CLEMSON FOOTBALL

Swinney says Jackson Carman versus Chase Young is
Jackson Carman (79) has anchored the left side of Clemson's offensive line.

Swinney says Jackson Carman versus Chase Young is "must-see TV"


by - Senior Writer -

SCOTTSDALE, AZ – Jackson Carman versus Chase Young and the matchup between their respective lines is must-see television according to Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney.

Carman, the Tigers’ behemoth left tackle, will be one of the players tasked with stopping Ohio State defensive end and Bednarik Award winner Chase Young. Swinney was asked about the matchup during Thursday’s media day session and he didn’t hold back.

“Must-see TV! Their DL is special. They look like our guys last year, and not just that they have some superstar-type guys, but they have depth,” Swinney said. “They've got a lot of guys. Listen, they take that number 2 (Young) out, 11 (Tyreke Smith) comes in, he's pretty good. There's not a lot of drop-off. That guy is really good, twitchy. And same thing in their deep tackle when they bring 67 (Robert Landers) in there. They're just deep and they're experienced. They can get pressure on the quarterback.”

Swinney said the Buckeyes can get pressure without having to use the blitz.

“They have been able to get pressure on the quarterback without having to bring pressure. They don't blitz very much,” Swinney said. “They probably are the least blitz team we've seen all year, but they haven't had to because of their skill and talent up front. So it's must-see TV because we're pretty good in the offensive line. They get a lot of sacks; we don't give up many. They get a lot of tackles for loss; we don't give up many. So it's a great matchup. It's the way a game like this should be.

“Our strength is our offensive line; their strength is their defensive line. And everybody gets kind of enamored with the quarterbacks and the wide outs and those DBs and all that stuff and these great backs, but that will be quite a battle right there to watch all night long. Hopefully, we can -- we're going to lose some of them, but hopefully, we can win a lot more than we lose throughout the night, but it's going to be a huge challenge. But our guys are excited. You want to play the best. Jackson [Carman] and Tremayne [Anchrum] are excited about the challenge.”

Offensive coordinator Tony Elliott says that Carman is ready for the challenge.

“Oh, he's excited! This goes back to before -- he got into Clemson, and before he made a decision to come to Clemson,” Elliott said. “I think he's been following Chase Young since Chase Young was in high school. These guys are competitors. They want to compete against the best. He and Tremayne [Anchrum] are both excited for an opportunity. This is what you want. Especially those guys who aspire to play at the next level. You're talking about potentially -- he's good enough to be a number one overall pick. You have a chance to showcase your talent on the biggest stage versus the best player in the country, these guys are both excited.”

However, Elliott cautioned that each player has to keep his emotions in check.

“I don't want the guys to focus on that. I just want them to focus on playing their best game, because that's what it is going to take,” Elliott said. “If you get caught up in the hype, if you're too excited -- because at the end of the day, emotion isn't going to win this game. They play in one of the best venues in college football. They play in one of the best conferences in college football. They're not going to be overwhelmed by the moment. It is the team that can manage all of the distractions, all of the hype associated with the game, and lock in and play the best fundamental football that's going to win. So these guys will be excited, but at the same time, don't want to take that excitement away from them. We want to challenge them in the right way.”

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