This week the ACC Blogger Roundtable is hosted by James Curle from Yet Another NC State Sports Blog. Like most NC State fans, he follows basketball mostly but he gets his fair share of football in too. It was pretty funny to read all the non-Carolinian bloggers to respond to the BBQ question. We’ve put together a rough check list of some of the ACC RT guys on Twitter for your enjoyment. Also, check the other responses below if you’d like. Also, Wolfpack offensive coordinator Dana Bible was diagnosed with Leukemia which really sucks.

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1) The ACC scheduling gods really did their best this year to ensure a true “rivalry” week to conclude the season. Here in North Carolina, the two large state schools (N.C. State and Carolina) and the two smaller private schools (Duke and Wake) face off against one another. Clemson, Georgia Tech, Florida State, Miami, Virginia and Virginia Tech all face off against in-state foes. Even the Boston College/Maryland game has a twinge of regional flavor to it, pitting the two northern-most schools of the ACC against one another. On paper, is this the best rivalry week lineup in recent  memory?

Kind of yes, kind of no. It doesn’t seem like as much hatred is coming out of this week as there should be. I don’t know, maybe we just haven’t been as angry for some reason this week. Schedule-wise this is a great set up, but BC and Maryland need to nut up and find some traditional football rivals. I’d really like to see NC State and Maryland go head to head. Then put UNC and Duke against one another. Then finally I would like to continue to play Vanderbilt at the end of the season since they share some common ground via colors, academics, etc.

2) Clemson and Georgia Tech will face one another in the ACC title game. Do you think both teams facing out-of-conference rivals the week prior will help or hurt either team’s performance in the big game, depending on the outcomes of these rivalry games?

Barring injuries, no. Both seem to have the upper hand against their natural born enemies so the only thing I can foresee is the momentum of a win for both carrying into an ACCCG that seems destined to be a knock down, drag out, slugfest.  It seems for now that the rivalry week will only serve to help both teams. That is unless one team loses to their rival and then wins the  championship. Then you have to hear about how SEC bottom dwellers beat the ACC Champion. It’d be really bad if we both lost this week.

3) It’s the tail end of the season and you know what that means: Coaching Carousel Time! I’m a firm believer in giving a coach five years to prove his worth before even considering a change…at least I *was*, until I saw how quickly Paul Johnson and Brian Kelly turned their respective programs into top-10 squads. With an ever-increasing desire from fan bases to WIN NOW, is five years still “industry standard,” or can coaches legitimately be expected to show marked improvement in four years or less before finding a pink slip in their inbox? How bad would a situation have to be to fairly jettison a head coach before year five?

I think it depends on the situation, but three to five should be the given norm. Agreeing to this only fuels the beast that is the “What have you done for me lately attitude.” It’s a disgusting outlook on the game. Again, I said it depends on the situation. If Dabo had come in and laid two stank seasons in a row, I wouldn’t even want to give him a third. Especially if we lost to Carolina or did not so great in recruiting. In the end, five years still is and should be the industry standard. Hell, we gave our last coach twice that.

4) Certainly the four-letter network likes to pimp the big rivalries– Ohio State Vs. Michigan, Texas Vs. Oklahoma, etc.–but I think the ACC has quite a few solid rivalries that never get the coverage they deserve. Where do you think your school’s rivalry rates in terms of passion, prestige and what’s at stake each season? What steps–beyond the obvious “win more”–could be taken to improve the visibility of your team’s rivalry matchup every year?

Honestly, as a traditionalist I have to say ours is the best. Now as a realist, I have to say ours is the best. In the nation. Just because more schools have more fans that will disagree a la a Texas or a Michigan, doesn’t mean I’m not right. And for those that nay say, let me ask you this: Has your rivalry ever reached the point of on field fisticuffs? Hell, one year way back in the day when Clemson lost Big Thursday down in Columbia our Cadets started taking shit over and forcefully held Cola with rifles until our professors went down there and calmed things down.

5) Few rivalries in the South have as much tradition, passion and generated as much heated discussion as a good ol’ fashioned barbecue debate. Here in North Carolina it’s Eastern versus Lexington style, and a good many shouting matches have arisen between folks east of I-95 and those godless heathens that put ketchup and brown sugar in their “dip.” No doubt similar verbal wars have been waged on behalf of your favorite barbecue, as well, so the question is this: In an all- out, Armageddon-type scenario where the righteous are separated from the unholy on the basis of what type of barbecue they bring to the judgment table, what style of barbecue are you bringing and who–among the purveyors of this style of ‘cue in your state–will you select to be your Champion?

I don’t know where Chili stands on this issue, but as a man with an underground pig pit that I built myself in my backyard, I’ve found that three things are most important when talking about barbecue: BBQ is smoked pork, any other meat doesn’t qualify; Never trust a BBQ joint that doesn’t serve both pulled and chopped pork; a sweeter sauce or mustard-based sauce are best for serving company. Personally, I love the Cheerwine sauce from Smokin’ Stokes off Augusta Road here in Greenville for any application on any meat. I’ve found through personal experience though that if you cook your pig with time and care, the people eating the pig shouldn’t need too much sauce. You need a nice seasoning and salt application to begin with. The next important part is consistency in temperature and the type of wood you use to smoke the beast. Lastly, when you flip the pig lather it with a whole jar of honey on the tenderloins, butts, and any other portion you deem necessary.