Associated Press
CHAPEL HILL ó North Carolina and Georgia Tech are stuck in the muddled mess of the ACC’s Coastal Division standings. Both the 19th-ranked Tar Heels and No. 22 Yellow Jackets know the only way to come out on top is to keep winning.
When they meet today, the teams find themselves among five two-loss teams in the race to reach the league championship game. There are only a handful of chances left to push forward or make up for any earlier-season slipups, which could have the division come down to a bunch of tiebreakers unless a team emerges from the pack.
“I think everybody is kind of in situation where you control your own destiny,” North Carolina coach Butch Davis. “If you play well, good things have a chance to happen, and if you don’t, they won’t.”
The Tar Heels (6-2, 2-2 ACC) entered their bye week enjoying their most successful season since 1997 and their first bowl eligibility in four years. Yet they say none of that matters compared to what awaits coming out of the break, from ensuring their first winning season since 2001 to making good on the preseason expectations that they would contend for the division title.
Their two losses have come against Virginia and Virginia Tech, so they would need those teams to lose even if North Carolina managed to win out thanks to head-to-head tiebreakers. That could be a tough task considering the Tar Heels’ final month includes a trip to No. 23 Maryland, a home game against North Carolina State and the finale at improving Duke.
A loss to the Yellow Jackets (7-2, 4-2) would add another team to North Carolina’s standings loss-watch list.
“We’d all be lying if we told you we didn’t know who needed to lose,” quarterback Cameron Sexton said. “We all know that. I think generally, we do a good job of not paying attention to it, because if we don’t win, it doesn’t matter.”
The Yellow Jackets are in similar position; both of their losses came against the Cavaliers and Hokies.