CU-SC Game Notes: Final Home Game for 19 Clemson Seniors |
Final Home Game for 19 Clemson seniors
Clemson’s 19 seniors (15 on scholarship and four walk-ons) are heading down the home stretch with just one regular season game left and then a bowl game. These seniors have been the corps that has provided one of the great comebacks in school history. The Tigers have gone from three wins in 1998 to six wins in 1999 to eight wins so far in 2000. A win today would give Clemson an increase of at least three wins in consecutive years for just the third time in school history. Clemson did that from 1926 -1928 and from 1976 -1978. This year’s senior class features wide receiver Rod Gardner, who needs just eight receptions to become Clemson’s career leader in that area. Fellow receiver Justin Watts will receive his fifth varsity letter this year, the first Clemson player to do that since Stumpy Banks in 1917. The offensive seniors also include two year starters John McDermott, Theo Mougros and Terry Witherspoon. Robert Carswell is the senior defensive leader. He has 351 career tackles, more than any other defensive back in Clemson history and sixth best in school records overall. The senior defenders include three-year starter Terry Bryant and two-year starters Terry Jolly and Jason Holloman. As a team, this class has helped Clemson to a pair of second place ACC finishes, three bowl games and 24 total victories. This class can also become just the 10th in Clemson history to defeat South Carolina four straight years. The Clemson classes that were 4-0 against the rival Gamecocks were the senior of 1900, 1919, 1930, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1983, and 1991. That 1991 senior class featured Levon Kirkland and Ed McDaniel, two linebackers who are still stars in the NFL. Clemson Senior Class for 2000 Player, Pos Hometown Terry Bryant, DE Savannah, GA Robert Carswell, FS Stone Mountain, GA Gary Childress, DE Nashville, TN Darrell Crutchfield, CB Jacksonville, FL @Duane Goodine, DB Seneca, SC Rod Gardner, WR Jacksonville, FL Jason Holloman, DT Decatur, GA Freddie James, DT St. Stephens, SC Terry Jolly, DT Fort Valley, GA @Marcus Mauney, WR Greenville, SC John McDermott, OT Woodstock, GA Theo Mougros, OG Tarpon Springs, FL Kenzi Ross, LB Fort Valley, GA Jamie Somaini, P Moore, SC Chad Speck, FS Nashville, TN @John Strait, PK Blythewood, SC Justin Watts, WR Florence, SC @Matt Whinghter, OL Beech Island, SC Terry Witherspoon, FB Monroe, NC @Denotes walkon Tigers Look for Nine-Win Regular Season Another significant accomplishment for this senior class would be to leave with a nine-win regular season. Clemson has not won nine in the regular season since 1991 when Clemson was 9-1-1 in the regular season. A total of 10 Clemson teams have won at least nine games in the regular season. The list of teams to accomplish this feat are: 1948 (10-0), 1978 (10-1), 1981 (11-0), 1982 (9-1-1), 1983 (9-1-1), 1987 (9-2), 1988 (9-2), 1989 (9-2), 1990 (9-2) and 1991 (9-1-1). Clemson and South Carolina Both Ranked This is just the fourth time in the history of the Clemson vs. South Carolina series that both teams are ranked in the AP national ranking heading into the game. Clemson is 14th in the latest AP poll, while South Carolina is 25th. The other seasons both teams were ranked heading into the game were 1979, 1987 and 1988. Only once have both teams been in the top 15 in the nation heading into the game and that was in 1987. For the game in Columbia, Clemson was eighth and South Carolina was 12. South Carolina won that game by a 20-7 count. Clemson has been ranked in the top 25 heading into the South Carolina game 22 previous games. Clemson has a 15-5-2 record in those previous 22 games. South Carolina has been ranked coming into the game with Clemson five previous occasions. Clemson has won six of the last seven times the Tigers have been ranked coming into the South Carolina game. But, the Gamecocks won the last won, 34-31 against a 22nd ranked Clemson team in 1996. The Gamecocks are 3-2 against Clemson when they enter a game ranked against the Tigers. South Carolina holds