Wednesday October 11, 2006

Temple Game Thoughts; Thursday Nights; Game Day; Billie

Temple Preview
Wednesdays each week throughout the football season I preview the opponent and write about their personnel and their previous games. I try to give the reader an idea of what to look for out of the opponent each week. I wrote a short preview of their personnel and a recap of their season but quite frankly it does not matter what Temple does Thursday night. Instead, I have listed 10 things I would look for in the game from a Clemson perspective:

1. With a short turn around I am concerned about the Tigers being sharp. I know Clemson is better than Temple but I am concerned about a sloppy effort on a short work week.

2. I would like to see Will Proctor build off of his fourth quarter performance from Saturday. The senior quarterback struggled in the first three quarters before looking fantastic in the final frame. In the second half I would like to see a crisp Cullen Harper and Tribble Reese.

3. I know the Clemson starting offensive linemen will dominate Temple physically. I would like to see the second and third team guys get a long look again. In the Florida Atlantic, North Carolina and Louisiana Tech contests we saw the back ups get as many snaps as the starters in some cases. One thing I will look for Thursday is the effort of Thomas Austin, Chris McDuffie, Brandon Pilgrim, Tim DeBeer, Chris Capote, Barry Humphries, Corey Lambert and Jamarcus Grant.

4. With Chansi Stuckey and Rendrick Taylor out, I will focus on Aaron Kelly, Tyler Grisham. Jacoby Ford, Andrew Diamonde, LaDonte Harris and Nelson Faerber. I want to see those guys go out and step up and make plays. I think Kelly and Grisham could have their best games if the Tigers opt to work on their passing game Thursday night.

5. We know what James Davis brings to the table. I would like to see C.J. Spiller get even more comfortable running behind the zone scheme. Also, I have thoroughly enjoyed seeing Demerick Chancellor develop in the Florida Atlantic, North Carolina and Louisiana Tech contests. His power and speed give the Tigers a very bright future at tailback. Also, it will be nice to see Reggie Merriweather back in action.

6. Defensively, one of the highlights so far this season has been watching the young defenders. When Clemson jumps out to an early lead, I will be interested in seeing more of Rickey Sapp, Jamie Cumbie, Kevin Alexander, Antwon Murchison, Jeremy Campbell, Crezdon Butler, Chris Chancellor and Sadat Chambers.

7. I think it is time for Jacoby Ford or C.J. Spiller to break another long one in the return game.

8. Speaking of special teams, I would like to an extra point or field goal that gets half way up the uprights. It drives me crazy to see a ball barely clear the cross bar on an extra point.

9. I don’t want to see another squib kick unless it is right before the half. I need to see the kicker kick the ball into the end zone and the coverage team make plays.

10. Most importantly, I want to see a focused group of players and coaches. I want the killer instinct we saw in the Florida Atlantic, North Carolina and Louisiana Tech contests. I want to see the Tigers play fast and furious. I want to see athletes flying all over the field making plays. I want to see energy and enthusiasm.

My college roommate was a walk-on in the late eighties and early nineties and he would come home from practice on weeks like this so pumped up and focused because he knew he would get to play this week. In practice, the starters would tell the second and third teamers to get ready because they are going to play the entire second half. It was a confident bunch then and I think this team has the same mentality.

Charlotte or Philadelphia?
I know the stadium will not be full Thursday night but how could you expect it to be? The company that bought the game said they are disappointed that only 30,000 tickets have been sold. Well, here is the solution-PLAY THE GAME ON SATURDAY AND CLEMSON FANS WOULD HAVE COME OUT IN RECORD NUMBERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The group that bought the game will lose money on this but what did they expect on a Thursday night? How many did they expect Temple to bring? When Virginia Tech played Temple in Washington, DC there were about 20,000 in the stands. Who cares if NASCAR is in Charlotte? They should have played the game on Saturday and 60,000 would have been there.

Thursday Nights
I love watching other teams play on Thursday nights but am not crazy about Clemson playing on Thursday nights. One good thing about it this week though is it is one less day of reading about Game Day, purple outs or white helmets. I thought I was on a South Carolina website the past few days. Who cares about Game Day? Death Valley will be rocking with or without Lee Corso. Purple out? I love the purple scheme but Death Valley is about orange. White helmets? Please leave the peripheral items to the Gamecocks.

Tremaine Billie
I know Billie got his pins out this week and I know he is itching to play. It would be hard to go through another off-season conditioning program. Matt drills at 6:00 AM would be difficult. School is not fun and I don’t blame him for thinking about the NFL instead of MGT 412 class. But the best thing for him is a red-shirt season. He could graduate and come back to be a team leader in 2007. He could come back to be a part of one of the best linebacking corps in recent years. He could be a part of another special football season and be a big part of one of the best defenses in recent Clemson history. I know the temptation to play is there but patience is a virtue and I think Billie would greatly benefit from coming back in 2007.

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