Remember how last year, Virginia made it to a bowl game for the first time in what felt like a decade? And, to sweeten the deal, it turned out that it was the Chick-Fil-A / Peach Bowl, a bowl typically meant for the ACC #2? Man, that felt great.
And many of us made our way down to Atlanta for New Year's Eve, to watch our beloved Hoos take on the then-reigning national champions. Everyone was stoked, albeit confused, because blue and orange was everywhere and you couldn't tell whether to give someone a hug or to punch them in the face until you got close enough to read their shirts. Good times. And then the football game happened and it wasn't so much good times.
Well, Phil Steele released last week his entirely-too-early bowl projections (I mean, come on, Phil. We don't even know if our potentially starting QB is eligible yet!). He's got the Hoos slated to return to the postseason (huzzah!) on New Year's Eve again, this time in Nashville in the Music City Bowl. And he's got us picked to face off against Auburn once again.
Obviously, it's too early to make any real prediction, commentary or preview of this. But look, it's July, and we're all football-starved.
Here's the rest of Phil's ACC lineup:
- BCS Championship Game: ACC #1 Florida State* vs. Oklahoma
- Chick-Fil-A Bowl: ACC #2 Clemson vs. SEC #5 Tennessee
- Russel Athletic Bowl (Champs Sports Bowl): ACC #3 Virginia Tech vs. Big East #2 Louisville
- Sun Bowl: ACC #4 NC State vs. PAC-12 #4 Oregon State
- Belk Bowl: ACC #5 Georgia Tech vs. Big East #3 Notre Dame
- Music City Bowl: ACC #6 Virginia vs. SEC #7 Auburn
- Independence Bowl: ACC #7 Miami vs. SEC Texas A&M
- Military Bowl: ACC #8 Boston College vs. Army
* Because the ACC's champion is headed to the BCS Championship Game, the Orange Bowl can select at-large, in lieu of the regular ACC team.