Shakin The Southland: FanPosts

Jayron Kearse

2013-05-13T21:35:49Z

Anyone have any thoughts on his short term/long term role at Clemson? I don't watch much HS film, but his is amazing. He is a hard hitter and looks like a shit talker as well. The dude is bouncing around like a jack in a box after every big hit - which is something we've lacked in the secondary for far too long. My concern would be his frame is almost TOO big. At 6'4", that's a long body for the secondary. Do you move him up to LB? Put him at the spot Blanks played last year?

I would assume this guy gets (or should get) a RS, but I love the dude's meanness from what I've seen, and even though I normally say RS just about everyone - his attitude could be big right away.

Thoughts?

I would assume this guy gets (or should get) a RS, but I love the dude's meanness from what I've seen, and even though I normally say RS just about everyone - his attitude could be big right away.

Thoughts?

DeShaun Watson 100 Committed.

2013-04-30T17:28:56Z

Usually as a college football fan, I don't put too much stock into commitments. Your word as your sacred law, especially in the South, just doesn't seem to apply to the rest of the country as much as it used to. Knowing that, it was a pleasant surprise to read that Deshaun Watson was 100% committed to Clemson via this article. I didn't put too much stock into it till I read this key line.

“I’m 100 percent solid with Clemson,” Watson said. “I’m not going to visit anybody else. I’m just going to focus on Clemson and my high school season. I’m not interested in going to visit anywhere.”

Gaining Watson is a key cog en-route to building a championship-caliber team. He has the talent of someone that can go in the Top 10 picks in the NFL draft and he'll set our QB position in stone for the next 3 years at least. We all know the tremendous lift Cam Newton was towards his Auburn team. How he took them to the championship in one year and how Auburn sucked terribly the years future and prior. Watson could provide this same kind of lift and more when you factor in the bonus that Watson will provide when you're making the recruiting push for top wide-outs like Sammy and Nuke.

Dabo and the gang has done a tremendous job. Let's hope that the rest of the ACC can follow suit and quick slacking.

Is Clemson shut out of the Sugar, Cotton, Fiesta and Rose bowls?

2013-04-29T15:05:23Z

For those who think the contracts between the Pac-12 and Big Ten have shut the ACC out of the Rose bowl (or the SEC / Big XII contract has shut us out of the Sugar and Cotton bowls), here's something to think about... because of the rotation of the bowls for semi-final games and the rule they put in place stating that no #3 or #4 seed should ever have home field advantage over a #1 or #2 (if it's possible to avoid it), that creates some interesting possibilities. Suffice it to say that it's possible for Clemson (or any ACC team who can finish in the top 10 or so) to play in each and every one of the "playoff" bowls. Hey, that might even be a good goal to achieve by 2025/26!

Here is the article I posted on my blog:

http://accfootballrx.blogspot.com/2013/04/acc-teams-in-rose-bowl-etc.html

take that all you ACC haters!

Poll

Besides the Orange, Peach and Sugar bowls, which other playoff bowl would you like to see Clemson play in first?

Rose bowl

33 votes

Fiesta bowl

6 votes

Cotton bowl

12 votes

51 votes | Poll has closed

App to track Tigers in NFL

2013-04-19T17:08:48Z

Hey all,

A buddy of mine recently created an app called "Draftpedia" that tracks NBA and NFL draft data, rosters, and statistics from the last 40+ years. It lets you sort the data in a lot of different ways - one way is by college so you can see and track every pro that attended Clemson in a single list (which then allows you to see year-by-year stats for every player). It should be a great reference tool for sports history and random trivia.

If you're interested, here's the download link for iPhones/iPads (it's free):
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/draf...562159411?mt=8

----------------------------------------------------------

Here's a press release from the Wall Street Journal (http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20130417-908281.html?mod=googlenews_wsj):

Draftpedia's iPhone App Launches for All NBA & NFL Draft Fans

SANTA MONICA, CA--(Marketwired - April 17, 2013) - Draftpedia, the only iPhone app with NFL & NBA draft history, is now available free in the App Store. Built exclusively for mobile, Draftpedia has 30+ years of draft history, past team rosters, draft info for every player's alma mater and statistics for every current player.

Roommates David Rabie and Joe Sarafian hatched the idea for Draftpedia on the couch during a Clipper game. Discussing Kenyon Martin's historically poor draft class, Joe asked why consumers had to rely on searching Wikipedia for the answer. "As Gen Y sports enthusiasts, what has driven us this entire time is to build an app that makes our lives easier," said David Rabie, Co-Founder.

"Given the competition, we knew that our edge would come with speed, efficiency and design. We built a database of information that is stored within the app -- eliminating any loading time between screens and allowing the app to function offline," said Co-Founder Joe Sarafian. The information is presented in clear, easy-to-use tables and is all linkable, offering multiple ways for users to navigate within the app.

Launching just in time for the 2013 NFL Draft, Draftpedia is the ultimate reference guide for any sports fan looking for historical data including:

-- 40+ Years of Past Drafts

-- 30 Years of Team Rosters

-- Every Division 1 College's NFL/NBA Alumni

-- Breakdown by Nationality (NBA) and Pick (NFL)

-- Statistics for Every Current Player

"Next time you're debating a player's alma mater or comparing draft classes, Draftpedia is your best solution," said Rabie.

About Draftpedia

Draftpedia consolidates information about past NFL & NBA drafts in a convenient and fast iPhone app. It has every draft year of the modern era, lists of professional players from every D1 College, past rosters for every team and statistics for every current player. Founded in 2012, Draftpedia is based in Santa Monica, CA. For more information, visit www.draftpedia.com.

Hey all,

If you're interested, here's the download link for iPhones/iPads (it's free):
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/draf...562159411?mt=8

----------------------------------------------------------

Here's a press release from the Wall Street Journal (http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20130417-908281.html?mod=googlenews_wsj):

Draftpedia's iPhone App Launches for All NBA & NFL Draft Fans

SANTA MONICA, CA--(Marketwired - April 17, 2013) - Draftpedia, the only iPhone app with NFL & NBA draft history, is now available free in the App Store. Built exclusively for mobile, Draftpedia has 30+ years of draft history, past team rosters, draft info for every player's alma mater and statistics for every current player.