a 2-1 advantage when both teams enter the game ranked by AP. It should be noted that Associated Press national rankings date to the 1936 season. In 1928, before the days of national polls, Clemson and South Carolina were both 5-0 heading into the game in Columbia. Clemson won that game 32-0. The two teams were almost both ranked heading into the 1956 game. In the October 15, 1956 poll, Clemson was 15th and South Carolina was 16th. Neither team played on Satur-day, October 20th, yet Clemson dropped to 20th and South Carolina dropped out of the October 22nd poll. Years Both Clemson and South Carolina Have Been Ranked by AP entering the contest Year CU Rank USC Rank Outcome 1979 13 19 13-9, USC 1987 8 12 20-7, USC 1988 15 25 29-10, Clemson 2000 14 25 ??? Clemson and South Carolina Have Combined for 15 wins Clemson and South Carolina have combined for 15 total victories entering this weekend’s game. Clemson is 8-2 and South Carolina is 7-3. This is just the sixth time in history that the two teams had 15 wins combined entering the game. It is the first time since the 1988 season when both teams were 8- 2 entering the contest. Clemson won that game 29-10. This will also be just the fourth year in which both Clemson and South Carolina went to a bowl game. The other years were 1979, 1987 and 1988. Here is a list of the seasons in which the two teams have combined for at least 15 wins entering the game: Year CU Rec USC Rec Total Outcome 1979 8-2 7-3 15-5 13-9, USC 1981 10-0 6-4 16-4 29-13, CU 1984 7-3 9-1 16-4 22-21, USC 1987 9-1 7-2 16-3 20-7, USC 1988 8-2 8-2 16-4 29-10, CU 1989 8-2 6-3-1 14-5-1 45-0, CU 2000 8-2 7-3 15-5 ??? Oldest Rivalry in the South The Clemson vs. South Carolina game is the longest active uninterrupted series in the South. This will be the 92nd consecutive year that Clemson and South Carolina have met on the gridiron, every year since 1909. There are just two rivalries that are longer nationally in terms of an uninterrupted series. Those are the Kansas vs. Nebraska rivalry and the Minnesota vs. Wisonsin rivarlry. This will be the 98th meeting between Clemson and South Carolina. The 97 games played so far rank as the 14th most games between two schools in college football history. Minnesota and Wisconsin have played the most with 110 games overall. Longest Active Uninterrupted Series in College Football Gms Matchup 1st Meeting 94 Kansas vs. Nebraska 1906 93 Minnesota vs. Wisconsin 1907 91 Clemson vs. South Carolina 1909 90 Wake Forest vs. NC State 1910 89 Kansas vs. Kansas State 1911 88 North Carolina vs. Virginia 1910 Other Notes on the Series *This is the 98th game in the history of the series, Clemson has a 58-35-4 advantage in the series. Clemson has scored 1834 points and South Carolina has 1240. *Clemson has beaten South Carolina more than any other team. In fact, 10 percent of all of Clemson’s wins in history are over South Carolina. Wake Forest is second on the list of Clemson victims with 51. *Clemson has won 9 of the last 12 games against South Carolina and the average score has been 29-19, which was nearly the exact score of last year’s game, a 28-19 Clemson victory in Death Valley in 1998. And, it was close to last year’s result, 31-21 in favor of the Tigers. *Clemson has an 12-7-1 (.625) lead in the series with South Carolina in games played in Death Valley. Clemson has a 27- 16-2 (.622) advantage in games played in Williams Brice Stadium. As you can see, Clemson has nearly the same winning percentage at home as it has on the road. *Over the last 38 games, or since the game was moved to the end of the season for both teams, Clemson has had the better record 26 times. Clemson has a 17-7-2 record since 1962 when the Tigers have had a better overall record entering the contest. Visitor Has Upper Hand Recently There are many unusual notes and statistical oddities about the Clemson vs. South Carolina rivalry, but the one that sticks out currently is the success of the visiting team. The road team has won eight of the last nine games between the two teams dating to 1990. Clemson broke the streak of seven straight wins by the road team