Second Tampa ACC Title Game
(December 7, 2009)

The second ACC Championship Game held at Raymond James Stadium featured two teams that had not won a title in some time. Georgia Tech won its last Atlantic Coast Conference outright title in 1990, the same year they won a share of the national championship. Clemson had not won the league crown since 1991.

The 12th ranked Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (10-2, 7-1) were lead by ACC defensive player of the year DE Derrick Morgan and the league's coach of the year Paul Johnson. The 25th ranked Clemson Tigers (8-4, 6-2), coached by Dabo Swinney, were lead by RB C.J. Spiller the ACC top offensive player. The two teams met September 10th in Atlanta, a game won by Georgia Tech 30-27. The teams featured the top two scoring offensives in the conference.

It was a pretty good game with each team rushing for over 300 yards and the game featured zero punts. C.J. Spiller rushed for 233 yards on 20 carries and scored four Clemson touchdowns. While Tigers QB Kyle Parker (10 of 17 for 91 yards) was picked off twice, Tech signal caller Josh Nesbitt (9 of 16 for 136 yards) rushed for 103 yards with two scores. Jonathan Dwyer rushed for 100 yards and his second score of the night, with 1:20 left, provided the winning margin in a 39-34 Georgia Tech victory.

The crowd was much better than the previous year. The announced crowd was 57,227 compared to 53,927 last year. The big improvement came in actual fans in the stands. Since the announced attendance is for tickets distributed, the Tampa Sports Authority provides numbers on how many people actually went through the turnstiles. After just 27,360 saw the 2008 game, 42,815 were there this year. ACC associate commissioner Michael Kelly said, "This is a very strong showing."

The first three ACC Championship Games were held in Jacksonville and the league was disappointed with the attendance. So, the next two were held in Tampa with the 2010 and 2011 games scheduled for Charlotte. After next year's game the ACC will consider future sites. Most think that Charlotte, in the heart of ACC country, will become the permanent home for the game.

Could Tampa possibly host the game in the future? Michael Kelly stated, "We've always been pleased with the way the Tampa Bay market has helped us put on a first class event." Tampa Bay Sports Commission executive director Rob Higgins commented, "If they deem us a viable candidate in the future, then we'll look forward to those discussions. I know there's nothing else we could have done to show just how much our relationship with the ACC means."