Pretty much the only thing mentioned regarding college conferences these days are simple. The SEC is king, the Big 10 is on the rebound and everyone else is fighting for respect. So what about the Athletic Coast Conference? Well aside from being the best basketball breeding ground there is, it also has quite a football reputation as well. In fact there is a Chicago Bears ACC situation fans may want to take notice of.
Specifically the one regarding new quarterback Mitch Trubisky. Coming from North Carolina, he is another QB product of this conference taken in the top three. Before going #2 this past April, it was Jameis Winston at #1 in 2015 and E.J. Manuel at #16 in 2013. Suffice to say it’s a conference that gets a lot of respect at the quarterback position.
Turns out it also is one with a fascinating history when it comes to the Bears and the NFL at large. One that Trubisky will either emulate or take in an entirely new direction in the years to come.
The Chicago Bears ACC affiliation is a weird one
It’s one thing to have hits and misses coming out of a conference. That’s just normal procedure for teams in a draft. The Bears were never going to hit on every pick from the ACC. At the same time, upon closer inspection it’s safe to say the franchise has a “peculiar” history with players out of there. How so?
Subscribe to the BFR podcast and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
Here’s a rundown. It brought Bob Avellini, a bad quarterback for them who also was the guy who broke a 14-year playoff drought in 1977. Former second round pick Ed Cooke spent a whopping three games with the team before leaving for another team as a rookie. Chris Gardocki and Greg Olsen would become multi-time Pro Bowlers but only after leaving Chicago.
Then there was William Perry, member of the 1985 team and one of the greatest folk heroes in Bears history. Also Patrick Mannelly their greatest long snapper. Last but not least? A short, ineffective defensive back who turned out to be the greatest return man in NFL history named Devin Hester. It’s a wild and crazy cast with tons of memorable names and moments.
So what does this mean for Trubisky? To answer that, there is more information to digest.
ACC quarterbacks don’t win big ones
The conference also has quite a quarterback lineage. To date 11 signal callers drafted out of programs from it have gone on to at least one Pro Bowl. Fun-loving Sonny Jurgensen resides in the Pro Football Hall of Fame while Philip Rivers and Matt Ryan both could be threatening to join him if they’re able to put a few more upper tier seasons together. There is also one other incredible fact to note.
None of the quarterbacks to come out of the ACC have won a championship. Zero. It’s true. Here is a breakdown of the stark reality. Second round pick Ed Cooke
- Boomer Esiason (Maryland)
- Lost Super Bowl XXIII with Cincinnati
- Neil O’Donnell (Maryland)
- Lost Super Bowl XXX with Pittsburgh
- Matt Ryan (Boston College)
- Lost Super Bowl LI with Atlanta
The list doesn’t include Roman Gabriel who lost two NFL championships in 1967 and 1969. Even Frank Reich, one of the greatest backups in league history was part of the infamous four-straight Super Bowl losses with the Buffalo Bills in the early 1990s. Suffice to say that despite outstanding individual plays, ACC quarterbacks have yet to take hold of a Lombardi trophy.
That is a major hurdle Trubisky would have to overcome. How fitting would it be then if he did it with the Bears, of all teams? That’s a Hollywood script if ever there was one.