in 1998 with a 28-19 Tiger victory in Clemson. Clemson has had great success at South Carolina in recent years. In fact, Clemson has won six in a row at Williams Brice dating to a 45-0 victory in 1989. Clemson won in 1991 by a 41-24 count, took the 1993 game by a 16-13 score, then won in 1995, 38-17. Clemson won the 1997 game by a 47-21 score, then won last year 31-21. That is an average Clemson victory of 37 to 16 in the last six games in Columbia combined. Holtz and Bowden Both Semifinalist for Coaching Award Both coaches in today’s game have guided terrific turnarounds in their respective programs. Clemson’s Tommy Bowden took over a 3-8 team and took the Tigers to a bowl game in his first year. Clemson has improved on that victory total by two more so far this year, giving Clemson it first eight-win regular season since 1995. South Carolina Coach Lou Holtz has taken South Carolina to seven wins, after an 0-11 season last year. A victory over Clemson would give the Gamecocks an eight-win improvement in one season. That would tie for the second best one-season turnaround in NCAA history. Hawaii’s 1999 team holds the record with an 8.5 game improvement over the previous year. Purdue’s 1943 team and Stanford’s 1940 team are the only teams to make an eight-game improvement in one year. As a result, both coaches are listed as semifinalists for the Football News National Coach of the Year. The other eight coaches on the list are Frank Beamer of Virginia Tech, Mike Bellotti of Oregon, Bob Davie of Notre Dame, Dennis Franchione of TCU, Rick Neuheisel of Washington, Gary Nord of UTEP, bob Stoops of Oklahoma and Randy Walker of Northwestern. Four Clemson Players On Award Lists Keith Adams, Robert Carswell and Woodrow Dantzler were all named finalists or semifinalists for national position awards on November 9. Adams, Clemson’s All-America linebacker, was named one of three finalists for the Butkus Award. Carswell was listed among 12 semifinalists for the Thorpe Award, which is presented to the top defensive back in the nation, while Dantzler was named one of eight semifinalists for the Davey O’Brien Award, which is give to the nation’s top quarterback. Earlier last week, wide receiver Rod Gardner was named one of 10 semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award. This is the first time in history Clemson has had four different players listed as semifinalists or better for national player position awards. Clemson had a pair of semifinalists in 1997 when Tony Horne was among the final 10 for the Biletnikoff and Anthony Simmons was one of the top 10 for the Butkus. Clemson also had two top five players according to position rankings in 1990. Levon Kirkland was listed among the final five for the Butkus and Stacy Long was one of three finalists for the Outland Trophy. Adams joins Rocky Calmus of Oklahoma and Dan Morgan of Miami (FL) among the finalists for the Butkus Award. Adams has 122 tackles, 16 tackles for loss and six sacks to rank among the top linebackers in the nation. Calmus has 71 tackles and three sacks for the top ranked Sooners, while Morgan has 93 tackles and eight tackles for loss for the Hurricanes. The winner of the Butkus Award will be announced on December 8 in Orlando, FL at an event televised nationally by Fox Sports Net. Dantzler is Clemson’s first quarterback in history to rank among the semifinalists for a national award. The junior from Orangeburg, SC has completed 108 of 184 passes for 1506 yards and 10 touchdowns. He has also rushed for 867 yards and 13 touchdowns. That is the highest rushing total in history for a Clemson quarterback. Dantzler is joined on the list by Drew Brees of Purdue, Eric Crouch of Nebraska, Joey Harrington of Oregon, Josh Heupel of Oklahoma, Marques Tuiasosopo of Washington, Michael Vick of Virginia Tech and Chris Weinke of Florida State. The winner will be announced Thursday, Dec. 7 on the Home Depot College Football Awards Show from Orlando, FL on ESPN. Carswell, who ranks fourth on the Clemson team in tackles with 69 and is Clemson’s career leader among defensive backs in that area, is among 12 