighting, scrapping, clawing to get to every loose ball,

Starting point is 00:12:26 to every rebound. And I'm going to tell you something, I want you to think about this for a second, right? If you would have told anybody, hey, by the way, Louisville, who is only going to be Eastern Kentucky, by two points, they're going to need every single,

Starting point is 00:12:41 single inch. They're going to need everything to close this game out against eastern Kentucky. They're going to need to stave off a massive comeback from the colonels. Nobody will believe you. Nobody. Nobody. They'd say, oh, I'm sorry, if you tell them that team is going to go on the nine-game winning street, nobody would believe you. Nobody would say, hey, that team is actually a good team to be feared or to be cared about. And yet they continue to show up and show up. And I'll tell you, You talk about 12 wins over the past two years, I wouldn't be shocked if this winning street gets to 12 because look who they got in front of them.

Starting point is 00:13:20 Are you particularly afraid of Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Miami, NC State, or Notre Dame at the moment? Any one of those teams. I guess they can lose to Wake Forest? Maybe. Maybe. But you know what I'm saying? So they can have a street.

Starting point is 00:13:36 They can have a winning streak that is more wins than Kenny Payne put together in multiple years. You know, I always say it's not about your exes and your O's. It's your layers and your Joe's. And I'll tell you what, these layers and these joys have bought into what the X's and those are. They have bought in to the new system. They have washed off the stink of the Kenny Payne error. Yes, I said error and not error.

Starting point is 00:13:58 It was an error that Kenny Payne was there. But they watched off the funk of that. And they've come out on the other side much better for it because they're playing some hell of five basketball right now. They really are. And Pat Kelsey, we're going to talk in a second about maybe him being coach of the year. but it's certainly possible around the country when you look at the other possible candidates. But I think my biggest takeaway from watching a program like Louisville,

Starting point is 00:14:20 and as a Syracuse fan, we watched Louisville absolutely spank the orange inside the dome. It was not fun as a Syracuse podcast host to watch that game. Let me tell it wasn't fun at all. There's two things. Number one, investing in NIL is very, very important. Very important. I mean, they are one of the top spending teams probably around the country. So you got to invest to get those good players into your program.

Starting point is 00:14:49 But that's not all. But that's not all. He has gotten for free. Yeah. But here's the other thing, Kenton. It's not just about NIL because if it was as simple as let's pay a billion dollars for our roster in basketball, well, look at Arkansas right now in the SEC. They got Coach Talapari.

Starting point is 00:15:07 He's a legendary coach, right? They got all these players, all these. these five stars coming in. Brand new roster. Have they won an SEC game yet? Are they going to make the tournament? Now they're best players out for the whole year. They're screwed in Arkansas.

Starting point is 00:15:22 So it's not just about spending a lot of NIL money. It's how you spend your NIL money and getting the right coach. Getting the right coach is so important because ladies and gentlemen, in the Transom Portal NIL era, rebuilds don't have to take a long time. No, not at all. They don't. It's not the time of, this isn't the 80s or 90s or even the 2000s where you have to stack recruiting classes, one on top of the other, hit on a few guys and eventually get good once

Starting point is 00:15:50 everyone becomes seniors, juniors, and occasionally might have a sophomore squeak in there here or two. That takes time. Nowadays, every team is changing their roster year in and year out. And when I look at a program like Louisville, I sit here and you're an NC state host, I'm a Syracuse host, and say, I get it. We might not have the same NIL dollars, but. Why can't you be better next year?

Starting point is 00:16:12 It gives you hope that you can turn it around. Yeah, absolutely. And if you look at what NC State did last year in terms of that magical run, who were the leaders of that squad? Who were the guys who kind of made the engine go there? DJ Burns, a transfer that was on his third or fourth school by that time. DJ Horn, another guy that was on his third or fourth college at that time, Modiarra, another guy who was on.

Starting point is 00:16:40 his second college coming over from Missouri, I believe it was. So it's not unusual to see teams build through the portal. But again, you need the portal combined with the right coach. It's not just about, hey, pay a lot of money and win. But I will tell you this. I do disagree with you on the paying a lot of money won't get you wins. I think that there is a very direct correlation between the two. And of course, you'll always have outlining.

