Thursday September 24, 2009

Field Position

Field Position
I love what Dabo has done in trying to bring back some old traditions at Clemson.

I loved the Danny Pearman hire because Coach Pearman is the epitome of the way things used to be done around here. The former walk-on was a strength and conditioning All-American that worked his tail off to make himself a good football player. He was hard-nosed as a player and demands the same approach as a coach.

I love the idea of bringing back Woody McCorvey. Coach McCorvey was a part of some of the best times in Clemson football history and his wisdom is valuable.

We all know it comes down to wins and losses but the little things they are doing to bring back some traditions are great ideas in my opinion. Little things can be in the form of the old block C hats the staff wore in the season opener and stripes back on the game pants. They have also reached out to the former players that built this program. It is clear Dabo has embraced Clemson’s past.

In fact, Dabo would like to do more and might be able to convince the administration to let him hire more former players to play prominent roles in the rebuilding of this program.

Last week I saw an opportunity to bring back a little tradition I remember from those glory days. The Tigers enjoyed a remarkable day on the defensive side of the football. It was the most dominating defensive performance of my lifetime according to the stats. Clemson’s defense was aggressive and punished the Eagles.

Boston College’s longest drive was 17 yards. The Eagles averaged 2.88 yards per drive. The Eagles had 17 drives that resulted in 10 punts, four turnovers, one turnover on downs, one ended the half and only one touchdown.

In the past few seasons Clemson had a difficult time winning a close, low scoring field position game because the defense played a bend but don’t break style. Even when the Tigers had the opponents backed up, they could not force enough three and out series. It was also difficult for fans to get fired up on third down time and time again, only to be disappointed by the lack of ability to get off of the field.

The defense we saw Saturday forced three and outs and field position as a major factor in the victory. It also gave C.J. Spiller and Jacoby Ford a chance for a big return because Boston College was forced to punt the ball 10 times. This is a huge factor for this football team considering the Tigers issues on the offensive line and at wide receiver and inexperience at quarterback. The Tigers benefit because they get better field position but also benefit because the punt return team has been ultra successful in punt returns.

It is my belief that an aggressive, attacking defense encourages more crowd noise and they two can feed off of each other. I thought the crowd noise was a factor last week and the defensive scheme has a lot to do with that.

So now we have a chance to revive an old tradition that seems to have been lost in recent years. As a kid I remember standing ovations after the defense would force a three and out. It was a reward from the crowd. At LSU their fans bow to the defense after the defense holds and they play their Chinese bandit song. At Clemson the standing ovation used to greet the defense as they came off of the field after a good stand.

I was watching Texas Tech the other night in its game at Texas and was reminded of old Clemson days because the Red Raiders’ defensive coordinator is Ruffin McNeill, a former Clemson graduate assistant. As a kid I used to love watching McNeill’s enthusiasm and the way he greeted the defensive players as they came off of the field after a three and out. I swear I remember McNeill running out past the numbers on the field and jumping into players arms with a burst of excitement.

In those days, Tiger fans stood on third downs in an attempt to make an impact on those plays and remained standing after the defense held the opponent and came off of the field.

I doubt we will see the kind of dominating defense like we did last weekend but I do see the Tigers play aggressively on the defensive side of the ball. I also think we will continue to see a lot of three and outs, so we have a chance to embrace this new scheme with an old tradition.

The grass roots plan to stop the Woo Hoo has not been successful yet but it will be. Until then let’s give this defense a standing ovation to reward their three and out series. It was fun back in the old days and I think it can have an impact once again.

The Brad Hughes All-State Insurance Agency

Prayer List
We have started a prayer list on the blog. Here are the guidelines:
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Those who need our prayers include:
Finn Brookover, Larry in Naples, FL, RTG-Pawsitive Tiger, Mary-Louise Pawlowski (John's daughter), Jo Ann Bachman, Frank Taylor, Kenneth Bryant, Pruitt Martin, Got igers and his family, David Rowland, Leonard Gillespie and his family, Jim S, Christine Hepfer, Daniel Rosborough, Amy Murphey, Jack Huffman, Nancy Winkler, Dr. Nancy Strom Morgan, John Reeve, Eileen Woodrum, Ethel Southard, Vinnie Brock, Jean-Pierre Bailey, Kaitlyn L, Delores Weaver, Eric Boessneck, John Bowers, Jimmy Ness, Susan Miller, Joyce Harley, Steve Proveaux, John Petrey, Chalmers Carr, Drayton Melton, Jeffrey Greene, the Hutto family, Sherl Drawdy, Caleb Kennedy, Ann Fallaw, Bob Pollock, Teresa O'Connor, Matt Jacobs.