Over the past two months I have previewed six of the nine teams in the ACC: Florida State, Georgia Tech, Maryland, North Carolina, N.C. State and Virginia. Following are shorter looks at three more ACC schools -- Clemson, Wake Forest and Duke.

CLEMSON
It's all about Willie Simmons, who replaces Woodrow Dantzler as the Tigers' quarterback. Last year it was Woody against the world. Everything revolved around Dantzler. But now the Tigers plan to have a more balanced attack and put less pressure on Simmons.

	Carl Franks is just 3-30 entering his fourth year at Duke.

Clemson has plenty of offensive talent surrounding Simmons, especially at wide receiver. Although Roscoe Crosby will miss the season with an elbow injury, the Tigers have a deep, talented receiving corps that rivals Florida State in the ACC.

While the Seminoles go five deep at receiver, Clemson goes with four -- and it would have been five with Crosby.

Clemson's best player is sophomore WR Derrick Hamilton, one of the ACC's top young performers. The 6-foot-4, 190-pounder averaged 31 yards per kickoff return and was the third-leading freshman receiver in the country last season (49 catches). The Tigers also get Kevin Youngblood back from a broken leg that sidelined him in 2001. Sophomore Airese Currie, the team's fastest player, led the Tigers with 17.9 yards per catch last year. And then there are seniors J.J. McKelvey (6-4, 210) and Jackie Robinson.

Bernard Rambert opens as Clemson's starting halfback. The Tigers also really like sophomore Yusef Kelly, who had a strong spring after redshirting last season.

On defense, the key player is DT Nick Eason, who will be counted on as an anchor. He was hampered by an ankle injury last year. Senior DE Bryant McNeal was third in the ACC with eight sacks last season. OLB John Leake, who had 130 tackles in 2001, is the team's second-best defensive player. Tigers need improvement most in in the secondary. They get three starters back, including senior CB Brian Mance.

WAKE FOREST
The Demon Deacons have already suffered a huge blow. Senior RB Tarence Williams, one of their top overall players, suffered a broken bone in his foot while getting out of bed in his dorm. Williams is hoping to be back for the Aug. 29 season opener at Northern Illinois, but the target date for his return is the ACC opener at N.C. State on Sept. 14.

Wake Forest also lost another running back, talented junior Fred Staton, who had a great spring but was ruled academically ineligible. That means junior Nick Burney, the third-team tailback, could open the season as the starter. Burney only had 32 carries last season.

While he's not a future pro prospect, senior James MacPherson is an excellent QB in coach Jim Grobe's system. He is resourceful and a true winner. WR Jason Anderson is Wake's top offensive player, if MacPherson can get him the ball. Although the Demon Deacons don't throw the ball much in Grobe's offense, Anderson caught 28 passes last season, the most of any freshman in school history. And remember, Ricky Proehl played at Wake Forest.

The Demon Deacons run a 3-3-5 scheme on defense. The strength is their defensive line and secondary. Senior DE Calvin Pace needs nine sacks to tie Michael McCrary as the all-time leader in school history. Montique Sharpe is one of the best nose tackles in the conference. The secondary, led by FS Quintin Williams, has the potential to be excellent. The only problem is that both cornerbacks are only 5-9. The biggest question is at linebacker, given the graduation loss of Marquis Hopkins, who was the Deacons' leading tackler the past two years.

Although the Demon Deacons lost to N.C. State, Maryland, Georgia Tech and Clemson last season -- all bowl teams -- they were in a position to either win or tie on the final series of each game. They could be competitive once again in 2002.

DUKE
Head coach Carl Franks enters his fourth season with 23 straight losses, 17 straight in the ACC. Franks will try to endure with another young team; OLB Jamyon Small is the team's only senior.

The Blue Devils have already lost QB D. Bryant to academic ineligibility. He is transferring to an NAIA school, so he will most likely play this season. While Bryant was talented, he was 0-18 as a starter.

Replacing Bryant will be either Adam Smith or Chris Dapolito. Smith is a drop-back passer with the stronger arm, while Dapolito, a transfer from Rutgers, is athletic and more of a threat to tuck it and run. The team's best offensive player is junior RB Chris Douglas.

Defensively, Ted Roof, formerly at Georgia Tech, takes over as coordinator. He has a big job ahead; last year Duke allowed 44.1 points per game. In four of last five weeks, the Blue Devils gave up 52 or more points. Junior LB Ryan Fowler, who has been moved from outside to inside in Roof's 4-3 scheme, leads the defense. The secondary is a huge question mark, particularly at cornerback.