Embracing mediocrity (but not neutrality)
posted by LW, Thursday, May 21, 2009
The image is allegedly a half-page ad that recently appeared in The State newspaper:
First off, I can't immediately verify this ad's legitimacy. For all I know, it could be a hoax perpetrated by a Clemson fan.
And gosh, do I hope it is a hoax. Because it's nauseating on so many levels.
We can obviously start with the bar being set low enough that records above .500 are embraced with such euphoria. What kind of kudos is the paper going to bestow if the Gamecocks actually win big?
The more appalling aspect of this, though, is the gushing, head-over-heels support delivered by a media outlet that supposedly covers USC sports in a remotely sober, objective fashion.
There's this school in the northwest part of the state that The State also claims to neutrally cover. What does this ad say to Clemson fans who read the paper's fine coverage of the Tigers?
It must be understood that the writers at The State -- at least, all the ones I know -- had nothing to do with this ad and probably cringed at the sight of it.
But if indeed this thing is legitimate, someone in position of authority made the decision to run it. And that decision takes an ice pick to the credibility of a news outlet that's supposed to leave the pom-poms at home.
Clemson fans, by the way, are still waiting for "proud congratulations" for their awesome 7-6 football season in 2008.
Moving right along...
In light of the recent "controversies" regarding supposedly inflammatory stuff said by Urban Meyer and Steve Spurrier, the AJC's Tony Barnhart fears college football coaches will become even more boring ... if that's possible.
At least Mike Leach is still willing to say whatever the heck is on his mind...
The NCAA's infractions committee was granted a seven-day extension and now must respond to Florida State's appeal by June 2.
Good story here by Tom Dienhart on Utah and its quest to remain among the elite.
(Kyle Whittingham) and the Utes have been successful to the point where many schools want to be like Utah. Phone calls flooded Whittingham's office in the offseason after a magical 13-0 season that was punctuated by a 31-17 upset of Alabama in the Sugar Bowl and a final No. 2 ranking. Can we come and study your defense? How does your offense operate? What are your motivational tricks?
"We couldn't have everyone come out," Whittingham says. "But we did what we could and also visited other schools to help out."
Now, the spotlight swings back to Whittingham: How is he going to feed the Utah beast?
That's right: The Utah program has become a beast. The Utes have been to two BCS bowls in the past five seasons. Alabama can't say that. Neither can college football heavies such as Auburn, Florida State, Miami, Nebraska, Oregon and Tennessee, among others.
Whittingham repeats the question again and laughs.
"How are we going to feed the beast?" he asks. "I don't know, but it's a nice problem to have.
"We have to move on. [Our players] understand the Sugar Bowl season is something that never can be taken away from them. But in 2009, nobody cares. It's a new season. We need to understand that we have a bull's-eye on our chest, we are defending Mountain West champs and Sugar Bowl champs, and people are gunning for us. Nobody cares what we did last year."
Dienhart also mentions TCU, which visits Clemson in 2009, as the preseason favorite in the Mountain West Conference.
This is the best non-"Big Six" program never to play in a BCS bowl. Gary Patterson's team finally may do it this season with another great defense and what should be a strong rushing attack.
I've been studying up on the Horned Frogs for the upcoming TCU preview and, man, what an impressive product Patterson has constructed in Fort Worth.
Posted this on the board yesterday but figured I'd share again: Andy Staples of SI.com has a nice feature on Dabo Swinney.
Not a fun time for former Clemson star Khalil Greene.
Paul Strelow of The State has a piece examining what exactly is at stake for the Tigers starting today in the ACC Tournament.
And the cerebral Travis Sawchik of The Post and Courier delves into the topic of defensive value.
That's all for now.
Oh, and belated congrats to Clemson's baseball team for finishing above .500 this year.
LW
For questions or comments on this blog entry, please visit The West Zone message board.
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Tigertehcu, a friend of the blog and subscriber to TI, passed along a disturbing image.
The image is allegedly a half-page ad that recently appeared in The State newspaper:
First off, I can't immediately verify this ad's legitimacy. For all I know, it could be a hoax perpetrated by a Clemson fan.