semifinalists for the Thorpe Award, which is also presented at the Home Depot College Football Awards Show in Orlando on Dec. 7. Clemson Award Finalists or Semifinalists Year Name Award Ranking 1982 Terry Kinard CBS Defensive Winner Player of the Year 1983 William Perry Outland Trophy Final 10 1984 William Perry Lombardi Award Final 4 1987 Michael Dean Perry Outland Trophy Final 3 1990 Levon Kirkland Butkus Final 5 Stacy Long Outland Trophy Final 3 1991 Ed McDaniel Butkus Award Final 4 1997 Tony Horne Biletnikoff Final 10 Anthony Simmons Butkus Award Final 10 1998 Antwan Edwards Thorpe Award Final 10 1999 Keith Adams Football News Final 15 Defensive Player of Year 2000 Keith Adams Butkus Award Final 3 Woodrow Dantzler O’Brien Award Final 8 Rod Gardner Biletnikoff Award Final 10 Robert Carswell Thorpe Award Final 12 Young, Carson Named Academic All-District Kyle Young and Chad Carson, two mainstays of the Clemson football team, have been named to the 2000 GTE Academic All-District team. The team is made up of players from Division I-A or Division I-AA teams from the states of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. This is the second straight year both have made the team. They will now be placed on the national ballot. The national team will be announced in December. Young was a first-team selection last year, while Carson was a second team choice. Carson is a biological sciences major with a 3.94 GPA. He plans to become a Rhodes Scholar candidate in the second semester this year. On the field, he has 128 tackles this year, first on the Clemson team and second in the nation through games played through October 28. Young is a secondary education major and has a 3.97 career GPA. A senior academically and a junior athletically, Young is the starting center and highest graded offensive lineman on the Clemson team. He has started every game the last two years and has averaged 70 snaps per game. He leads the team in knock down blocks with 95. His consistent play is one reason the Tigers have averaged 455 yards per game, highest average in Clemson history and currently ninth best average in the nation. Other ACC players on the Academci All-District III team are Chris Weinke (QB, Florida State), Dan Dyke (P, Georgia Tech) and Chris Hope (DB, Florida State). Gardner Needs 8 Catches for All-Time Record Rod Gardner needs just eight catches to become Clemson’s career leader in total receptions. He enters the South Carolina game with 155 career receptions, second best in Clemson history. Only Terry Smith (162) has more. In the win over North Carolina, the native of Jacksonville, FL had seven catches for a school record 182 yards and a school record tying three touchdowns. He averaged 26 yards a catch in that game. His yardage total broke the record of 163 yards by Ring of Honor member Jerry Butler at Georgia Tech in 1977. Gardner enters the South Carolina game ranked third in Clemson history in total receiving yards. He went ahead of all-time great Jerry Butler with 75 receiving yards at Florida State. The 6-3 Gardner, who is on track to graduate in December, had five catches for a career high148 yards against Maryland and 10 catches for 137 in the win over NC State. Gardner now has a streak of 28 straight games with at least one catch, 26 in a row with at least two. Last week, Gardner was one of 10 semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award, the honor given to the top receiver in the nation. The others on the list were Antonio Bryant of Pittsburgh, Marvin Minnis of Florida State, Freddie Mitchell of UCLA, Quincy Morgan of Kansas State, Santana Moss of Miami (FL), Josh Reed of LSU, Koren Robinson of NC State, Vinny Sutherland of Purdue and David Terrell of Michigan. Clemson career Reception Leaders Rk Player Years Rec 1. Terry Smith 1990-93 162 2. Rod Gardner 1997-00 155 3. Perry Tuttle 1978-81 150 4. Jerry Butler 1975-78 139 5. Brian Wofford 1996-99 138 6. Tony Horne 1994-97 120 7. Phil Rogers 1965-67 106 8. Mal Lawyer 1996-99 99 Clemson career Reception Yardage Leaders Rk Player Years Rec 1. Terry Smith 1990-93 2681 2. Perry Tuttle 1978-81 2534 