Clemson Sports Podcast: Signing Day & Hoops Recap

Once the final whistle blew on the 2015 college football season, it didn't take long (2-3 bottles of bourbon, max) for us to focus on 2016 and beyond. The 2015 team's dominance carried over into one of the most exciting national signing days in recent memory, as Coach Swinney and his staff pulled several uncommitted rabbits out of hotly contested hats. The drama with the #1 overall recruit aside, the Clemson Tigers bring in yet another top-10 class comprised of 22 talented young men, led by 5-star recruits Dexter Lawrence, Rashaun "Shaq" Smith and Tre Lamar. The trio, alongside a cohort of other ace recruits, will anchor a Tigers team that will compete for conference and national titles for the foreseeable future.

In this episode, Ben and Cody highlighted this year's class, debating who will have the biggest immediate impact. They examined the under-the-radar talent in the class, in search of the next Hunter Renfrow (in fairness, nobody could approach the legend that is Hunter Renfrow). Finally, they reviewed the state of Clemson recruiting over the past several years, and how talent sometimes overshadows the impact of coaching, facilities, atmosphere and a little bit of charisma.

And has everyone forgotten it’s basketball season and March is nearly upon us? Clemson football’s run to the national championship and a stellar recruiting class, combined with poor out of conference play on the hardwood left the basketball team outside of Tiger Nation's collective consciousness. However, a hot start to ACC play that included 5 wins in a row (3 straight over ranked opponents and 2 over top 10 teams) put Coach Brownell and his boys back in the spotlight. But before they cashed their check to the tourney, they stumbled upon a tough 6 game stretch that saw the Tigers go 2-4. This bump in the road has left them with a difficult task of getting off the bubble at a time when their schedule and the calendar are working against them. Ben and Cody reviewed that 6 game stretch and what went wrong, then break down the Tigers’ chances of making the tourney and what it'll take to get there.

And we'd be remiss not to get a few jabs in at Jim Harbaugh, as a guy known for outstaying his welcome looks to make his way into the homes of high school boys throughout the state of Florida, leaving the SEC to cry foul. How does this affect Clemson? We tend to think it’s a circus act that will run its course but one should never underestimate the powers of pleated khakis. Enjoy the show!