Roommates David Rabie and Joe Sarafian hatched the idea for Draftpedia on the couch during a Clipper game. Discussing Kenyon Martin's historically poor draft class, Joe asked why consumers had to rely on searching Wikipedia for the answer. "As Gen Y sports enthusiasts, what has driven us this entire time is to build an app that makes our lives easier," said David Rabie, Co-Founder.

"Given the competition, we knew that our edge would come with speed, efficiency and design. We built a database of information that is stored within the app -- eliminating any loading time between screens and allowing the app to function offline," said Co-Founder Joe Sarafian. The information is presented in clear, easy-to-use tables and is all linkable, offering multiple ways for users to navigate within the app.

Launching just in time for the 2013 NFL Draft, Draftpedia is the ultimate reference guide for any sports fan looking for historical data including:

-- 40+ Years of Past Drafts

-- 30 Years of Team Rosters

-- Every Division 1 College's NFL/NBA Alumni

-- Breakdown by Nationality (NBA) and Pick (NFL)

-- Statistics for Every Current Player

"Next time you're debating a player's alma mater or comparing draft classes, Draftpedia is your best solution," said Rabie.

About Draftpedia

Draftpedia consolidates information about past NFL & NBA drafts in a convenient and fast iPhone app. It has every draft year of the modern era, lists of professional players from every D1 College, past rosters for every team and statistics for every current player. Founded in 2012, Draftpedia is based in Santa Monica, CA. For more information, visit www.draftpedia.com.

When will Clemson play another regular season game in Charlotte?

2013-04-09T17:24:41Z

Neutral site games are on the rise. There were 5 neutral site games involving BCS teams in 2011, and 7 in 2012; 8 are scheduled for 2013, 9 more for 2014... so the trend is there. Since 2008, Va Tech has schedule 6 home, 5 away and 1 neutral site game pretty much every year. Notre Dame is another team that schedules that way.

Of course Clemson has played an occasional neutral site game - in the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff game, in Atlanta. But not since the Temple game has Clemson played in Charlotte, NC. Meanwhile, the SC Gamecocks have played there and are scheduled to play there again. Admittedly, Columbia is a little closer to Charlotte than Clemson is, and Atlanta is a little closer to Clemson than Charlotte is... but y'all can't just let the chickens slowly take over one of the richest recruiting territories around! Charlotte has thousands of high school football players. SC wants 'em.

VT has played there before, but since the Hokies already play at least one or two games per year in NC (and Charlotte is on the opposite side of the state from VA), there doesn't seem to be much interest in playing there for VT. We tend to play our neutral site games in Washington, DC at Fedex Field (really Landover, MD).

I did some research on the whole neutral site game phenomenon, which I posted on my football blog if you are interested: Rx: Neutral site games. Also, I'd be very interested in what y'all have to say about playing a regular season game in Charlotte - let's say a "one and done" vs. a BCS team. What do you think?

Poll

Should Clemson schedule a regular season neutral site game in Charlotte, NC?

YES

15 votes

NO

11 votes

26 votes | Poll has closed

Report on Auburn paying players

2013-04-04T02:37:12Z

Shocker.

This comes as a surprise to no one. It's still going on too, it wasn't just Chizik. I wonder what kind of slap on the wrist they'll get for this. They also don't mention recruits being paid to come to Auburn, just current players being paid to stay an extra year. They need to look deeper, they'll find some more dirty shit. I know everyone cheats but these guys are on the higher end of the cheating spectrum. Maybe Ole Miss will be next.

Shocker. This comes as a surprise to no one. It's still going on too, it wasn't just Chizik. I wonder what kind of slap on the wrist they'll get for this. They also don't mention recruits being paid to come to Auburn, just current players being paid to stay an extra year. They need to look deeper, they'll find some more dirty shit. I know everyone cheats but these guys are on the higher end of the cheating spectrum. Maybe Ole Miss will be next.

Break away from NCAA enough to create a 72-team BCS-only league

2013-01-30T16:30:10Z

Separate from FCS & FBS even further by adding an additionl tier for the best 72 universities. Divide the new BCS league into 4 super conferences featuring 18 teams in 3 divisions for football. Clemson would play Sakerlina, Jawja, Tech, FSU & Florida in its division annually and play 9 total conference games. 2 against the East & 2 games against the West. Home & home with each school & play every team in the conference 2x every 6 years.

Teams would also be required to play 1 team from another BCS conference as their 10th game. Then schedule 1 FBS home game & 1 FCS home game for 12 annual regular season games & 7 home games.

The top 2 teams as ranked by a BCS-like poll would face off in the conference championship. The 4 conference champions would then play for the national championship. So youd have to win 3 playoff games to win a championship. Teams not in the playoff would continue to go to bowls.

For basketball, Clemson would play the other 17 teams 1x & Sakerlina 2x for 18 conference games. No divisions followed by a huge conference tournament.

FBS schools would play for their own national championship & the top tier of FCS would join them in that league.

Here are the fantasy conferences I'd like to see:

SEC
East
Virginia Virginia Tech North Carolina North Carolina State Duke Tennessee
South
South Carolina Clemson Georgia Georgia Tech Florida State Florida
West
Auburn Alabama Vanderbilt Mississippi Mississippi State Louisiana State
ACC
Private
Boston College Syracuse Pittsburgh Notre Dame Wake Forest Miami
North
Connecticut Rutgers Temple Penn State Maryland West Virginia
South
Cincinnati Kentucky Louisville Memphis Central Florida South Florida
B1G
East
Ohio State Michigan Michigan State Purdue Indiana Illinois
North
Northwestern Wisconsin Minnesota Iowa Iowa State Missouri
West
Nebraska Kansas Kansas State Oklahoma Oklahoma State Arkansas
PAC
Mountain
Texas Texas A&M Texas Christian Texas Tech Baylor Colorado
Pacific
Arizona Arizona State UCLA USC California Stanford
West
Utah Brigham Young Oregon Oregon State Washington Washington State

Teams would also be required to play 1 team from another BCS conference as their 10th game. Then schedule 1 FBS home game & 1 FCS home game for 12 annual regular season games & 7 home games.

