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National Champion [7543]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Was Clemson As Good As Projected? If So, What Went Wrong?
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Oct 24, 2025, 9:01 AM
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Clemson entered the season with national expectations—top-tier talent, a seasoned staff, and a head coach whose legacy is built on turning promise into power. On paper, this was supposed to be the year. Instead, we got underproduction across the board. So what happened?
Was the team simply not as good as projected? Or was the talent there, but squandered—misused, misdeveloped, or misled?
This isn’t just about one season. It’s about doctrine. Dabo’s brand is built on sustained excellence, not just flashes of brilliance. If this year’s team failed to deliver, what does that say about the system? And if next year’s squad—equally hyped—repeats the same pattern, then we’re not talking about a blip. We’re talking about a breakdown.
So let’s trial it:
Was the projection flawed?
Was the development pipeline clogged?
Did leadership fail to adapt?
Or are we witnessing the slow erosion of a once-dominant doctrine?
Clemson fans deserve more than slogans. We deserve answers. Because if this is the new normal, then the program isn’t chasing greatness—it’s chasing ghosts.
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Athletic Dir [1134]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: Was Clemson As Good As Projected? If So, What Went Wrong?
Oct 24, 2025, 9:04 AM
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I think year in and year out since our run in the mid 2010's the folks making the pre season rankings just assumed we would be good. They assumed Dabo wouldnt let our team be anything less than great. They look and see a Senior QB that improved drastically last season and think its only going up from here. We have guys at reciever that should be play makers. The D line on paper should be one of the best in the country. We have lost motivation.
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1st Rounder [691]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: Was Clemson As Good As Projected? If So, What Went Wrong?
Oct 24, 2025, 9:06 AM
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The "experts" crowned them King.
Crowned our QB as the recipient of the Heisman Trophy.
Talked and talked and talked.
There should be NO polls until the 1st of October.
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Valley Legend [12204]
TigerPulse: 64%
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Re: Was Clemson As Good As Projected? If So, What Went Wrong?
Oct 24, 2025, 9:13 AM
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Why does something have to happen and be a disaster? The answer to your question is no, but the exciting part of football today is from week to week, you just never know which team will step up, be motivated and play a great game. Hopefully our week is next week against the Devils.
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All-Pro [700]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: Was Clemson As Good As Projected? If So, What Went Wrong?
Oct 24, 2025, 9:33 AM
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Cade hasnt made the expected progress, instead he has regressed.
The OL has been subpar.
The defense has been subpar as well and especially the DL has not been dominant.
Its kind of that simple. We could go into more detail but a lot of the preseason expectations were based on these assumptions.
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All-TigerNet [5890]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: Was Clemson As Good As Projected? If So, What Went Wrong?
Oct 24, 2025, 11:45 AM
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Cade regressed (4th year in the program, 3rd year as the starter under the same OC)
The OL regressed (4 out of 5 of them were starters last year)
The DL regressed and our best player is from the transfer portal (2 top ten projected NFL draft picks based on film from the last 2 years).
Why ?? I do not have the answer to that question. But regardless the reason, the responsibility falls 100% on the coaches. And the responsibility of the coaches falls 100% on the head coach.
I think we can all agree that this has been building for quite some time. We have given Dabo the benefit of the doubt, but if this season continues as it has started, Dabo will have some very tough decisions to make at the end of the season.
Message was edited by: bobbyb99®
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National Champion [7200]
TigerPulse: 100%
42
Posts: 14113
Joined: 2000
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Typically there is a very fine line between winning and losing
Oct 24, 2025, 9:35 AM
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I think a different coaching staff has better results with this talent. But I don't think we have top 10 talent either. So answer the is both. Team was overhyped, coaching let us down.
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National Champion [7958]
TigerPulse: 96%
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Re: Was Clemson As Good As Projected? If So, What Went Wrong?
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Oct 24, 2025, 9:56 AM
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A reply in general as your questions are very legitimate. 1) no true running back( I’m sorry CJ I like you but you should be replaced). 2) Austin failed to recruit top O lineman and they can pass block but not run block especially with no true running back) 3) Cade has too much anxiety that blows his mind at times and he can’t operate the offense. (Part of this is on the OC). OC just calls his plays and does not have a true feel for the game to make proper calls and adjustments. (OC needs to be replaced) He would have been OK with Watson or Lawrence. 4) we should not have gotten away from the Venables D scheme as it is the best in the business. Even when our O was struggling the D would save us. The players have been playing this scheme for many years. All of a sudden you give them a new scheme that they are not comfortable with and don’t like as well as the other D. 5)The team was built up too much even by Dabo and when Cade layer an egg on O in the LSU opener and they lost they were shocked and all the air went out of the older players. 5) We have not recruited as well since nil and failure to use the portal and we don’t have the dudes we use to have and there is no quality depth for the team.6) Dabo has hired to many former players as coaches and friends he knew from his former Alabama days that have not recruited well coached well and schemed well. That is for starters. Many are trying to build a program. Dabo has overseen the falling off of a team from our best days. Players Coaches Schemes
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Hall of Famer [8864]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: Was Clemson As Good As Projected? If So, What Went Wrong?
Oct 24, 2025, 11:59 AM
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We were never going to be that good. However, Rat poison killed this team! In all my years of watching and participating in College Football, I have never seen as much positive press on TV, Social Media bloggers, etc. re: Clemson Football. We have always been the Roy Bus Crowd. Since last spring, the press has been pounding the Clemson National Championship story for 2025. Every pundit was guilty, even Foundbloom, who is normally negative Clemson. They all had CK2 rated as the top returning QB and the Heisman Favorite, so many returning starters, and blah, blah, blah. 24 hours a day. The players are just kids, so they ate it up. We were killed by Rat Poison!
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Walk-On [79]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: Was Clemson As Good As Projected? If So, What Went Wrong?
Oct 24, 2025, 1:35 PM
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Here is what happened. Someone who knows #### well what a national championship football team looks like - (he coached games against a bunch of them—He won one as a player—He won two more as a head coach.) - someone who is arguably - at least should be - the nation’s foremost expert among active coaches on this subject…. This someone said he had a potential 16-0 National Championship team at Clemson this season.
When someone like that says something like this, people are going to listen.
Reality is that this team wasn’t good last year and didn’t magically get any better in the off-season. But how can you argue that point when an expert - one who should know better than anyone - says otherwise ?
If anyone gets the benefit of the doubt- it should be him. So he rightfully got the benefit of the doubt from everyone in the media.
And then had the nerve to call his own words rat poison….
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National Champion [7322]
TigerPulse: 100%
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I don't get the sense that next year's squad
Oct 24, 2025, 1:41 PM
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is going to be as hyped as this year's.
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