Swinney: Ellington will get more touches

by TigerNet Staff - Sun Oct 10 19:08:47 GMT-04:00 2010

Dabo Swinney Sunday Teleconference (MP3 Format)

CLEMSON – Perhaps the biggest question following Saturday afternoon’s disappointing loss at North Carolina – at least from an offensive standpoint – had to be why sophomore Andre Ellington, the ACC’s leading rusher heading into the weekend, carried only 12 times in the 21-16 loss.

Offensive coordinator Billy Napier’s availability was limited following the game, so Ellington’s lack of carries was one of the first things asked of head coach Dabo Swinney during his Sunday afternoon teleconference with the media.

Swinney said Ellington would get more touches, and he will take responsibility for making sure that happens.

“I do think that we have to get Ellington some more touches,” Swinney said. “He's a guy who has been our most explosive guy. We have to make sure he's getting more opportunities and we'll do that."

Swinney was asked if he felt like the Tigers didn’t give Ellington enough opportunities on Saturday, and he said yes.

"We didn't get the rhythm that we wanted to,” he said. “We had the most penalties that we've had here in five years. All of a sudden we get in that game and have nine penalties. That's a tough deal. We got away from some of our zone stuff. I thought we were more effective there. But yeah, we have to make sure 23 gets more touches, because he's earned it. He's been productive. We've got to do a better job there. That's on me, again. I've got to make sure that happens."

Other highlights from the press conference:

Swinney’s opening statement: “Obviously a disappointing game yesterday. We're coming off three tough losses. It's been a difficult few weeks here. We have to keep on keeping on. We have to go back to work tomorrow and see if we can fix some of the mistakes we're having. I'll do a better job. I thought Kyle Parker played his best game of the year. He was outstanding and was the player of the game. I think we found some answers at receiver. We were much better on third down and no turnovers, so that was really good. There were some positives. We needed to throw and catch better and we did that. We gave up no sacks. Defensively, it was the lowest total yardage allowance of the year. We were very good on third down. I thought we cut down on the big plays and mental errors. It was a good game as far as assignments. Da'Quan [Bowers] continues to be a really good player for us. As a team we're second in the nation in tackles for loss.

"But a lot of things we have to get better on. We have to continue to work on several things. Offensively we had too many drives, good drives, where we got nothing. We still had a few drops that we can improve upon. The personal foul was critical early in the game. Those are things that are within our control. We have to make sure we're doing the right things with the right people. Defensively, we gave up two big plays. We have to continue to cut down on those. It wasn't like we busted. So that was some improvement. But the biggest thing that was disappointing was the fourth quarter. We got the momentum back in the third quarter but we only had the ball a minute and 45 seconds in the fourth quarter, plus they were four-for-four on fourth down. They did not run the ball effectively on us until the end. We got three timeouts but couldn't get a stop. Those are things we have to continue to work on. We've got a lot of things to get better at.”

On what happens now: "Right now we're finding a way to lose. We have to help them as coaches and that's what we're going to do. Three tough losses but that doesn't change who we are. We're doing a lot of the right things. We've got good players and good coaches. We'll get this thing headed in the right direction. We have to go win a game. If we learned anything from last year it's to not panic. Make sure we've got good leadership and just find a way to win and go from there. We have to control the things we can control and stay the course. We still have a chance to be a good team. We'll keep on keeping on."

On whether the right people are in the right positions: "I think that we have found some answers at wideout. I definitely do. Nuke [DeAndre Hopkins] made a lot of plays. He looked like a freshman at times on film. That is something we can see but might not be seen by the naked eye. But you can tell he's really going to be a special player. All those guys are good answers for us.”

On the mistakes and how to correct it: "We just make sure that first of all we keep our confidence. The

last thing you want is to have guys uptight and afraid to make a mistake. We've had mistakes across the board. It's not one guy. It's not one thing. We just have to have instant accountability at practice. We can't panic. It's been three difficult losses. Nobody wants to hear it but you have a few plays and you could have won any of those games. And we have not made those plays. When there are two good teams playing, it's always a few plays. We have to get 11 guys that play every play to win that play. If we do, we are going to win. We have to make that commitment, every single one of us. And I know this team will. We'll come together. I believe we'll all hang tough."

On whether he is worried about the team’s confidence: “Absolutely. These are young guys. These are young people. I'm sure there is a lot of negativity out there. You have to make sure they’re listening to the right things. This is a good group of guys. I know what we've got here. We have good young men who have a lot of character and talent. And they've worked extremely hard. I just want to make sure we handle them the right way. They need to keep at it. Right now, we're a team that isn't getting a lot of breaks, either. But the guys have played every game, all the way to the end."

On whether Hopkins, who had a 31-yard return, would keep returning punts: “We'll work Nuke in there. We'll keep getting him more opportunities. I think you'll see him get a few more as a punt returner."