ACC / Big 10 Challenge Schedule

The Matchups for '06 ACC/Big Ten Challenge were released today (LINK) and there are a couple of interesting games on the docket. The marquee game will no doubt be a heavily hyped matchup between Ohio State and North Carolina at the Dean Dome, a game that will pair the top 2 recruiting classes in the country and will feature something like 7-8 future NBA players on the floor.

Of more interest to GT fans, Tech's game will be against woeful Penn State at the Thriller Dome ... and worse, since it's such an unintersting matchup, it will only be televised on ESPNU. Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech are the only two ACC teams to have games from the challenge on ESPNU. I understand VT getting the shaft, but GT has a solid chance at being a top 25 team and top 3 in the ACC next year, how about Wisconsin and FSU getting the ESPNU game at that timeslot?

2006 ACC/Big Ten Challenge Schedule (All Times ET)
Monday, Nov. 27
7 p.m.	ESPN2	Michigan at N.C. State
Tuesday, Nov. 28
7 p.m.	ESPN	Maryland at Illinois
7:30 p.m.	ESPN2	Florida State at Wisconsin
8 p.m.	ESPNU	Penn State at Georgia Tech
9 p.m.	ESPN	Indiana at Duke
9:30 p.m.	ESPN2	Miami at Northwestern
Wednesday, Nov. 29
7 p.m.	ESPN	Michigan State at Boston College
7:30 p.m.	ESPN2	Virginia at Purdue
8 p.m.	ESPNU	Iowa at Virginia Tech
9 p.m.	ESPN	Ohio State at North Carolina
9:30 p.m.	ESPN2	Clemson at Minnesota

Looking at that list - it wouldn't surprise me if the ACC goes 7-4 or even 8-3 in the 11 games. The ACC has won the first 7 of these challenges, mostly because the bottom of the Big Ten is very bad year in and year out, and it would be a huge shocker for the Big Ten to "win" this one. Also of note is that the first team from the ACC to sit out the "Challenge" is Wake Forest, one of the founding members of the conference. They did finish at the bottom last year, and that has to be the reasoning, but it just portends how long of a season and how minimal the exposure will be for Wake in '06-'07. Finishing 12th out of 12 is going to hurt much worse than 9th out of 9 did.