Happy anniversary
posted by LW, Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Dabo Swinney didn't realize the importance of yesterday until his wife reminded him on his way out the door to the football offices.
I didn't realize it either.
October 13th.
A lot happened that day.
And a lot has happened since.
Hard to believe, huh?
This is what he was saying back then:
“We’re not a broken team. We’re not an old jalopy, hooptie car that we’ve put a paint job on and some new rims. We’ve got everything on this car. We’ve got a six-disc CD changer, a moon roof, power windows, cruise control, nice paint job.
“When you see this car, you’re like, ‘I’d like to drive that one.’ Somewhere along the way we’ve caught a flat tire, gotten low on gas. I’m trying to fill this tank back up, put some air in the tires, because this is a good football team.”
It's almost fitting that this week's game is against Wake Forest. That was the game last year, a 12-7 loss in Winston-Salem that sank the term "offensive ineptitude" to new lows, that also led to Tommy Bowden's departure and Dat Boy's elevation.
Gene Sapakoff of The Post and Courier says it's "just another playoff game" for the Tigers.
As the voice of reason, I was forced to spend most of Tuesday working the extremes.
Talking people off the Esso Club roof.
Telling others not to buy those Atlantic Coast Conference championship game tickets just yet.
Also in the P&C, the Tigers present a united front.
More on that in The State, which has an interesting quote from Thomas Austin:
"(Swinney) came up to me ... and said, 'Thomas, you know, I think I cussed out everyone on the field.' " Austin said. "He said, 'What do you think?' I told him he probably came close. Then he said, 'Tomorrow, I'm going over to the defensive side.'
A look at the Tigers' fourth-quarter woes ... and not just this year.
Clemson has failed to register a touchdown in the fourth quarter of its past eight games, four of which it has lost by five points or less.
The team last notched a fourth-quarter touchdown when C.J. Spiller's 2-yard run with 2 minutes left pulled Clemson within seven points of last year's 41-27 defeat at Florida State, the season's ninth game. That was one of only three touchdowns the Tigers recorded in the fourth quarter in 11 games against FBS opponents last season.
The Man of Steele talks about how dangerous Riley Skinner can be if not pressured.
"The thing he does best is he keeps a play alive," Steele said. "If it's in his hands, he is going to keep it alive longer than most quarterbacks would. Meaning they are either going to pull it down and run quicker than he does, or they are going to scramble into a sack, or throw it away quicker than he does."
"If it he ain't standing in the well and throwing out of it, if he is moving around on flat ground, he can keep a play, a drive alive a long time," Steele said. "If you were a fan, and you could cheer in the press box, you'd be one of the first to jump up and scream 'the guys gotta cover (receivers),' but (Skinner) stayed alive back there 3.2 seconds and nobody alive could have covered him. That's just what he does."
Ed McGranahan of The Greenville News writes about epiphanic moments and more focus on the tight ends.
You might say Saturday's showdown against Virginia Tech is a huge game for Georgia Tech.
Take a look at the Jackets' conference schedule after Saturday:
Virginia
Wake
Duke
Good stuff on Wake Forest today in the Winston-Salem Journal.
Did you know Death Valley is the only ACC Atlantic Division stadium in which Jim Grobe has yet to win?
"I wish they didn't call that place Death Valley," Grobe said. "That has a bad ring to it, doesn't it?"
And Dominique Midgett completely obliterates my playerspeak premise with this gem of a quote:
"I told them there's nothing that you can do to prepare for that," Midgett said. "You can sit in your car, roll your windows up, play loud music and try to talk to the person beside you -- and drive at the same time.
"My true freshman year (2005) I got to travel to Nebraska and that was loud. It was ‘like, wow' loud. Then I went to Clemson and that was louder. You're sitting right next to the (defensive) coordinator and he's trying to tell you something and you can't even hear him.
"I'm trying to relay the message to my young guys that you won't be able to hear."
Then again, it is a noon game.
In Miami, injuries strike the Hurricanes' defense.
So is Al Groh Mr. Checkers, or Mr. October?
Guess we'll find out soon enough.
