By: JJ Lanier

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

No matter the level of sports you play and no matter what conference or division you play in, you’re going to always have one group that is more dominant than the other; beside the whole “sports camaraderie” thing it’s kind of the purpose of playing, right?

When it comes to ACC Football, the more dominant division, historically, has been the Atlantic. The Coastal Division, which Georgia Tech won in four of the first seven seasons after Paul Johnson was brought in, has played the role of the NBA’s Eastern Conference.

Basically, the Coastal has been the little brother that keeps swinging at the older brother (Atlantic) but is always kept at arm’s length, just far enough to never really land blows.

This bodes well for Johnson and the Yellow Jackets, who after a seventh, fifth, and third place finish in the Coastal over the past three years and a new extension for the aforementioned head coach, need to see continued improvement as they try to regain that early success.

At first glance, Georgia Tech’s schedule seems fairly daunting, however I think it’s more than manageable. Like most college football teams, the difference between a successful season for the Jackets and one that ends in everyone eating away their pain at the Varsity, will come down to handful of games.

I know it’s dangerous to assume, but let’s roll the dice and assume they defeat Alcorn St., USF, Pittsburgh, Bowling Green, and Virginia. And that they lose to Clemson and Georgia. This leaves them with a 5-2 record, with 5 games up in the air; all five of which happen to be in row.

The first of the five is against Louisville, at Louisville. With Lamar Jackson in the NFL and the Cardinals matador style defense, I like Tech’s chances. This is one I would not be surprised to see them leave with a win.

The next opponent is Duke, at home. Now, before David Cutcliffe arrived this would be more of a guaranteed win than the Alcorn St. game, but Duke has played Tech well over the last few years, winning in Atlanta two years ago.

After the Blue Devils come to town and a bye week, there are back to back road games against Virginia Tech and North Carolina. Truth be told, the season could come down to these two games.

As tough as the Hokies are at home, the Yellow Jackets have always played them tough since Johnson’s arrival and have won three of the last four. A win won’t be easy but it won’t be stunning either.

There’s absolutely no telling which Carolina team will show up this season but the games always seem to be close, a common thread with Georgia Tech and I would expect nothing different when they meet in November.

This stretch of five games concludes back in Atlanta, against Miami. The Hurricanes have looked good since Richt’s return and I know the expectations are high in Coral Gables. I almost included this game in the loss column but with it being at home and the potential for a first-place division title on the line, I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. I don’t think they will win, I’m just not convinced a Georgia Tech loss is a sure thing.

So, there you have it; a Coastal Division title, right in their grasp.

Of course, now that I’ve said all this, you realize Alcorn State is going to win that first game, don’t you?