Scott Shafer recognizes the logjam currently forming in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Eight teams have already qualified for bowls. At least one more will this week. And it’s possible for a total of 11 to qualify by regular season’s end.

The ACC has just eight bowl reservations, although No. 2 Florida State will likely bump up to the Bowl Championship Subdivision National Championship game.

“Obviously it’s important for all the programs that are looking to get in that position,” Shafer said on the ACC coaches’ teleconference on Wednesday, “but really for us the focus has got to be just getting the next win.”

The Orange hosts Pittsburgh on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. The Panthers are in the same position. Here’s a quick look at the bowls the ACC has to fill:

Date — Bowl — Matchup
1/6/14 — BCS National Championship Game (Pasadena, Calif.) — BCS 1 vs. BCS 2
1/3/14 — Orange (Miami) — ACC No. 1 vs. At-large No. 1
12/31/13 — Chick-fil-A (Atlanta) — ACC No. 2 vs. SEC No. 5
12/28/13 — Russell Athletic (Orlando, Fla.) — ACC No. 3 vs. American No. 2
12/31/13 — Sun (El Paso, Texas) — ACC No. 4 vs. Pac-12 No. 4
12/28/13 — Belk (Charlotte, N.C.) — ACC No. 5 vs. American No. 3
12/30/13 — Music City (Nashville, Tenn.) — ACC No. 6 vs. SEC No. 7
12/31/13 — Independence (Shreveport, La.) — ACC No. 7 vs. SEC No. 10
12/27/13 — Military (Annapolis, Md.) — ACC No. 8 vs. C-USA No. 5

After that, everything gets foggy. ACC bowl-eligible teams will slide into the bottom-rung bowl games that other conferences can’t fill. They become at-large bids.

The Pinstripe and Heart of Dallas bowls are two possibilities as the Big 12 will only have six bowl-eligible teams. The Beef ‘O’ Brady’s bowl in St. Petersburg, Fla., is another possible opening as the sixth team in the American conference is supposed to fill that slot, and Southern Methodist will need to win two of three to claim it.

So for Syracuse, it’s basically impossible to predict where it would land. Shafer said that can’t be the focus, and his players agreed on Tuesday night.

All they can worry about is Pitt.

“If we stay small with our targets, and our focus is on that, all the bigger things will take care of themselves,” Shafer said. “I always talk to the kids about controlling the controllables, and as a coach you have to do the same thing. And I really think focusing in on those smaller targets is the key to getting the opportunities that come down the road.”

Published on November 20, 2013 at 1:28 pm

Contact Stephen: sebail01@syr.edu | @Stephen_Bailey1