3. Rod Gardner 1997-00 2297 4. Jerry Butler 1975-78 2223 5. Brian Wofford 1996-99 1857 6. Tony Horne 1994-97 1750 7. Gary Cooper 1985-89 1592 Zachery Looking for 1000-yard season Clemson running back Travis Zachery, a midseason addition to the Doak Walker Award list, needs just 72 yards rushing against South Carolina to become the eighth different player in Clemson history have at least 1000 yards rushing in a season. A 1000-yard rushing season has been achieved just eight times previous. Raymond Priester did it twice, 1996 and 1997, then had 956 yards rushing in 1997. Zachery has averaged 93 yards rushing per game this year, so he is certainly a candidate to reach 1000 for the season. He had 76 yards in just 14 attempts at Florida State after gaining at least 100 in three of his last four games. For the season, Zachery has 12 rushing touchdowns and four receiving for a total of 16. That is the same total he had all of last year. The Clemson single season record is 17 set by Lester Brown in 1978. Zachery now has 37 touchdowns for his career, 32 rushing and five receiving. He has the Clemson career record in both areas. Zachery is also Clemson’s career record holder in receptions by a running back. He now has 55 total receptions for his three years, 10 more than any other running back in Clemson history. His total for the season is 24 catches for 281 yards and four touchdowns. The 24 receptions are tied for the best single season figure in Clemson history. Heading into this weekend, Zachery is 11th in the nation in scoring (9.6 points per game), 35th in rushing (92.8), and 42nd in all-purpose running yards per game (123.9). Three of Clemson’s previous eight 1000-yard seasons have been achieved against South Carolina. Cliff Austin (1982), Buddy Gore (1967) and Lester Brown (1978) all reached 1000 yards in the final regular season game against the Gamecocks. Clemson’s 1000-yard Rushing Seasons Rk Name Year Att Avg. GP Yds 1. Raymond Priester 1996 257 5.2 12 1345 2. Raymond Priester 1995 238 5.6 12 1322 3. Terrence Flagler 1986 192 6.6 12 1258 4. Kenny Flowers 1985 227 5.3 12 1200 5. Terry Allen 1988 216 5.5 12 1192 6. Cliff Austin 1982 197 5.4 10 1064 7. Buddy Gore 1967 230 4.5 10 1045 8. Lester Brown 1978 202 5.1 12 1022 Clemson on Record Pace in Terms of Scoring Clemson is scoring points at a record rate through the first 10 games. The Tigers rank 10th in the nation in scoring with an average of 38.0 points per game. The school record for scoring average per game is 38.0 set back in 1901 by John Heisman’s second Tiger team, so this current team is right on that average. Clemson set two school records against Georgia Tech. The Tigers scored four touchdowns, giving Clemson 51 for the season. That broke the previous mark of 48 set by Clemson’s 1950 team. Ironically, that team was honored prior to Saturday’s game. Clemson now has 52 touchdowns entering the South Carolina game. Clemson also set the season record for total points scored in the Tech game. The 28 points gave Clemson 373 for the season. That broke the previous best of 368 set in 1978 and 1989. Clemson enters the South Carolina game with 380. The Tigers have three games of at least 50 points this year, just the second Clemson team in history to do that. The 1950 team is the only other Clemson team to record three games of at least 50 points. Clemson’s 52 points at Duke were the sixth most ever on an opponent’s home field, most since 1984 when Clemson beat Virginia, 55-0. Clemson scored 62 in the win over Missouri, most by any Clemson team since 1981 when the Tigers beat Wake Forest 82-24. Clemson’s 2000 Tigers scored at least 28 points in each of the first nine games of the season. That included a streak of eight straight 30-point games to open the season, a Clemson record for consecutive 30-point games at any juncture of the season. Clemson can set a school record for touchdown passes in a season with one against South Carolina on Saturday. This team has 17, the same total as the 1984 club. Clemson Records set or in range in 2000 season: Category 2000 Record Points/Game 38.0 38.0 (1901) Total Points 