Thursday March 22, 2007

One to Remember

One to Remember
It’s safe to say we need to keep that one in the front of our minds for the time being but I want to encourage all of us to keep that one in the back of your mind for a long time to.

Clemson’s narrow win over Syracuse had everything you could want and I think almost everything any Clemson fan could ever ask except that it was an NIT game instead of an NCAA tournament game. The game does go to show us all what it could be and hopefully gives us a glance at what the future will be.

I have only seen the atmosphere better in Littlejohn once and that was the January 1997 game against Wake Forest. Last night was electric. Last night was exciting. Last night was fun and I really think that is all Clemson fans can ask.

I don’t think Clemson fans have unrealistic expectations of their basketball program. In fact I think most are excited about the direction of the program and trust Oliver Purnell at the wheel. Don’t get me wrong, I think most were disappointed in not getting to the NCAA tournament after starting 17-0 but I think they can forgive because Purnell has continued to take positive steps every single year.

I think that feat is extremely difficult. Think about that. Purnell has always won more games than the previous year at Clemson. Each year the team has progressed farther in the post-season. That is hard to do even in the four short years.

I also think that Clemson basketball fans hope that the improvement continues and NCAA tournaments are ahead even though so are tough times in this league. Last night showed us how well this team can play but it also exposed the difficulty of the continued upgrade of the program. I say that and can back it up with a question. Would Clemson have beaten North Carolina last night? Would the Tigers have beaten most of Coach K’s Duke teams of the last ten years? Tim Duncan’s Wake teams? NC State’s great teams of the past? How about the Maryland Terps of the past ten years? I know Syracuse is not the nation’s top program this season but they thought they had a pretty good season this year. Syracuse did not even worry about the bubble because they thought they were a lock to get in the tournament. This was one of the top four or five teams in the Big East according to some. This was a team that went 10-6 in the Big East this season.

So here is the question-If Syracuse went 10-6 in the Big East what would its record have been in the ACC this year? Clemson went 7-9 in the ACC and beat the Orange. Granted it was close and at Clemson but would Syracuse have gone 7-9 in the ACC? What would Clemson’s record have been in the Big East? I would guess that it would have been at least 10-6.

I know everyone argues that being in the ACC is incredible but I think it has almost as many disadvantages. Last night a ninth place 7-9 ACC team was a higher seed and beat a 10-6 team from the Big East.

Oh one final thought about the difficulty of the ACC—Think it is going to get any easier in the future?

Anyway, back to the original point of expectations and what last night showed us. Last night showed Clemson fans what a big time out of conference opponent looks like. I was shocked to see about 800 Syracuse fans here. David Spearman of Mr. Knickerbocker said a bunch of their students came by the store yesterday after driving 16 immediately following their win in Syracuse Monday night. I thought their crowd was loud and spirited. ‘Big time basketball schools” travel like that. That is what Kentucky does. That is what Indiana does.

The game also gave Clemson fans an idea of what Littlejohn could be. After game Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim was very complimentary of the home court and the fans. It was a compliment but I took it as a challenge to all fans to see what the place could be every night.

Clemson can win in basketball at a high level and can expect to compete in the ACC and beyond. This season the Tigers have not lost a game to an opponent outside of the league. The Tigers have played games against the SEC, Big Ten and Big East and are undefeated.

It can be great here. It is very difficult but not impossible. I made the statement on the morning radio show that it is tough because more people live in Atlanta than in South Carolina. There are more prospects in Dade and Broward Counties for Miami to choose from than the entire state of South Carolina. But it is not impossible. Difficult? Yes. Impossible? No.

So how can it be done? First, stability is an issue. Clemson must find a way to do what some have not and that is keep a coach that has the program moving forward from moving forward himself. Purnell will get offers. Can Clemson keep him?

Second is to continue to be dedicated to the program. If Purnell wants something upgraded then give it to him. Make basketball a priority. Pay the coaches he wants to come in and be assistants. Continue to always upgrade the facilities.

And finally and more radically, make Littlejohn a “pit” like last night. This is the real hard part. Last night was only an NIT game but it was the second best atmosphere in Littlejohn in the last 20 years. Why? I maintain that the general admission had something to do with it. I say give general admission a shot on a more consistent basis. Maybe just half of the court seating should be open to general admission. Make the best 1,000 seats available to those who want them the most. Let’s face it many of the big donors don’t show up for the all of the games and when they do they certainly are not as loud and pumped up as the fans that waited a couple of hours for those great seats last night.

I know it was general admission for the ETSU and Ole Miss games too but I thought those 3,600 fans were better than the 3,600 that might attend a normal out of conference December game. I say general admission is worth a try. Let the little man have a shot every once in awhile.

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