I've given myself a day to cool down and I think I'm ready to let this football season slip gracefully into the past. That's not to say that I'm going to give up pulling for the Heels, or that I'm going to start watching basketball instead. There's still plenty to play for--bragging rights versus State, the victory bell and self-dignity versus Duke, a ten-win season versus a second-tier Big East or SEC voe. Technically, it is still possible to win our division if Miami, VaTech, and UVA all lose again. (You can see the divisional tiebreakers after the "continue reading" break.)

But three times now, Carolina has choked up a chance to win our division in the fourth quarter of a game that we could easily have won. So I'm not writing them off, but I have come to terms with reality. At some point you have to let the dying die. So rest in peace, hopes of a conference championship. Farewell dreams of a BCS bowl. You will be missed greatly until next fall.