For basketball, Clemson would play the other 17 teams 1x & Sakerlina 2x for 18 conference games. No divisions followed by a huge conference tournament.

FBS schools would play for their own national championship & the top tier of FCS would join them in that league.

Here are the fantasy conferences I'd like to see:

As The ACC Turns: Week 3 and 4 Power Rankings

2013-01-30T14:27:45Z

It's Popa's Shoes here once again from State of the U with our latest power rankings. We moved Clemson up to 9th after their pair of wins. Last time I was hear, you guys said I was sleeping on KJ McDaniel and boy was I ever. He is playing great and blocking everything in sight. I think a game between UM and Clemson would be a great defensive effort. If you guys can win 3 of your next 4, you will be moving up fast.

http://www.stateoftheu.com/basketball-news/2013/1/29/3927212/as-the-acc-turns-weeks-3-and-4

Tigers get two more commits

2013-01-28T01:07:05Z

Also, what's up with all the walk ons all of a sudden? Seth Ryan, Zach Riggs, Adrien Dunn and Sean Mac Lain? I'm really underwhelmed by all of this. I bet we get two more commitments, Baker and Crowder and that's it. Maybe Woulard. You can forget about Adams, Lawson, Clark or anyone else big on the board. IMO.

We flipped an NC State commit (Marcus Edmund) and a UAB commit (T.J. Green). Both of them are pretty much three star guys across the board. Green isn't even rated by Rivals. Their offer lists are also less than impressive. It looks like they are both defensive backs...it looks to me like the staff knows they aren't going to be getting the Alexander brothers...otherwise why would they take guys like this? Also, what's up with all the walk ons all of a sudden? Seth Ryan, Zach Riggs, Adrien Dunn and Sean Mac Lain? I'm really underwhelmed by all of this. I bet we get two more commitments, Baker and Crowder and that's it. Maybe Woulard. You can forget about Adams, Lawson, Clark or anyone else big on the board. IMO.

As The ACC Turns: Week 2 Power Rankings

2013-01-16T15:07:05Z

Popa's Shoes here from State of the U again with our week 2 power rankings. We have the Tigers ranked 10th. Which is appropriate because Clemson seems to play really really phsyical defense that would be at home in the Big 10. While Booker has been solid, are there any guards that can potentially step up and makes this team less one dimensional? Check out our rankings when you get a chance

http://www.stateoftheu.com/2013/1/15/3881114/ACC-week-2-power-rankings

Clemson vs Wake Forest Basketball Recap

2013-01-16T03:20:24Z

Clemson 60 - Wake Forest 44

Demon Deacons vs Tigers coverage

Demon Deacons vs Tigers boxscore

The Tigers started their first conference win streak of the 2013 season tonight, taking down a poor shooting Wake Forest team, and holding them to a season low of points in both halves. Player of the game was K.J. McDaniels who had an almost monster game with 14 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals and 7 blocks(!). The Tigers defense forced 11 turnovers and blocked 11 Demon Deacon Shots. Brad Brownell's defense came to play the past two games and produced the first back to back conference games that Clemson has held teams under 45 points. Also, another stat that should interest you: When Brownell's team hold opponents under 50 points, the Tigers are 19-1. Anyone who says that this guy isn't the right coach for us seems to miss the point that he is a winner.

Other players of note from this game: Devin Booker added 12 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks, and Adonis Filer came off the bench adding 13 points (4-6 FG made, 1-2 for the 3). Milton Jennings added 5 points for the night, but had to leave the court for a potential concussion after being knocked to the ground by Nnoko.

Good win overall, this game is a good win leading into the weekend vs NCSU in Raleigh this Saturday, and it will be interesting to see the Wolfpack attacking offense versus our stout (of recent) defense. If we hold NC State to 24.6% shooting (2nd lowest Clemson has held a team ever) we should be able to count it as a win.

Clemson 60 - Wake Forest 44

Demon Deacons vs Tigers coverage

Demon Deacons vs Tigers boxscore

Meeting Expectations: 2012 Tigers', mine, yours', Dr.B's

2013-01-07T00:23:15Z

As a casual reader of the site – being mostly appreciative of the post-game play-by-play analyses - I couldn’t help but notice that there continues to be a fair amount of bluster about whether or not Dabo’s Tigers – and therefore Dabo himself - meet the expectations of the editors.

Note that on August 24th Dr. B posted a column entitled "What Are Reasonable Expectations for 2012". Make up your own mind as to whether or not the 2012 Tigers shaped up as I have highlighted Dr. B’s comments in bold and italics and posted those stats I could find for the season leading up to the bowl game (NCAA.com is the originator of national stats, and the Clemson Athletic Dept. is the originator of Clemson’s stats).

I apologize if I have missed something somewhere …

"What is the most ‘reasonable’ set of expectations for Clemson in 2012? ...Before going further I’ll reiterate our standards for success
1. Win 10 games

2. Beat Sakerlina

3. Win the ACC Title

…and somehow manage not to have a "WTF" game like NC State or West Virginia where we get embarrassed again on a national stage or look like we haven’t practiced the game of football in a month.

I’m not expecting to win the ACC this season, but we have the best shot behind FSU, and it will probably come down to that game in Tallahassee.

….realistically we cannot expect Clemson to challenge for national championships every year, and we won’t this year.

If my expectation is that we will not win the ACC, then I may need to back off 10 games, but 10-3 does not look terribly unrealistic given the road schedule and our usual home success, plus a bowl game. It may be slightly optimistic, but not beyond reason.

