Monday September 08, 2008

The Citadel Review

The Citadel Game Review
I hope to never get to the point where a 45-17 win is a disappointment. There were a lot of very good things to take from Saturday’s win over the Bulldogs but there is still so much to improve upon as well.

Sarah Palin
Here are the good looking things I saw Saturday afternoon:

*Spiller Time-C.J. Spiller looked very impressive. He has always looked quick but the Lake Butler, FL native has become more physical at the point of attack. He had two catches for 32 yards and six carries for 75 yards and three scores.

*Superman-James Davis was a bigger part of the gameplan especially in the first quarter. Davis was very effective when he got his hands on the ball. I am not happy with his fumble but will cut him some slack because he seldom fumbles.

*Thunder and Lightning-The duo combined for 182 yards on 19 carries for four touchdowns. It was nice to see the emphasis on this pair.

*Ford Tough-Jacoby Ford was a bigger part of the attack. He set his career mark for receptions and is a threat once again. It was nice to see Ford pressure the defense with his explosiveness.

*Can of Korn-This was not Willy Korn’s debut but it was the first we saw of him this year. I thought he looked sharp. His throws were beautiful passes that hit receivers in stride. A 7-11 start for 81 yards was a good start. They have been in backup roles but in his career, Korn is now 15-22 for 181 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions.

*Thunder Part II-Jamie Harper saw his most action to date and showcased why he was so highly recruited. Harper had six carries for 38 yards and his first college touchdown. He is a huge back but showed his very quick feet. The future is bright at tailback after seeing the cuts he made Saturday.

*Chansi Part II-Marquan Jones saw action Saturday and looked as smooth as silk. He had three catches for 34 yards and showed why he was so highly touted.

*Nice Script-The offensive packages and gameplan looked great. I loved the idea of Davis, Spiller and Ford being the focal point of the offense. I also like how we saw different formations with Spiller and Davis splitting out as a wide out.

*Puppies-The young offensive linemen got a lot of playing time Saturday. Davis Smith made his first start as did fellow red-shirt freshmen guard Mason Cloy. We also got an extensive look at freshmen tackles Landon Walker and Antoine McClain.

*Da’ Beast-Da’Quan Bowers was one of the few bright spots on defense. Bowers exploded off of the ball and harassed the quarterback when he was not held. He looks the part.

*Puppy II-Brandon Thompson played his first college game and made a big play on a short-yardage situation. Thompson added bulk to the defensive front.

*The Commodores-No not Bobby Johnson’s bunch (The Gamecock’s Daddy) but Lionel Ritchie and the Commodores. Michael Hamlin was once…..twice….three times the star Saturday. The senior safety tied a school record with three interceptions. I like the plan where Hamlin was in robber coverage in the middle of the field.

*The Class of 2012-To me it appeared the best players at Clemson were often times freshmen. Korn, Harper, Jones, Thompson and Bowers all played well.

Nancy Grace
Here are the bad things I saw Saturday:

*The Tigers gave up chunks of yardage through the air. The Citadel threw the ball for 338 yards. Andre Roberts caught nine balls for 153 yards. Twice Clemson gave up huge plays for touchdowns because of busted coverages. I am not sure if it was Chris Clemens or Chris Chancellor on Roberts’ 42-yard touchdown. I think it was Sadat Chambers or Haydrian Leiws on Luke Caldwell’s 50-yard touchdown reception. This has to stop.

*Two red-zone turnovers. Turning the ball over twice inside the red zone is not only inexcusable but it is the kinds of plays that will get you beat against a better opponent.

*Cullen Harper was not sharp. I am not convinced he is healthy. Harper continued to shake his arm and hand like he had issues with his right arm. He under threw three balls Saturday including one simple swing pass to Ford.

*The offensive line was not able to dominate the Bulldogs. I thought they looked much better at times but still did not dominate.

*Short yardage is still an issue. The Citadel stuffed a fourth down and the two-point stance issue comes back up.

*The linebackers are still a concern. I would have liked to see a little more dominance out of the backers.

*The pass rush was not a factor again. Give The Citadel credit because it is hard to rush a three-step drop. Also the referee and umpire decided to overlook multiple holding efforts by the Bulldog offensive linemen. However, Clemson must get more than one sack in two games. I think the Sapp-Bowers combination will be OK.

Rachel Ray
I heard someone once say that the only woman on earth that he could tell if she was hot or not was Rachel Ray. He said she was the only question mark on the face of the earth. So here are my question marks:

*Harper’s health-Is he OK?

*Korn’s role-Should Korn be more involved and see more snaps?

*Offensive line-Are the younger linemen getting better?

*Short-yardage-Can a two-point stance work in short-yardage?

*Tackling-Was there any improvement in this crucial area?

*Defensive scheme-It seemed to me that there was a lot of cushion in the coverage Saturday.

*Pressure-Does Sapp and Jackson mean that much to this pass rush?

*Linebackers-Will we see improvement soon?

*Can the officials count? Is it that hard to count to begin with and why have a replay judge if you cannot get it right even after watching the replay?


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