Bowden Not Looking Ahead, But Everyone Else Is |
CLEMSON - No one would blame Tommy Bowden if he took a peek at the other
teams ahead of Clemson in the polls. There aren't that many. And a look at their schedules wouldn't be an unreasonable thing to do. After all to get what he wants - a national championship - his team has to jump a few in the rankings. But what does he think about Miami jumping Clemson in the poll last week? "Couldn't care less," he said. "It's the halftime of the season. If Miami loses another game, it's no big deal. We've got to play eleven games. We've got another six to play." Seems that Bowden looks at it as his job to keep the blinders on, even if no one else is, including his players. Offensive guard Will Merritt, for one, can tell you the big games left that could help Clemson move up from its No. 5 ranking in the AP poll. And it's likely he's not the only one on the team that is well aware of what's going on around Clemson in the world of college football. Under the pretense of doing class work on the computer, Merritt and his teammates have been checking out the other teams via the Internet. "We've already looked down the road a couple of weeks," said Merritt. "We know that Nebraska has to play Kansas State. And Oklahoma has to play a couple of those teams. We understand what's going on. We're not too dumb." Merritt has discovered one of the joys of the regular season when you're climbing in the polls - figuring out how to climb higher. Clemson fans over the age of 30 remember what it's like. In 1981, Clemson slowly climbed up the polls until the day after Thanksgiving when all the stars aligned and the final team fell, allowing Clemson to take the No. 1 ranking. Penn State defeated previously undefeated Pitt that day, leaving Clemson as the only undefeated team. Clemson wouldn't have to be the only undefeated team this season in order to take the No. 1 ranking. There are three undefeated teams ranked below Clemson now. There are three ranked above, along with Miami with one loss. None of this has gotten past Merritt. "We pulled it up on the Internet," he said. "We were all sitting around the computer mixing and matching teams that had to play each other. It's a fun game to play. That's when it gets fun - when you can play the game of how high can we climb." In case you're wondering, here are the games that catch Merritt's attention: Nebraska at Oklahoma on Oct. 28, Nebraska at Kansas State on Nov. 11, Virginia Tech at Miami on Nov. 4 and Oklahoma at Kansas State this Saturday. "If we had two losses, it wouldn't matter how the others are playing," said Merritt. "For now we can play this game." Bowden will start playing the game if Clemson wins five more games. "I haven't seen Nebraska, Kansas State or Virginia Tech," he said. "Saturday is a work day for me." Clemson Pregame Fact Sheet Game: Clemson (6-0, 4-0, 4th USA Today, 5th AP) vs. Maryland (2-3, 0-2) Date: October 14, 2000 Kickoff: 6:06 PM Special Day: Homecoming, Parents' Day Expected Attendance: 85,000 Ticket Availability: Sold Out Quote from Van Hilderbrand, Clemson Ticket Manager. "We are expecting 85,000 fans for the Maryland game. I ask all fans to arrive in the Clemson area early on Saturday because it will be the largest volume of traffic we have had this year." Series Record: Clemson Leads 26-20-2 at Clemson: Clemson leads 14-10 Last Year: Clemson 42, Maryland 30 Last Maryland Win: Maryland 53, Clemson 23 in 1992 Last Maryland Win at Clemson: Maryland 34, Clemson 31 in 1985 Series Streak: Clemson has won 7 in a row overall, 7 in a row at Death Valley Live TV: ESPN-2 (Dave Barnett, Bill Curry, Mike Golic, Michele Tafoya) Delay TV: College Sports Southeast (Doug Bell, Hootie Ingram) Series Note: Maryland has not scored a touchdown in Death Valley since 1991 and scored just two since 1988...Clemson quarterback Woody Dantzler had a school record 435 yards of total offense in the win over Maryland last year. Bowl Attendance: The Orange Bowl and the Fiesta Bowl Clemson Injuries: Jermyn Chester, OG, probable, surgery for knee cartilage injury. Terry Bryant, starting defensive end, doubtful, pulled calf muscle Other Notes: Bryant McNeal will make his first career start in place of Terry Bryant...John McDermott will be back in the starting lineup, replacing Gary Byrd at an offensive tackle...Clemson quarterback Woody Dantzler can tie a Clemson record for consecutive 100-yard rushing games with another 100-yard rushing game... Rod Gardner needs just three catches to move from fifth to third place in Clemson history...he will jump over Brian Wofford and Jerry Butler when he hits the three-catch mark on Saturday...Gardner needs 135 receiving yards to reach 2000 for his career...running back Travis Zachery needs just one touchdown to break the Clemson record...he and Lester Brown both have 32...Zachery also needs just 34 yards rushing to reach the 2000 mark for his career....Clemson will attempt to go 7-0 to start a season for the first time since 1981.
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