A 4th straight loss to SC is not acceptable under any circumstance, and if Dabo hasn’t been taking them seriously before, then he better get with it now. I don’t see how he could survive 4 years of losing to SC here, unless we’re just whipping everyone else’s ass on the schedule.

…I do hope that… we do look like we’re getting better throughout the season. That is a big indicator of good coaching taking place."

So to summarize Dr. B'S ‘reasonable and achievable’ expectations for 2012:

1. 10 wins (including bowl)__________________________________Met - 1 better

2. Don’t have WTF game and/or get embarrassed on Nat’l TV____Met (unless you include USuCk)

3. Don’t win ACC because lose at FSU_________________________Met

4. Don’t challenge for National Championship_________________-------

5. Beat Sakerlina____________________________________________Failed

6. If lose Sakerlina, keep job by "whipping everyone’s ass"__Met

7. Get better throughout the season__________________________Met

One might say the team meets #6 primarily by setting an ACC record of wins over other ACC teams by 14 points or more (7 in a row) – all teams in the ACC but FSU were beaten by this margin of 14 or more, and only two of which were under 20 point margins.

Expectation #7 is hard to judge especially with the loss in the last game. If nothing else, the team progressed when it was most visible - from game 12 (UsuCk) to game 13 (CFA Bowl – LSU).

Thus the Team could be said to have met all but one expectation, losing to Sakerlina, and it was a difficult pill to swallow as well.

But Dr. B’s expectations did not include the possibility of a big-time bowl win against a Top 10 SEC team vaulting them to 11 wins. Not an even trade, but beating LSU has to be close….

In his column, Dr. B set out a few other specific goals as well…

"1. The backup RBs must do something in 2012… I still want Andre to get his 20 carries per game, and over 1000 yards this season... Right now, all eyes are on D.J. Howard."

Andre Ellington gained 1031 net yards, but did so with less than 20 carries a game – only 201 carries versus the 260 he would have gotten with Dr. B’s expectations of 20 per game. I’ll let the good Doctor continue his rant on The Chad’s apparent run phobia.

And though DJ Howard was dinged up much of the year, who could miss the progression in Hot Rod McDowell? He totaled 434 yards with 5 TD’s, had 5.6 ypc, and had a carry over 20 yards every 13 carries (AE was 1 every 22 carries).

"2. The OL has to at least be OK."

Sacks went from 30 in 2011 down to 26 in 2012. On a per pass basis it went down slightly from 1 per 15.98 attempts to 1 per 16.31 attempts. Surely Tajh’s mobility had something to do with this as well.

And even though we played 1 less game before the bowl in 2012 than 2011, total rushing yards went up from 2026 to 2325. Again, Tajh played a big part in this. RB/WR only net yards went from 1826 to 1811.

Tajh’s completion percentage went up as well – from 60% to 66% - an indication they were at least giving him time to look & throw or look & run. This also appears relevant in that it seemed less receiver screens were utilized in 2012 and Sammy Watkins was never completely a factor long term in 2012.

"3. Progression of the offense, will it expand or get better?"

"Last season we probably got in 70-75% of the playbook, and this year will likely be no different just because of the OL’s youth and inexperience. Last year the sack rate went from 26th to 86th nationally."

Again, this year the sack rate went slightly down, and we were tied for 75th nationally.

"Last season, Tajh Boyd completed 59.7% of passes with 12 INTs and 3800 yards passing. The yardage should go up along with the completion percentage and the INTs need to go down. Overall we finished with the 21st ranked passing offense and 36th in efficiency."

In 2012 we were ranked nationally 13th in passing offense (yards) and 4th in efficiency.

"If the OL were veterans, my hope would be for 4000 yards, 6-8 INTs, and over 63% completion. The offense would put up about 300yds passing per game. I doubt it gets there with this OL. The best I think I can hope for is to duplicate 2011. If we beat that we're golden."

We finished 2012 at 319.6 per game.

"In Spiller’s last year it was 170pg, 40th nationally. I think the goal should be to get there or higher, but again with this OL I’m not sure it will."

We finished at 198.8 per game (before bowl), and 34th nationally.

"The 2011 Tigers finished 24th in scoring offense, at 33ppg. I think Top 25 is again attainable given the weapons we have. Top 30 might be more realistic, which should still be over 30ppg. The goal though is to be Top 10-20. If the 2012 team finishes in the Top 20 offensively, we should be very happy considering the OL inexperience."

In 2012 we averaged 42.3 points per game, and finished ranked 6th nationally.

"4. The defense has to improve, and can’t get any worse."

"The killer for us last year was rushing defense, which allowed 176ypg (86th nationally)."strong>

In 2012 the rushing defense gave up 161 rushing ypg, ranking 67th nationally.

(In 2011)"Pass defense finished 50th, at 217ypg, in a run-oriented conference."

The 2012 defense gave up 250 passing ypg, ranking 81st nationally.

"I think the talent and coaching is here to hit Top 40 this season. I'm just not certain there has been enough time of on-field coaching to get them any higher. We should be able to knock a TD per game off the scoring defense, from 29ppg to about 21-22ppg."

In 2012 Clemson’s defense ranked 48th nationally by giving up 25 points per game.

"But that is not really the standard for good defense. Clemson defenses should be in the Top 20 every year. We have way more talent on defense than most of this schedule does offensively.
These are my own thoughts on what good defense looks like: On 3rd and short, I think we need to be 40% successful in every game. Hopefully 3rd and long will be 70% for the year."

Clemson ranked 27th nationally in 2012 in 3rd down defense, allowing the opponents’ offenses to convert on 34.7% of their overall 3rd downs. That means Clemson was ‘successful’ (in Dr. B’s terms) 65.3% of the time for all 3rd downs. He asked for 40% on 3rd/short and 70% for 3rd/long.

"Scoring defense on championship teams should be in the 14-15ppg."

Again, Clemson allowed 25 ppg and ranked 48th.

"Total defense should be under 300 yards allowed.

