Wednesday August 15, 2007

The Progression

The Progression
I had lunch with a good friend Monday and he had some interesting insight about Clemson football in 2007 and beyond.

“I hope they can get over the hump this season because I like Tommy and I think if you look at every aspect of the program I think you see overall improvement and a tremendous upgrade in talent,” he said.

My friend is very close to the program and talks to the coaches and administrators on a daily basis and he shared a common theme that we have seen and heard about throughout this pre-fall camp. “It is obvious we continue to recruit over the last class each year over the last three years,” he added. Like others, he has heard that this year’s freshman class is the best in recent years.

I thought that was a great point. The national rankings from rivals.com and scout.com have backed that up but I think it is very obvious that this staff continues to get better at recruiting each year. It is obvious to me that this program continues to improve its talent level because the underclassmen are ahead of where the upperclassmen were at the same stage.

Before I give specific examples I want to make a disclaimer. I know fans get tired of hearing about how close we are. Also understand that talent is not the only correlation between winning and losing but it is the most important factor in my opinion.

With that said, consider the following examples of younger talent being an upgrade over the upperclassmen:

Quarterback: I think it is very obvious there has been a big talent upgrade here. Cullen Harper is farther along in his development than Will Proctor was at this stage and Willy Korn is much farther along at this stage than Harper was. Korn is the most talented signal caller Clemson has signed in recent years. I doubt anyone can argue against the point that the talent has been upgraded here.

Running Back: James Davis was a huge upgrade over Reggie Merriweather and C.J. Spiller is an equal or greater talent than Davis. Some can make arguments for Merriweather being a very good back but few can argue that Davis is not more talented. As far as Davis and Spiller are concerned, I would love to hear both sides of the debate as to which one is more talented but I would hate to judge who would win the argument. Again I doubt many can say this is not a more talented group than it was five years ago.

Wide Receiver: This is one area that the detractors might have some ammunition. When the Tigers had Derrick Hamilton, Kevin Youngblood and Airese Currie they were ranked among the nation’s best at their positions. I think this unit has a chance to be very good and in a different offense maybe Aaron Kelly, Rendrick Taylor, Jacoby Ford, Tyler Grisham and this unit would be higher rated. I do think the emergence of Xavier Dye and Brandon Clear has the staff very excited about the future.

Tight End: The staff has not been able to go out and sign the NFL-type tight end but I am not sure this unit is any worse than it was five years ago. There may not be a clear upgrade here but there also is no clear decline in the talent level.

Offensive Line: Besides running back, defensive line and the secondary this may be the best example of this issue. When Bowden first arrived at Clemson and even into a few years of his tenure they were using undersized players and walk-ons as starters. Now they produced All-ACC caliber talent in the last few years. But the biggest compliment here is the fact that they do not have to rebuild the offensive line after four seniors graduated. Florida State and Georgia are two examples of powerhouses that have had to completely rebuild its offensive lines deep into a coach’s career because they lacked depth. I think those programs would have loved to have had Thomas Austin, Barry Humphries and Brandon Pilgrim waiting in the wings. This staff has dedicated itself to recruiting this unit hard every year and the foundation is fantastic.

Defensive Line: The staff upgraded with Rashaad Jackson, Dorrell Scott and Jock McKissic but the next wave appears to be as talented or more talented. We are hearing rave reviews about Jarvis Jenkins and Miguel Chavis. In my opinion Rickey Sapp has a chance to do everything Gaines Adams did. Phillip Merling is better than Charles Bennett. Jamie Cumbie and Kourtnei Brown have a chance to be great ones and next season the Tigers get even better with DaQuan Bowers, A.J. Harmon and Jarrett Crittenton.

Linebackers: The Tigers had a great run here in the 1980s and early 1990s and Anthony Simmons was as talented as any linebacker in school history. But this group has a bright future. Brandon Maye was a big surprise and Scotty Cooper plays like the great Clemson linebackers of the past. Next season Stanley Hunter and Jonathan Willard enroll and this group keeps getting better. This is not a glaring example of the upgrade but it is as good if not better than in recent years.

Defensive Backs: Four star athletes lining up all over the secondary of the future has the staff excited. The Tigers now have difference makers at corner with athletes like Marcus Gilchrist, Byron Maxwell, Crezdon Butler and Chris Chancellor. Add DeAndre McDaniel at safety and you have a bunch of players that turned down the likes of FSU, Florida and Miami instead of turning down NC State-type programs.

Special Teams: I am not sure who can kick or punt and if that is a big deal in terms of recruiting rankings. My philosophy here is that you never know what you have until the games that season. I have seen blue chip kickers fail and I have seen walk-ons turn into All-Americans. This unit is hard to judge.

So my friend made a great point when he talked about how this staff continues to sign over the last class in terms of talent. That is how Southern Cal does it every year. That is what most coaches hope to achieve in recruiting. Now Clemson does not have to fear FSU, Miami, Tennessee, Florida or Georgia. If you have the philosophy that you will not sign a player unless he is better than what you already have on campus then you can be successful. In fact you better have that philosophy because your competition sure does.

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