Starting point is 00:17:05 You'll always have one or two teams that are, you know, they sold the barn and they still can't get nothing done. But by and large, when you make that investment, that investment pays all. I mean, I know we just said we're done talking 24 college football, but the national champion team had a $20 million roster. I would argue that football is a little bit different because of the, it's especially important in the trenches in football. I mean, you could just dominate there, but I see your point. But you get what I'm saying. Regardless of the sport, I believe that there will be a very direct correlation between teams that are ranked, teams that win ball games and teams that spend money.

Starting point is 00:17:39 I believe it will be a direct and positive correlation between the two. And teams that don't, well, you might not, you know, if you don't want to spend the bread, you're not going to beat out the guys who do. It's not that I disagree with you. It's just my overall point is that even if you have a lot of money, it's not going to guarantee that you're going to win. I mean, look at Arkansas. I mean, they don't win anything, right?

Starting point is 00:18:04 But Arkansas. And they're not winning. and they have all this NIL money. But Arkansas is the aberration. Yeah. Look at the rest of the SEC and what they're doing right now with basketball. And then boys got money. The football money, they got so much with football,

Starting point is 00:18:18 they got extra to throw in the basketball. And now look what's happened as a result of that. You know what I mean? Like it's, I'm not saying that, hey, the money is all that matters, but the money is a major chunk of what matters, right? It's like looking up ACT scores and then looking up the household incomes of the parents. Like, yes, there are kids whose parents make a ton of money who don't do well on the ACT, sure. But by and large, when you look at that grab and say, oh, who's doing well

Starting point is 00:18:48 on that, who's doing well on the test? What do their parents do? What do their parents make? You're generally going to see, again, for the most part, if they make more money, the kids are going to do better. And that's, it's, to me, the coaching matters. And yes, getting the right pieces matters and all that, it makes it easier to get the right pieces when you got the right month. That's true. But you know what? They weren't broke when they had Kenny Payne and they couldn't win games. They weren't broke with Kenny Payne and they couldn't win anything. Speaking of Pat Kelsey, though, do you think he should be the favor for Coach of the Year? I don't think there's any argument that anybody else is seriously in consideration. I mean, what he has done this year,

Starting point is 00:19:29 if we are correct in terms of none of those teams being serious about beating Louisville. If Louisville gets over Wake Forest, they go on a string of teams that are in the bottom half of the ACC. They're going to have a winning streak that is more wins than the previous coach had in his last two years come by. I don't see what world you don't say, hey, that coach, you know, in my community when some food is good, they say you put your foot in. that young man put his entire foot in that team and did what he did because he's cooking up something special. He's cooking up something special with a team that many people thought, they got some transfers,

Starting point is 00:20:11 and they got a little bit of talent. They got some guys, maybe they did some addition by some traction. By the way, I'm still upset at Louisville for sending us Brandon Huntley, Halfield. I don't know what happened. The boy can't rebound.

Starting point is 00:20:22 The case going to knock up. But I need to hear no. There, I'm looking at this team and saying, well, damn, what is this? Was this here all along? Also, I don't think that anybody else really deserve serious consideration. And I know my guy, Slam 10, is going to love to hear that. But seriously, you know, Cardinals, they should be very excited to see how well this team is playing.

Starting point is 00:20:43 Again, in year one under a new coach. Like you said, you don't have to stack class after class after class, but you and I both know it's different when it becomes a machine, like what they got rolling at Yukon right now, where it's a machine. It's like a, hey, year in, year out. expect us, expect us to be coming. He's on year one and building something that looks very formidable in the ACC. And also with Pat Kelsey, I think the reason why I don't think there's really anyone that comes close to him right now.

Starting point is 00:21:11 And it's only late January. There's still plenty of time for other coaches to emerge. And we could totally be jingsing Louisville right now. They go on a five-game losing streak. And we're sitting here in a month from now talking about what the heck happened to Louisville in a bad way. I don't think that's going to happen, though. with Pat Kelsey, he took a roster that was entirely brand new. There is one holdover from last year's team.

Starting point is 00:21:37 One, it's a walk-on. That's it. That is the only player. Not only that, their best player, arguably, Case in Pryor, is out for the season. Right. And they're still winning all of these games. So I look at the, I guess, other contenders.

