Yesterday was very, very frustrating. Because we aren't worth a shit, as proven yesterday afternoon, I've already accepted that I will have to endure many more games this season on ESPN3. That is nearly as frustrating as our poor gameplay. Yesterday it even drove me to the depths of Clemson Radio Network which is one step away from unbearable. I won't mention all the items that drove me nuts here in the interest of time, as I could write a novel on what not to do based on yesterday's game.
Here you go "Coach" Munson: The fan base and the media will be (justifiably) after Swinney's ass if we don't win at least 2 of the next 3. I know Clemson's Media Czar Don Munson needs no direction, but go ahead and print the last sentence out and hand deliver it to Swinney. While you're at it, inform our head coach that real football coaches don't half ass dress like a G.I. Joe for a football game. Did the ROTC crew tell him he could fire the cannon or something? What's next, Swinney runs down the hill in a Tiger mascot suit? He is like Geraldo Rivera and will do anything for show. We should start laying odds on what his next stunt will be. Getting shot out of a cannon? Parachuting into the stadium with the game ball? Jumping a motorcycle over the Grand Canyon?
If Dabo is serious, he should wear full camo or better yet, he could act like a grown ass man and dress accordingly. I would much rather see our head guy in a three piece suit than in a t-shirt and fatigues. And, please, if you're going to play dress up, don't make the assistants look ridiculous as well. Honor America with a hat or a uniform patch or something meaningful, not by looking like a clown on the sidelines. While you're at it, I don't care that the 1981 team also trailed Wofford. This isn't the 1981 team and Dabo Swinney sure as hell isn't Danny Ford. This year's team has played like a bunch of creampuffs, so don't even mention them in the same sentence with a really good football team.
Sorry to digress, as what our coach wore had nothing to do with the poor, poor play we saw yesterday. If we play like we did yesterday for the next three weeks, Clemson has to get rid of Terry Don Phillips so that we can get a real football coach for the 2013 season (there is no way in hell that TDP will be allowed to choose another head football coach at Clemson, that's for sure). Again, I highly encourage you to call your IPTAY rep and/or the Board of Trustees if you are sick of Clemson playing piss poor football week in and week out. I would tell you to call the school's administration, but Barker doesn't give a shit about football anyway.
On to the game...maybe a teammate of Antoine McClain can pull his head out of his tail so he can play football. McClain is a classic case of Dabo playing favorites. God forbid a recruit from Alabama not be on the football field. This is the same guy who didn't want to go to Alabama because their practices were too tough. This is the same guy who wanted to quit the team until Swinney talked him into staying and promised to pamper him as needed. This is the same guy who missed practice time this fall because he was out of shape and cramped up. This is the same guy who was given a purple "non-contact" jersey during spring drills. Yeah, we are sick and tired of watching McClain screw up. He has enough talent to be an excellent offensive lineman but has not put in the work and cannot implement proper technique.
The piss poor play from McClain wasn't the only cause for quarterback sacks. Tajh Boyd failed to recognize blitzing situations presnap and, thus, either didn't have the proper protection package in place or identify a hot route. The quarterback almost always makes these adjustments and Boyd has to get better here.
Our skills players played well and I was encouraged by Andre Ellington's apparent full health. We are in trouble, though, because we cannot run the football B gap to B gap due to our front. Sammy Watkins is living up to the hype and Nuke played well Saturday. Jaron Brown made a couple big catches and I thought that Tajh made a lot of good decisions throwing the football.
I don't understand why Clemson cannot make open field tackles. Our tackling is pitiful and simply won't cut it. It is offensive to watch because nothing pisses us off more than missed tackles (other than a botched PAT). We will not be a good football until we learn to properly tackle. Additionally on the defensive side, we did not set the edge properly. Maintaining containment is critical and Clemson did a poor job there against Wofford.
Kevin Steele echoed our thoughts following yesterday's game, saying:
"I guess we are going to have to start scrimmaging on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to make sure we don't miss tackles"
In a nutshell, we are a very soft football team. Our "hard hitting" offensive line sounds more like two mice pissing on a cotton ball than a real football team. This cream puff crap absolutely has to end because Auburn, FSU, and Virginia Tech will bury this Clemson team if there is no change.
My final shout out goes to the Clemson Radio Network. I understand that Jim Phillips cannot be replaced but wish that Pete Yanity would ditch the cheesiness and stick to the basics. Will Merritt is tough to listen to. From some of his commentary, I wouldn't believe he actually played football if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. Patt Sapp needs to speak in English, as I could not understand half of what he was trying to report. I long for the days of Mike Eppley doing the color commentary and Rodney Williams on the sidelines.
I listened to a little of the Carolina game on the radio, and Todd Ellis is much better than what we have. Todd has a better grasp of gameplay than Yanity and, IMO, does a really good job with accurately describing what's happening. Honesty, I liked Charley Mac and everyone appreciated Bob Fulton before him. I cannot say the same for Tommy Suggs, and don't have enough time or patience to discuss his radio work. An expletive typically flies from my mouth when his voice is broadcasted.