Only 8 teams nationally hit Dr.B’s target of allowing 300 ypg, and Clemson was at 411 ypg (73rd nationally). 6 teams in the ACC were ranked ahead of Clemson in this category.

"NO more plays over 25 yards allowed, and sacks should come up to 1 out of 10 attempts."

Sacks came at a rate of 14.43 attempts per sack (before bowl) in 2012.

"Interceptions should come at a lower rate, maybe 1 out of 15 attempts."

Interceptions were made only 1 out of every 33.7 opponent pass attempts.

"Even though I am not a stats guy, these numbers would indicate good defense is being played."

As a casual reader of the site – being mostly appreciative of the post-game play-by-play analyses - I couldn’t help but notice that there continues to be a fair amount of bluster about whether or not Dabo’s Tigers – and therefore Dabo himself - meet the expectations of the editors.

Note that on August 24th Dr. B posted a column entitled "What Are Reasonable Expectations for 2012". Make up your own mind as to whether or not the 2012 Tigers shaped up as I have highlighted Dr. B’s comments in bold and italics and posted those stats I could find for the season leading up to the bowl game (NCAA.com is the originator of national stats, and the Clemson Athletic Dept. is the originator of Clemson’s stats).

I apologize if I have missed something somewhere …

"What is the most ‘reasonable’ set of expectations for Clemson in 2012? ...Before going further I’ll reiterate our standards for success
1. Win 10 games

2. Beat Sakerlina

3. Win the ACC Title

…and somehow manage not to have a "WTF" game like NC State or West Virginia where we get embarrassed again on a national stage or look like we haven’t practiced the game of football in a month.

I’m not expecting to win the ACC this season, but we have the best shot behind FSU, and it will probably come down to that game in Tallahassee.

….realistically we cannot expect Clemson to challenge for national championships every year, and we won’t this year.

If my expectation is that we will not win the ACC, then I may need to back off 10 games, but 10-3 does not look terribly unrealistic given the road schedule and our usual home success, plus a bowl game. It may be slightly optimistic, but not beyond reason.

A 4th straight loss to SC is not acceptable under any circumstance, and if Dabo hasn’t been taking them seriously before, then he better get with it now. I don’t see how he could survive 4 years of losing to SC here, unless we’re just whipping everyone else’s ass on the schedule.

…I do hope that… we do look like we’re getting better throughout the season. That is a big indicator of good coaching taking place."

So to summarize Dr. B'S ‘reasonable and achievable’ expectations for 2012:

1. 10 wins (including bowl)__________________________________Met - 1 better

2. Don’t have WTF game and/or get embarrassed on Nat’l TV____Met (unless you include USuCk)

3. Don’t win ACC because lose at FSU_________________________Met

4. Don’t challenge for National Championship_________________-------

5. Beat Sakerlina____________________________________________Failed

6. If lose Sakerlina, keep job by "whipping everyone’s ass"__Met

7. Get better throughout the season__________________________Met

One might say the team meets #6 primarily by setting an ACC record of wins over other ACC teams by 14 points or more (7 in a row) – all teams in the ACC but FSU were beaten by this margin of 14 or more, and only two of which were under 20 point margins.

Expectation #7 is hard to judge especially with the loss in the last game. If nothing else, the team progressed when it was most visible - from game 12 (UsuCk) to game 13 (CFA Bowl – LSU).

Thus the Team could be said to have met all but one expectation, losing to Sakerlina, and it was a difficult pill to swallow as well.

But Dr. B’s expectations did not include the possibility of a big-time bowl win against a Top 10 SEC team vaulting them to 11 wins. Not an even trade, but beating LSU has to be close….

In his column, Dr. B set out a few other specific goals as well…

"1. The backup RBs must do something in 2012… I still want Andre to get his 20 carries per game, and over 1000 yards this season... Right now, all eyes are on D.J. Howard."

Andre Ellington gained 1031 net yards, but did so with less than 20 carries a game – only 201 carries versus the 260 he would have gotten with Dr. B’s expectations of 20 per game. I’ll let the good Doctor continue his rant on The Chad’s apparent run phobia.

And though DJ Howard was dinged up much of the year, who could miss the progression in Hot Rod McDowell? He totaled 434 yards with 5 TD’s, had 5.6 ypc, and had a carry over 20 yards every 13 carries (AE was 1 every 22 carries).

"2. The OL has to at least be OK."

Sacks went from 30 in 2011 down to 26 in 2012. On a per pass basis it went down slightly from 1 per 15.98 attempts to 1 per 16.31 attempts. Surely Tajh’s mobility had something to do with this as well.

And even though we played 1 less game before the bowl in 2012 than 2011, total rushing yards went up from 2026 to 2325. Again, Tajh played a big part in this. RB/WR only net yards went from 1826 to 1811.

Tajh’s completion percentage went up as well – from 60% to 66% - an indication they were at least giving him time to look & throw or look & run. This also appears relevant in that it seemed less receiver screens were utilized in 2012 and Sammy Watkins was never completely a factor long term in 2012.

"3. Progression of the offense, will it expand or get better?"

"Last season we probably got in 70-75% of the playbook, and this year will likely be no different just because of the OL’s youth and inexperience. Last year the sack rate went from 26th to 86th nationally."

Again, this year the sack rate went slightly down, and we were tied for 75th nationally.

"Last season, Tajh Boyd completed 59.7% of passes with 12 INTs and 3800 yards passing. The yardage should go up along with the completion percentage and the INTs need to go down. Overall we finished with the 21st ranked passing offense and 36th in efficiency."

In 2012 we were ranked nationally 13th in passing offense (yards) and 4th in efficiency.

"If the OL were veterans, my hope would be for 4000 yards, 6-8 INTs, and over 63% completion. The offense would put up about 300yds passing per game. I doubt it gets there with this OL. The best I think I can hope for is to duplicate 2011. If we beat that we're golden."

We finished 2012 at 319.6 per game.