Starting point is 00:21:54 I mean, who else comes close? I mean, Mark Pope with Kentucky. I mean, congratulations. You're good with Kentucky basketball. It was good every year. Bruce Pearl with Auburn. I mean, Auburn has been good every year with Bruce Pearl. I was going to say, Bruce Rose.

Starting point is 00:22:08 Dusty May with Michigan. I mean, you can argue Michigan. Michigan has not. Yeah, Dustin. Michigan's going through with Dusty May. I mean, they're kind of similar. They're kind of the Big Ten version of Louisville right now. But they weren't as down in the dumps as Louisville was.

Starting point is 00:22:21 So right now. No. The John Howard error was not as, as, as piss poor as the Kenny Payne. That was not an error. That was not an error. That was an error in my opinion. Did they win a national title?

Starting point is 00:22:32 Did they have enough tournament success? No, but during that era, they weren't always, they were actually pretty good for the most part. Yeah, you're referring to Gerard. Oh, yeah, yeah, I agree. I agree. I agree. I agree.

Starting point is 00:22:42 Jewel Howard was an error. I was like, oh, this is bad. I remember the situation where the young man didn't play because they didn't have the right leggings. And he said that nationally, and I'm just like, this situation cannot get worse. It literally cannot get worse. Y'all need to get rid of this, man.

Starting point is 00:23:01 And lo and behold, they did so. And now they have a national coach of the year, Ken. Well, Louisville fans rejoice. It appears your program is back. It depends on your definition of back. They are definitely nationally relevant in a good way again. Louisville in the top 25 for the first time in four years. I'm Jackson Holzer.

Starting point is 00:23:20 That's tempting. We've got one more segment for you all here on Lockdonne. and we're sticking with Hoops Talk. Duke is the class of the conference. Who else could maybe emerge come March? Stick with this here on Locked-on, ACC. Attending NFL playoff games is an experience like no other. The energy, the excitement, and the connection with other fans, it's unmatched. And I remember the thrill of watching the New York Jets beat the New England Patriots in 2010. I was eight years old. That's the last time the New York Jets won a playoff game. I'm sorry to Kenton. He's a Detroit Lions fan.

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Starting point is 00:24:41 O-N-C-O-L-L-E-G-E for $20 off. Download game time today. Last-minute tickets, lowest price, guaranteed. Rapping up here on Lockdown ACCC. I'm Jackson Holeser, the host of Lockdown, Syracuse. The host of Lockdown Wolfpack, and hey, he played Division I college football with the NC State Wolfpack as a defensive tackle. But we're talking some hoops here on Locked-on ACCC. We talked about Louisville's resurgence.

Starting point is 00:25:08 And now, Kenton, you look around the conference. Duke is the class. I think we can all agree on that, even myself and Kenton, right? We can agree on Duke, right? Yeah, I don't think anybody in their right mind that has two eyes is saying, oh, even people who have one eye, even people who can't see. I'm pretty sure Steve. About no eyes. I will still think Duke is the best.

Starting point is 00:25:30 If you can hear it again, you can hear that Cooper flag and that Malawash kid. They're doing their damn thing. So I wouldn't disagree there that everybody who is sentient knows, hey, that's the best team in the agency. Okay. So Duke is clearly the best team. They are clearly the team that has the best odds of winning the national championship out of all the teams in the conference. But outside of Duke, who do you think is that second team that can really make a a run come March. I know y'all going to hate to hear this. I know y'all hate to hear, oh,

Starting point is 00:26:01 Brownell is, he's Brownell, he's going to do it, he's going to fumble. He's, every time he gets there, he just can't get it done. But is it anybody other than Clemson who deserves serious consideration here? And let me tell you why I say, hey, Brad Brownell and Clemson are right there and they're ready to erupt here. What two things matter in postseason play? What two things matter in conference tournament time and in the NCAA tournament time. What are the two things that normally everybody says prevails, Jackson? Gar play. Gar play and experience.