LW
For questions or comments on this blog entry, please visit The West Zone message board.
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Dabo Swinney didn't realize the importance of yesterday until his wife reminded him on his way out the door to the football offices.
I didn't realize it either.
October 13th.
A lot happened that day.
And a lot has happened since.
Hard to believe, huh?
This is what he was saying back then:
“We’re not a broken team. We’re not an old jalopy, hooptie car that we’ve put a paint job on and some new rims. We’ve got everything on this car. We’ve got a six-disc CD changer, a moon roof, power windows, cruise control, nice paint job.
“When you see this car, you’re like, ‘I’d like to drive that one.’ Somewhere along the way we’ve caught a flat tire, gotten low on gas. I’m trying to fill this tank back up, put some air in the tires, because this is a good football team.”
It's almost fitting that this week's game is against Wake Forest. That was the game last year, a 12-7 loss in Winston-Salem that sank the term "offensive ineptitude" to new lows, that also led to Tommy Bowden's departure and Dat Boy's elevation.
Gene Sapakoff of The Post and Courier says it's "just another playoff game" for the Tigers.
As the voice of reason, I was forced to spend most of Tuesday working the extremes.
Talking people off the Esso Club roof.
Telling others not to buy those Atlantic Coast Conference championship game tickets just yet.
Also in the P&C, the Tigers present a united front.
More on that in The State, which has an interesting quote from Thomas Austin:
"(Swinney) came up to me ... and said, 'Thomas, you know, I think I cussed out everyone on the field.' " Austin said. "He said, 'What do you think?' I told him he probably came close. Then he said, 'Tomorrow, I'm going over to the defensive side.'
A look at the Tigers' fourth-quarter woes ... and not just this year.
Clemson has failed to register a touchdown in the fourth quarter of its past eight games, four of which it has lost by five points or less.
The team last notched a fourth-quarter touchdown when C.J. Spiller's 2-yard run with 2 minutes left pulled Clemson within seven points of last year's 41-27 defeat at Florida State, the season's ninth game. That was one of only three touchdowns the Tigers recorded in the fourth quarter in 11 games against FBS opponents last season.
The Man of Steele talks about how dangerous Riley Skinner can be if not pressured.
"The thing he does best is he keeps a play alive," Steele said. "If it's in his hands, he is going to keep it alive longer than most quarterbacks would. Meaning they are either going to pull it down and run quicker than he does, or they are going to scramble into a sack, or throw it away quicker than he does."
"If it he ain't standing in the well and throwing out of it, if he is moving around on flat ground, he can keep a play, a drive alive a long time," Steele said. "If you were a fan, and you could cheer in the press box, you'd be one of the first to jump up and scream 'the guys gotta cover (receivers),' but (Skinner) stayed alive back there 3.2 seconds and nobody alive could have covered him. That's just what he does."
Ed McGranahan of The Greenville News writes about epiphanic moments and more focus on the tight ends.
You might say Saturday's showdown against Virginia Tech is a huge game for Georgia Tech.
Take a look at the Jackets' conference schedule after Saturday:
Virginia
Wake
Duke
Good stuff on Wake Forest today in the Winston-Salem Journal.
Did you know Death Valley is the only ACC Atlantic Division stadium in which Jim Grobe has yet to win?
"I wish they didn't call that place Death Valley," Grobe said. "That has a bad ring to it, doesn't it?"
And Dominique Midgett completely obliterates my playerspeak premise with this gem of a quote:
"I told them there's nothing that you can do to prepare for that," Midgett said. "You can sit in your car, roll your windows up, play loud music and try to talk to the person beside you -- and drive at the same time.
"My true freshman year (2005) I got to travel to Nebraska and that was loud. It was ‘like, wow' loud. Then I went to Clemson and that was louder. You're sitting right next to the (defensive) coordinator and he's trying to tell you something and you can't even hear him.
"I'm trying to relay the message to my young guys that you won't be able to hear."
Then again, it is a noon game.
In Miami, injuries strike the Hurricanes' defense.
So is Al Groh Mr. Checkers, or Mr. October?
Guess we'll find out soon enough.
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 @.