"In Spiller’s last year it was 170pg, 40th nationally. I think the goal should be to get there or higher, but again with this OL I’m not sure it will."

We finished at 198.8 per game (before bowl), and 34th nationally.

"The 2011 Tigers finished 24th in scoring offense, at 33ppg. I think Top 25 is again attainable given the weapons we have. Top 30 might be more realistic, which should still be over 30ppg. The goal though is to be Top 10-20. If the 2012 team finishes in the Top 20 offensively, we should be very happy considering the OL inexperience."

In 2012 we averaged 42.3 points per game, and finished ranked 6th nationally.

"4. The defense has to improve, and can’t get any worse."

"The killer for us last year was rushing defense, which allowed 176ypg (86th nationally)."strong>

In 2012 the rushing defense gave up 161 rushing ypg, ranking 67th nationally.

(In 2011)"Pass defense finished 50th, at 217ypg, in a run-oriented conference."

The 2012 defense gave up 250 passing ypg, ranking 81st nationally.

"I think the talent and coaching is here to hit Top 40 this season. I'm just not certain there has been enough time of on-field coaching to get them any higher. We should be able to knock a TD per game off the scoring defense, from 29ppg to about 21-22ppg."

In 2012 Clemson’s defense ranked 48th nationally by giving up 25 points per game.

"But that is not really the standard for good defense. Clemson defenses should be in the Top 20 every year. We have way more talent on defense than most of this schedule does offensively.
These are my own thoughts on what good defense looks like: On 3rd and short, I think we need to be 40% successful in every game. Hopefully 3rd and long will be 70% for the year."

Clemson ranked 27th nationally in 2012 in 3rd down defense, allowing the opponents’ offenses to convert on 34.7% of their overall 3rd downs. That means Clemson was ‘successful’ (in Dr. B’s terms) 65.3% of the time for all 3rd downs. He asked for 40% on 3rd/short and 70% for 3rd/long.

"Scoring defense on championship teams should be in the 14-15ppg."

Again, Clemson allowed 25 ppg and ranked 48th.

"Total defense should be under 300 yards allowed.

Only 8 teams nationally hit Dr.B’s target of allowing 300 ypg, and Clemson was at 411 ypg (73rd nationally). 6 teams in the ACC were ranked ahead of Clemson in this category.

"NO more plays over 25 yards allowed, and sacks should come up to 1 out of 10 attempts."

Sacks came at a rate of 14.43 attempts per sack (before bowl) in 2012.

"Interceptions should come at a lower rate, maybe 1 out of 15 attempts."

Interceptions were made only 1 out of every 33.7 opponent pass attempts.

"Even though I am not a stats guy, these numbers would indicate good defense is being played."

A Significant Failing of Clemson Strength & Conditioning

2013-01-03T05:52:07Z

Editors Note: this is a user fanpost.

I finally got fed up enough with people defending Batson in the comments. I have no personal beef with him, but our players display lifting technique that is so bad as to be criminally negligent. While much of the lifting videos on S&C programs in other NCAA schools is pretty sad, I think ours is the worst I was able to find. I’m only going to comment on lifting technique, not conditioning or programming.

I'm basing my observations on this video of the Spring 2012 workout, which I'm sure most have seen. I was appalled at the technique on display:

A quick rant that is a general comment and not specifically directed at Clemson:

A problem, specifically, with a powerlifter approach is that the goal is to move more weight by any means necessary. Sumo deadlifts, especially-wide-stance squats, using boards to limit the ROM of bench press, wide-grip bench press, and use of chains to push past sticking point on the upper part of a movement are typical of powerlifting but not always useful for football.

Every single strength program tailored to football should include squat, deadlift, power cleans, overhead press, and bench press. These establish strength through full range-of-motion (ROM), and should never be too far removed from a lifting day. They are the most effective lifts at giving people functional strength, bar none, IF taught with proper technique. Once sufficient strength has been established on these lifts, front squats and the Olympics lifts, particularly snatch, should be taught and incorporated into a program. The problem with a lot of S&C programs (and this is at the NFL level, too) is that proper technique seems to be treated like a disease. There's so much sloppy form out there, especially with the squat. Almost no high school coach will have their kids squatting anywhere in the ballpark of parallel. Part of the problem with Division I and NFL athletic trainers is that they are guaranteed a measure of success because they're dealing with the best of the best. A guy like Sammy Watkins could blow his nose and gain some explosiveness in the 40. So a lot of success is dependent on the gifts of the players who have been selected through playing pee wee, then middle school, then high school, college, and finally making it to the pros. That said, there's obviously a difference among this select group between players trained with proper S&C and those who aren't, and one very important aspect is lifting technique.

Good technique=safe lifting=more weight moved=less injuries and more powerful players.

Anyway, the first thing I look at to figure out if someone has any clue what they're doing in the weight room is to look at how squats are performed/taught. The squat is the single most important exercise for developing sports-carryover strength, and I think is worth the most attention. If you go to 0:15 in that video, things that are immediately wrong:

1. One person cannot safely spot the squat. You need at least two guys positioned to cradle the weight plates on the outside of the bar. If a single spotter helps this lifter by grabbing his chest, the lifter will immediately lose some of the tightness in his chest that is critical to supporting the spine and leaves the back more susceptible to injury. Another video (this one from LSU) showing an example of this in action here:

If you fast forward to 1:41, you'll see the spotter add his hands to help with the lift. Notice by 1:43 there's a slight collapse in the chest of the lifter=spinal flexion. VERY CRITICAL when you're moving heavy weight that this doesn't happen. Mostly agree with how Moffitt's explaining the squat, although I think low bar is more useful...but that's another argument. Either way, sans the whack spotter, the LSU player is squatting with better technique than our guys, even if not ideal.

THE WORST PART ABOUT THE SPOTTER IN THE CLEMSON VID? THERE ARE SAFETY BARS IN PLACE IN THIS POWER RACK. You don't need spotters. If the Clemson lifter fails, he can and should dump the weight. If a spotter is getting a workout from helping you finish multiple reps, you are not lifting correctly or at a correct weight.