Starting point is 00:26:38 There you go. And they have a ton of both. Everybody on that team, that team not only plays old, they look old. I mean, for Christ's sake, how long have some of these guys been in college? Jane Zachary looks like he's about 35 years old. But seriously, this is. a group of very senior, very experienced guys, Chase Hunter leading the way, Ian Schiflin being a do-it-all guy. You have multiple guys, I believe out of their top five scores,

Starting point is 00:27:09 four of the five are seniors. These guys are experienced. They're old. They've been there. They've seen it. They've done it. They've dealt with all the heartbreak. They've dealt with all the whole. They can't get the job done. And by the way, four of their five lead scores of seniors. You want to know what class the fifth guy is who's not a senior? Hill. He's a junior. You know what I mean? Like that's how old this team is.

Starting point is 00:27:34 Again, Chauncey Wiggins, who is their fifth league score, is a junior. So you're looking at a situation where, again, guard play two very experienced guards that are getting it done. Two guys that are playing at an extremely high level in that back court combined with a ton of length, a very versatile front court. And then you add in. some young guys who are talented to come in and kind of keep their legs fresh. But in all seriousness, they've got the guard play. They've got the experience. If Clemson goes on a run, don't be shot.

Starting point is 00:28:05 I could see Clemson going on a run, not just because they did last year, but also because they're one of the best shooting teams in the country. Syracuse played this team last night, so I got to watch them. They can really just shoot the lights at. If you give them anyone, anyone on the floor, it's like pick a player. It's like you don't want to give him space. Don't give him space. If you give that guy space, he's going to shoot on you and he's going to make it.

Starting point is 00:28:32 And it's just, they're really good. I like Clemson with you, but I'll give you a sneaker. I'll give you a sneaky team, all right? But it's going to depend on whether or not they can actually get in. Oh, North Carolina. I knew you were going to say. I knew you were going to say. Oh, let me think so.

Starting point is 00:28:48 It's a sleeper. It's a sleeper. I'm going to give you a sleep. It's a sleeper because, I mean, Clemson is, I think, the other one. Louisville, I mean, Louisville, it wouldn't be surprising. honestly at this point at they made a run. But if you're talking about teams on the bubble in the ACC, Carolina has got to be that team, right?

Starting point is 00:29:05 Who are the other bubble teams? You got Wake, SMU, Pitt, maybe Pitt, right? But I'm going Carolina. They got RJ Davis. They got Ian Jackson. I mean, at some point in time, if they could just put it all together, I think they have a lot of talent. So if they can just get into the NCAA tournament,

Starting point is 00:29:22 I could see them going on a run. There's a reason that team is a sleeper. Remember what I said about Louisville? That's just a team that out efforts everybody. That's a team that outworks everybody. The exact opposite can be said about USC. And you know what, though? I will say this.

Starting point is 00:29:39 I will concede to your point that they absolutely have the talent. They absolutely have the talent that if they had a little bit better execution, if they had a little bit better coaching, they would be in a position to truly make some noise. But as it stands right now, they don't have that. And if Ips were fits, you and I would both be drunk. And yet here we are sitting stone cold sober having to deal with and hear about, oh, if UNC gets in, they'll make some noise, they'll be some trouble.

Starting point is 00:30:07 We know how talented they are. Nobody is in their right mind would say 90 to 95 percent of teams around the country wouldn't switch rosters with UNC have given a chance in a heartbeat. But sometimes talent, a good team does not make it. And that's what we're seeing with this UNC team. We've seen it before with UNC2, and sometimes we see the opposite, where they are one seed and they underachieve.

Starting point is 00:30:32 That was literally last season. But I think back at that time, a few years ago, where they were an eight seed and they got in. And it's a dangerous day when you see a team like UNC as an eight seed come March, because you know that program is going to have talent. You know they might have more talent than a team

Starting point is 00:30:51 that's a higher seed than them. So if they can put it all together, they could go on a deep run. So that's my sleeper in the ACC, but I'm with you. I mean, it's Duke the class. You got Louisville and Clemson are two and three in no particular order, honestly. And then if you're looking on the bubble teams in the conference, North Carolina is that bubble team. The issue is they got to get in. There's a reason why they are on the bubble, right?

Starting point is 00:31:17 I'm Jackson Holzer, host of Lockdown, Syracuse filling in for Alex Dono. That's Kent and Gibbs from Locked-on Wolfpack. We talk a lot on this show. Final eight people, Louisville on fire. Who else besides Duke? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below. Donna will be back for the next episode of Lockdown, ACC, and we will see you all again soon.

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