And gosh, do I hope it is a hoax. Because it's nauseating on so many levels.
We can obviously start with the bar being set low enough that records above .500 are embraced with such euphoria. What kind of kudos is the paper going to bestow if the Gamecocks actually win big?
The more appalling aspect of this, though, is the gushing, head-over-heels support delivered by a media outlet that supposedly covers USC sports in a remotely sober, objective fashion.
There's this school in the northwest part of the state that The State also claims to neutrally cover. What does this ad say to Clemson fans who read the paper's fine coverage of the Tigers?
It must be understood that the writers at The State -- at least, all the ones I know -- had nothing to do with this ad and probably cringed at the sight of it.
But if indeed this thing is legitimate, someone in position of authority made the decision to run it. And that decision takes an ice pick to the credibility of a news outlet that's supposed to leave the pom-poms at home.
Clemson fans, by the way, are still waiting for "proud congratulations" for their awesome 7-6 football season in 2008.
Moving right along...
In light of the recent "controversies" regarding supposedly inflammatory stuff said by Urban Meyer and Steve Spurrier, the AJC's Tony Barnhart fears college football coaches will become even more boring ... if that's possible.
At least Mike Leach is still willing to say whatever the heck is on his mind...
The NCAA's infractions committee was granted a seven-day extension and now must respond to Florida State's appeal by June 2.
Good story here by Tom Dienhart on Utah and its quest to remain among the elite.
(Kyle Whittingham) and the Utes have been successful to the point where many schools want to be like Utah. Phone calls flooded Whittingham's office in the offseason after a magical 13-0 season that was punctuated by a 31-17 upset of Alabama in the Sugar Bowl and a final No. 2 ranking. Can we come and study your defense? How does your offense operate? What are your motivational tricks?
"We couldn't have everyone come out," Whittingham says. "But we did what we could and also visited other schools to help out."
Now, the spotlight swings back to Whittingham: How is he going to feed the Utah beast?
That's right: The Utah program has become a beast. The Utes have been to two BCS bowls in the past five seasons. Alabama can't say that. Neither can college football heavies such as Auburn, Florida State, Miami, Nebraska, Oregon and Tennessee, among others.
Whittingham repeats the question again and laughs.
"How are we going to feed the beast?" he asks. "I don't know, but it's a nice problem to have.
"We have to move on. [Our players] understand the Sugar Bowl season is something that never can be taken away from them. But in 2009, nobody cares. It's a new season. We need to understand that we have a bull's-eye on our chest, we are defending Mountain West champs and Sugar Bowl champs, and people are gunning for us. Nobody cares what we did last year."
Dienhart also mentions TCU, which visits Clemson in 2009, as the preseason favorite in the Mountain West Conference.
This is the best non-"Big Six" program never to play in a BCS bowl. Gary Patterson's team finally may do it this season with another great defense and what should be a strong rushing attack.
I've been studying up on the Horned Frogs for the upcoming TCU preview and, man, what an impressive product Patterson has constructed in Fort Worth.
Posted this on the board yesterday but figured I'd share again: Andy Staples of SI.com has a nice feature on Dabo Swinney.
Not a fun time for former Clemson star Khalil Greene.
Paul Strelow of The State has a piece examining what exactly is at stake for the Tigers starting today in the ACC Tournament.
And the cerebral Travis Sawchik of The Post and Courier delves into the topic of defensive value.
That's all for now.
Oh, and belated congrats to Clemson's baseball team for finishing above .500 this year.
LW
For questions or comments on this blog entry, please visit The West Zone message board.
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
Donnie Patterson. Donnie Patterson is the founder of Patterson Tax Service, located in Easley, S.C. He has been active in tax preparation since 1970, and offers a full range of tax and bookkeeping services.
Larry Williams. Larry has covered the daily beat at Clemson since 2004. Williams, who worked for the Charleston Post & Courier from 2004-08, joined Tigerillustrated.com in November of 2008. He may be reached by email at ldubya08(at)gmail.com. Replace (at) with @.