2. DEPTH!!!!!!!!!! A healthy, knee-strengthening squat is at or below parallel. For most athletes, an inch or two below parallel is what to strive for with a back squat, ATG for front squats (which are an assistance exercise for the olympic lifts, and not a great strength exercise in and of their own right). Look at the crease of your hip. When this crease is at the same height as the top of your patella, you're at parallel. Walk into globo gym and you will rarely see a squat performed and practically never to depth. It should be obvious that it's way easier to move more weight if it doesn't have to travel as far. A partial squat stresses the quads more at the expense of the hamstrings, glutes, and adductors. There’s also much more stress on the knee joint with a partial squat.

Try this crude model: make your hand flat and pretend the tips of your fingers are your knee; your hand represents the upper half of your leg; press down on a table with just the tips at about a 45 degree angle – this approximates partial squat depth; now, place your hand flat and feel the distribution of pressure – this approximates parallel squat depth. In a full squat the front force created by the quads is able to be balanced by the posterior force of the hamstrings. Weak hamstrings lead to a greater incidence of ACL injuries. I’ll bet the number of ACL injuries in college football would be cut in half if all players squatted to at least parallel. Further, the stress on the knee felt in the finger tip model registers in the change of direction from descent to ascent as increased stress on the ACL and PCL, which are virtually unloaded in a full squat.

Here’s Knile Davis, who is NOT coming anywhere close to a full squat:

The Clemson lifter at 0:23 in the original video is doing an interesting sort of off-balance good morning. If you pause at 0:24 and see him looking up that’s, ironically, a pretty common cue to keep the chest up. It’s not a cue I like because it puts the neck in hyperextension, but you’ll often see powerlifters do it when squatting. A study of Alexander technique and/or basic anatomy will demonstrate why compressing the posterior of the cervical spine with a large amount of weight nearby is not the best idea, even if the "pros" do it.

It seems like the philosophy of trying to lift more weight at the expense of technique is carried over from high school coaches who are trying to inflate how much their players can lift to college recruiters. My apologies if that is common knowledge to everyone reading this but I find it offensive and worth noting.

3. That stupid vest the first Clemson squatter is wearing comes where the bar should be in contact with the back – can lead to a bar slipping and also requires a greater effort to "hold" the bar. You should not hold a bar on your back when squatting. The shoulders should be pulled back tight to create a shelf for it to rest on. The hands are there to pin the bar down to this shelf. Any added weight from a vest can be added to the bar.

4. The use of chains and pussy weight. No division I football player who is a sophomore or older not rehabbing an injury should squat less than 315, kicker included. I realize that this clip is out of context. I don’t know what he did before or is doing after in that particular workout, but he has 245 on the bar plus the weight of the chains (I’d guess 25lbs a chain, but that varies – could be 44, 60, etc.). Chains are a Louie Simmons Westside thing to help lifters through a sticking point, but a player who is among the most genetically gifted athletes in the US (which is usually the case if you’ve made it to NCAA Division I football, the greatest farm system we have) with proper programming and nutrition at that young age should reasonably get to a between 385-405lb (4 wheels on each side) squat within a year of stepping on campus. It’s silly to even consider adding chains to a squat before you’ve built up the core strength required to squat 405. That he isn’t even squatting this weight to parallel adds insult to injury (or potentially injury to insult).

5. Wobbly knees. I’m going to pick on our first squatter again. 0:17-19 you see his knees come in. If you’re taught to fully engage (and therefore strengthen) the adductors by forcing your knees out so that the knee tracks in line with the toes, you don’t subject your knees (esp the MCL and LCL) to lateral/Valgus force. I’ll give credit that most of the other squatters, while possessors of horrible squat form, are usually keeping their knees out. Unfortunately, it’s a lot easier to keep your knees out through a shorter range of motion so all the other Clemson lifters shouldn’t get too much credit.

I’ll be a lot briefer with the power cleans and bench.

BENCH: the use of boards limits the range of motion and is analogous to a partial squat. At 0:11, 0:30, and 1:05 we see the boards, plus our old friend the vest, and each Clemson player using a hip thrust (wow) to help move the bar up. Now, a slight back arch giving you a chest-up position, if maintained and solid, is ideal when benching. But that should be set BEFORE the lift, and the butt should always remain in contact with the bench – not thrust up – because that’s part of a chain connecting the lifter through the bench and properly set feet to the floor. If you’ve ever seen someone benching with their feet off the ground and especially if feet are set on the bench, you’ve seen someone who’s losing a lot of power and stability (and thus weight that can be added to the bar) in their lift by interrupting the power chain with the floor.

Clemson player at 1:26 is bouncing the bar off his chest which is a) cheating part of the strength element of the exercise b) asking for cracked ribs or a sternum. That vest won’t negate this danger.
Clemson player being spotted at 2:20 doesn’t bounce the bar, but you can see the spotter grab the bar briefly at turn around – even a slight assistance with fingers VOIDS THE REP. You do not have a spotter touch the bar unless you’re in trouble. And you do not gain strength by adding more weight to the bar then having your spotter do more to help you lift it.

Sammy trying for a cracked rib at 2:43 then his spotter gives him a little a lift at 2:45-47.

3:03, "let me give a little hip thrust to actually move the bar because my arms can’t do it. Spotter, you got this? Cool, thanks."

3:14, "yes, my chest will become a trampoline in time!"

I can’t think of any logical argument for bouncing a weighted bar off the chest. And to have to do that at 225lbs is kind of sad. Finally, shoulder blades should be squeezed back tight and down against the bench. When you bounce, ignoring the danger to your sternum/ribs, it’s very difficult to keep that tightness that is protecting your rotator cuff and helping you avoid shoulder impingement.

