Brownlow's Twitter Mailbag: ACC schools as CW characters, Sun Belt vs. PAC-12 and more

Another week, another set of offseason storylines to get us through the long, hard summer of no football. Thankfully, we found out this week that the ACC is going to get some games on the CW. That meant that several of you wanted me to assign CW characters to ACC schools, and I did my very best. We'll also get into which ACC quarterback in the NFL is set to have the best season and the Sun Belt vs. the PAC-12.

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So let's get into it!

This list actually leaves out quite a few ACC starting quarterbacks, namely Deshaun Watson, Russell Wilson and Daniel Jones. But big years for all of them (and the best year among them) are kind of relative. For Lamar Jackson, it's kind of MVP or bust. But I am an unabashed defender and fan of Jackson and I do think he'll have the best season of all of those quarterbacks. Close behind him, though? I feel good about what Trevor Lawrence can do. He's one of the most special quarterbacks I ever watched play in college and the Jaguars have some fun pieces.

Wilson would be thrilled with a solid, decent season at this point. I think Kenny Pickett just wants to see continued growth, while if Sam Howell could have a starting-QB caliber season, that would be huge for him at this point in his career whether he stays in Washington or not. And that has traditionally been kind of a cursed position there. Daniel Jones put up great fantasy numbers a year ago but obviously needs to keep cutting down on his turnovers and get the Giants to the playoffs. So their goals aren't all the same necessarily. But I like Lawrence to take the leap and Jackson to continue being great. As amazing as Lawrence was to watch in college, Jackson remains the most special player I've ever watched live while working.

Love the homage to sports talk radio there, because this is a fun and saucy sports radio-esque topic that you could take in a number of different directions. I get why you're asking the question. The Sun Belt has done a ton of great things in the last few years especially and has elevated its own stature as a conference in college football arguably more than any of the other Group of 5 leagues have. Could you argue that the Sun Belt's top teams are more compelling football than the PAC-12? You could argue that, sure. And I'd hear that argument. But the floor of any power conference is always going to be higher than the floor of any Group of 5 league, and the same is true here.

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You're only as good as your worst team, and the PAC-12's worst team (or teams) is always going to be better than the Sun Belt's worst teams. That's just a fact. Now, would I rather watch the Sun Belt? That's a different story. Yes, probably. But that's not what you're asking.

Well, this question did genuinely make me think, so full credit for that. I feel like, while I was around during Laettner's heyday, I wasn't nearly as immersed into the world of all things ACC as I am now. So my only sense of what his playing career was like is secondhand information. I don't feel like you hear a lot of sentences start with "I hate Bob", no matter who the Bob in question is. Although I guess Bob Iger hasn't made himself a lot of friends this week. But I don't think the name matters as much as you think it does. And a guy like Christian Laettner? I get the feeling that if he didn't feel the name Bob was hatable enough, he would have given himself a super hatable nickname.

I got a few different variations of this question, so I can't really hide from it. I do need to preface this by saying that there were really only three CW shows I ever watched: One Tree Hill, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and America's Next Top Model. Now, I watched the hell out of ALL of those, even though I never finished One Tree Hill (I assumed it ended far earlier than it did and just stopped watching). I will pull from those shows as much as I can. I won't do every ACC school, but the ones that make sense to me.

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Boston College: Skillz, One Tree Hill. For years, Skillz was the only Black character on One Tree Hill that was fleshed out in any detail as opposed to an extra on the basketball team. His storylines were often weird and made no sense. It's clear the ACC only brought on BC for that elusive Boston market that they were probably closer to courting when eating at a Boston Market than by adding the Eagles. You're not fooling anyone, One Tree Hill producers or ACC expansionists.

Clemson: Lucas, One Tree Hill. Just winning alone isn't enough for either Clemson or Lucas Scott. No, they have to always have some sort of storyline where they manage to paint themselves as the underdog or the downtrodden one. Just because you make that pouty face and think it looks hot doesn't mean we all feel sorry for you, Chad Michael Murray/Dabo Swinney. You are very successful and have a lot of advantages; no little ole Clemson or poor little Lucas Scott for you.

Duke: Nathan Scott, One Tree Hill. I'll be honest: I can't get the fact that Nathan had an offer from Duke out of my head. But the college basketball star saw his professional dreams die after a car accident that injured his back. That has nothing to do with why I picked him for Duke, though, as Nathan came out of everything the biggest winner in the show with the most functional relationship and a wonderful son. He might have a storyline where he dips into some bad behavior, but he always manages to find himself again and he's pretty reliable, not unlike Duke basketball.

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Florida State: Tyra Banks, America's Next Top Model. No school in the ACC can smize (smiling with your eyes, for the uninitiated) like the Seminoles when they're hot. You could make the case that when they were at their best, both Tyra and Florida State were unrivaled. But both in the show and in real life, neither will hesitate to remind you that THEY know best about not only why they're great, but why you are NOT great. It works for me.

UNC: Haley James Scott, One Tree Hill. Yes, I picked Nathan's wife, even though Nathan is Duke. And I did that because they're two halves of the same whole. Besides, they both had a baby together, which is their rivalry, which has been great for the ACC and for both schools. And Nathan and Haley's child on the show was one of the best things to happen to the show as well.

NC State: Brooke Davis, One Tree Hill. NC State, like Brooke Davis, can't fully love itself because it wants to protect itself from rejection and pain. Making good decisions for their emotional future? No thanks. Bad decisions abound for these two as they can't seem to get out of their own way when they try to find happiness. But on the few occasions when they let themselves love and believe with their whole heart that this could be their moment, it just isn't. Well, Brooke Davis (and NC State), you are beautiful and special too.

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Notre Dame: Dawson, Dawson's Creek. What's that? Dawson's Creek wasn't on the CW? Well, Notre Dame isn't in the ACC. Plus, both Dawson and Notre Dame are smug and annoying.

Pitt: Rebecca Bunch, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. The protagonist of a cult classic TV show that randomly breaks out into song and frequently acts like an insane person? I don't know which is Pitt and which is Rebecca Bunch at this point.

Syracuse: Mouth, One Tree Hill. The aspiring sports broadcaster was evidently a Syracuse fan, and that's enough of a reason for me to give him to the Orange. He also inexplicably always got some incredibly beautiful women to want to date him, which parallels Syracuse the school getting people to go there in spite of the weather up there.

Wake Forest: Paula, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. The older women on a show full of young people, Paula Proctor often stole the spotlight both during the musical numbers and in all of our hearts. You don't expect Paula to steal the song, but she does. And that's what Wake does too. Also, both Wake Forest and Paula are fun to root for.