When the ACC struggled to post big wins and play for championships, league coaches defended the league the best way they could -- with stats about NFL draft picks or bowl wins or awards won.
But they also shared a frustration that no matter what they said or how their teams performed, the narrative never went away. Back in 2013, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said, “There's a perception that the ACC is the bottom dweller, and that's so far from reality.”
Two years later, Swinney defended his league again, saying, “The Atlantic Division had more draft picks than any division in college football.