POWER CLEANS: The closer lifter at 0:04-0:05 is asking for broken wrists. You don’t catch PCs with your wrist, you clean them to your delts. This requires elbows to be up much higher. There’s also not much explosiveness (jump) to his lift, which is the whole point of a power clean. Lifter at 0:12 gets it racked, but he’d be less dependent on his grip to hold the bar up if he got his elbows up earlier and higher. At 0:41, you see the lifter catch more with his wrists, again. The bar should remain closer to the body through the lift. At 1:06 he racks the bar in a good position, but again the bar goes too far away from the body, which translates to a loss of power. Clemson player in the foreground at 1:39 is doing the best PCs in the video. The man behind him again lets the bar travel too far away from the body and you see it force him to transfer his weight onto his toes, which puts bad stress on the knees. You’ll see an even more exaggerated version of this at 1:53 as the wide set of the feet and the large moment arm between the lifter and the bar pull him forward to his knees. Interestingly, his knees come in on the ascent at 1:52 before moving wide out. I’m not convinced his hip angle is ideal for his anthropometry either (looks too open). Also, he’s using his arms to muscle up the weight which is not good for PCs. You basically treat your arms like a taut rope and the explosiveness from your legs should translate to bar movement. The arms and wrists are flicked up quickly to get in rack position and are a virtual non-factor in terms of upward bar velocity.

One last thing - weightlifting shoes. If you're gonna squat, deadlift, power clean at a high level, it's much safer and effective to use weightlifting shoes than running shoes. The instability of running shoes doesn't have a positive training aspect or any carryover WHATSOEVER to football when squatting or deadlifting or power cleaning heavy. A minor point, comparatively, but still worth mentioning.

There's more to say, but I'm tired of writing. Sorry for the tone. DrB went into a lot of specifics about the general approach to S&C at Clemson. I hope this helps supplement the argument of the STS staff about why change would be good. There's a lot of strength left on the training room floor that could be added with proper and critical technique, and maybe more importantly a lot of injuries that could be avoided on the playing field.

A quick rant that is a general comment and not specifically directed at Clemson:

Good technique=safe lifting=more weight moved=less injuries and more powerful players.

ACC Should Mail in Football Scores

2012-12-29T14:59:57Z

The bowl season showing for the ACC so far has been a tragic comedy. Duke tried and tried until they were finally successful in losing the Belk Bowl. That was like a Greek tragedy. Zeus is still giggling. Pitiful. Va. Tech., well, that was painful to watch. Their defense however, was entertaining. As long as those guys were required to stay on the field, they put out a quality product. Or, was Rutgers just that bad on offense? Logan Thomas could not hit the broad side of Kirstey Alley. I did enjoy the permanently tattooed scowl on Beamer's face. The only thing of substance so far, as I see it, is Dabo's comment, "Clemson might as well be in the SEC".

Let's roll. Go Tigers (CU)!

Clemson Football Decade-by-Decade

2012-12-21T18:33:29Z

Ranking Clemson's winning % by the decades since 1940:

1. 1980s - 77 winning%, 10.0 wins/13 game season, 1981 National Champions, 5 ACC titles, 7 Top 25 AP poll seasons, 3 Top 10 AP poll seasons

2. 2010s - 65%, 8.4 wins/13 games (only 3 years), 1 ACC title, 2 Top 25s

3. 1950s - 65%, 8.4 wins/13, 3 ACC titles, 5 Top 25s, 1 Top 10

4. 2000s - 63%, 8.2 wins, 5 Top 25s

5. 1990s - 59%, 7.7, 1 ACC title, 3 Top 25s, 1 Top 10

6. 1940s - 56%, 7.3, 3 SoCon titles, 1 Top 25

7. 1960s - 51%, 6.6, 3 ACC titles

8. 1970s - 50%, 6.5, 1 ACC title, 2 Top 25s, 1 Top 10

Totals since 1940 - 73 seasons, 60 winning%, 7.8 wins/13 games season, 1981 National Championship, 17 conference titles, 25 Top 25 AP poll seasons, 6 Top 10 AP poll seasons

So Clemson is a top 25 team once every 3 years. A top 10 team once every 12 years. Wins a conference title once every 4 years and wins a national championship once in a lifetime.

Ranking Clemson's coaches winning % since 1940:

1. 81%, 10.6 wins/13 game season, Charlie Pell, 77-78, 2 seasons, 1 ACC title, 2 Top 25s, 1 Top 10

2. 76%, 9.8 wins/13 games, Danny Ford, 79-89, 11 seasons, 5 ACC titles, 7 Top 25s, 3 Top 10s

3. 71%, 9.2 wins/13, Ken Hatfield, 90-93, 4 seasons, 1 ACC title, 3 Top 25s, 1 Top 10

4. 66%, 8.6 wins, Dabo Swinney, 09-12, 4 seasons, 1 ACC title, 3 Top 25s

5. 61%, 8.0, Tommy Bowden, 99-08, 10 seasons, 4 Top 25s

6. 57%, 7.4 - Frank Howard, 40-69, 30 seasons, 6 ACC titles/3 SoCon titles, 6 Top 25s, 1 Top 10

7. 51%, 6.7, Tommy West, 94-98, 5 seasons, didn't win nothing

8. 41%, 5.3. Red Parker, 73-76, 4 seasons, didn't win nothing

9. 36%, 4.7, Hootie Ingram, 70-72, 3 seasons, didn't win nothing

I counted Dabo's 7 interim games in '08 under Bowden.

Last, ranking Clemson's coaches by most games as head ball coach:

1. Frank Howard was 165 - 118, 283 games, coached 36% of Clemson's 787 games since 1940

2. Danny Ford, 95 - 29, 124 games, 16%

2. Tommy Bowden, 76 - 48, 124 games, 16%

4. Tommy West, 30 - 28, 58 games, 7%

5. Dabo Swinney, 35 - 19, 54 games, 7%

6. Ken Hatfield, 33 - 13, 46 games, 6%

7. Red Parker, 17 - 25, 42 games, 5%

8. Hootie Ingram, 12 - 21, 33 games, 4%

9. Charlie Pell, 19 - 4, 23 games, 3%