Xavier Jones’s 2024 ACC Football Kickoff Day 1 Recap (7-22-24)
By: Xavier Jones
July 22, 2024, at the Hilton Charlotte Uptown in Charlotte, North Carolina, the 2024 ACC Football Kickoff was set to start. This event is taking place from July 22nd until July 25th. On the first day of this media event, the Commissioner of the ACC, Jim Phillips was scheduled to speak first in the Commissioner’s Forum. The Commissioner’s Forum was to be followed by press conferences from the schools taking part in Day 1 of the event. The schools that were scheduled for press conferences today were of the following: Georgia Tech, Florida State, and Southern Methodist University.
Commissioner’s Forum
The ACC Commissioner, Jim Phillips, kicked things off with his Commissioner’s Forum where he spoke on several different topics involving the ACC. The most notable topic that everyone was eager to hear about is the ongoing lawsuits between the ACC and Florida State and Clemson. As expected, Commissioner Phillips couldn’t really go into detail since the lawsuits are still active. However, Commissioner Phillips did state that the league will continue to fight these lawsuits with Florida State and Clemson “for as long as it takes.” He also added that “this conference is bigger than any one school or schools.”
Commissioner Phillips talked about the ACC having the toughest non-conference schedule in the country. He also mentioned that the week 0 game between Georgia Tech and Florida State that takes place on August 24, 2024 in Dublin, Ireland. In addition to that, Commissioner Phillips voiced his excitement about the expansion of the ACC Network reaching the state of Texas and California because of the addition of California, Stanford, and SMU. The potential for new eyes and viewership for the ACC Network is one the biggest positives about the addition of those teams.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Once the Commissioner’s Forum concluded, the press conferences for schools was set to begin. First up was Georgia Tech, and representing them was Head Coach Brent Key. Along with Coach Key was QB Haynes King, DL Zeek Biggers, and RB Jamal Haynes. At the beginning of the Georgia Tech press conference, Coach Key spoke about being a part of the ACC since 1996 as both a player and coach. Coach Key highlighted that are 7 head coaches in the ACC that graduated from schools in the ACC. He also talked about how he wants his players to be successful on and off the field, especially after they graduate from Georgia Tech. Finally, Coach Key talked about the potential national exposure for his players with the week 0 game against Florida State in the Aer Lingus in Dublin, Ireland.
Florida State Seminoles
Next up was Florida State, and representing them was Head Coach Mike Norvell, DL Joshua Farmer, DL Patrick Payton, and OL Darius Washington. Coach Norvell spoke about the 77 players he has returning from last season. Also, in the last two seasons, the Seminoles have won a total of 23 games. Coach Norvell about the importance of his team being ultra focused for the first two weeks of the season. The reason for that is because they are conference games. After those two conference games to open the season, Florida State is set to take on Coach Norvell’s former team the Memphis Tigers in week 3. Coach Norvell raved about his team’s defense with the addition of two defensive linemen that came from the transfer portal. He talked about the importance of putting in the work to reach a level of success that championship caliber teams have. When asked about the ACC’s slogan, Accomplish Greatness, Norvell’s answer was “being the best version of yourself in anything that you do.”
Southern Methodist Mustangs
The final team to speak today was one of the newcomers to the ACC, Southern Methodist better known as SMU. Representing SMU was Head Coach Rhett Lashlee, QBs Kevin Jennings and Preston Stone, TE RJ Maryland, and DL Elijah Roberts. The Mustangs are looking to come into ACC and assert themselves as one of the top teams in the conference. It was highlighted that SMU have a 24-4 home record over the last few seasons. The players indicated that they want to defend their turf with new opponents coming in. The belief among some media members is that SMU could be a legit contender for the ACC championship. Their speed on both sides of the ball could potentially pose a threat to the other teams within the conference. Don’t be surprised if SMU is one of the teams playing for ACC championship.