380 368 (1989, 1978) Touchdowns/Game 5.20 4.8 (1948) Total Touchdowns 52 48 (1950) Touchdown Passes 17 17 (1984) Total Offense/Game 455.2 427.8 (1978 Total offense yards 4552 5134 (1978) Plays/Game 77.3 78.8 (1978) First downs/Game 23.3 22.75 (1978) Yards/Play 5.89 6.1 6 (1950) 400-yard total off. Games 8 7 (1950, 1978, 1982) Records already set in bold Italics denotes records tied Tigers from South Carolina The Clemson vs. South Carolina game is certainly special to all Clemson players, but it might have a longer family history with the players who are from the state. There are 30 players on the Clemson roster who are from the Palmetto State. This list does not include players being red-shirted and only includes those who have played in at least one game and should dress for this weekend’s game. Seven of the 30 players from South Carolina are starters. Only three of the 30 are seniors. No Name Pos Hometown 2 Brian Mance DB Alcola, SC 3 Eric Meekins LB Easley, SC 5 Keith Kelly RB Walterboro, SC 6 *Justin Watts WR Florence, SC 11 *Woodrow Dantzler QB Orangeburg, SC 12 Jeff Scott WR Seneca, SC 16 Joe Don Reames WR Seneca, SC 20 Bernard Rambert RB Summerville, SC 24 *Jamie Somaini PK Moore, SC 27 Kevin Johnson CB Orangeburg, SC 36 Toure Francis DB Columbia, SC 38 Tony Elliott WR Charleston, SC 42 Altroy Bodrick LB Cameron, SC 44 David Ellis LB Lamar, SC 47 Rodney Feaster LB Chester, SC 50 *Will Merritt OG Easley, SC 51 Brian Outlaw C Gaffney, SC 58 J.J. Howard LB Huger, SC 59 *Kyle Young OG Clemson, SC 63 Henry Owen SN Clover, SC 70 William Henry OT Greenville, SC 73 *T.J. Watkins OT North Augusta, SC 78 Greg Walker OG Sumter, SC 82 *Jackie Robinson WR Orangeburg, SC 83 Morgan Woodward TE Florence, SC 84 J.J. McKevley WR Moncks Corner, SC 87 Tyrone Lee TE Florence, SC 90 Freddie James DL St. Stephens, SC 91 Bryant McNeal DE Swansea, SC 95 Jovon Bush DL Hardeeville, SC *Denotes starters Clemson Has Three-Game Winning Streak vs. South Carolina Clemson has a three-game winning streak over South Carolina. Here is a review of each of those last three contest: Last Year in Review Clemson 31, South Carolina 21 Behind outstanding individual performances by receiver Rod Gardner and linebacker Keith Adams, Clemson outlasted arch-rival South Carolina 31-21 before 83,523 fans in Columbia, sending the Gamecocks (0-11) to their 21st consecutive defeat. The victory was Clemson’s sixth in a row in Columbia and third in a row overall over the Gamecocks, and clinched a bowl berth. Adams recorded a Tiger-record 27 tackles, including four-for-loss and three sacks. The sophomore First-Team All-American also had two quarterback pressures and a caused fumble. Gardner had six catches for 138 yards and two touchdowns, including a 29-yard scoring grab on fourth down in the fourth quarter to seal the win. That play put Gardner over the 1,000-yard mark in receiving, the first Tiger to do so. Travis Zachery had his third 100-yard rushing game with 105 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns. Bernard Rambert added 54 yards on six carries. Woodrow Dantzler was 14-26 for 249 yards and two touchdowns as the Tigers outgained South Carolina 425-252 in total offense. After Phil Petty completed seven of 10 passes for 112 yards in the first quarter, Clemson’s defense limited him to 8-22 for 55 yards over the final three quarters. He was also sacked six times for minus 54 yards. South Carolina held the Tiger offense scoreless for the first 18 minutes. Meanwhile, the South Carolina offense was clicking. After Tony Lazzara missed a 22-yard field goal, South Carolina marched 70 yards in 10 plays, but had to settle for a 20-yard field goal by Steve Florio. South Carolina had to settle for field goals three times after driving into the “red zone”. After sacking Dantzler on back-to-back plays and stopping him on a keeper, the Gamecocks drove 51 yards in nine plays capped by a 24-yard field goal by Florio with 14:41 left in the second quarter. Clemson finally got rolling on the ensuing drive, which featured a new formation (the “pod”) where the tackles lined up 25 yards from the center. Dantzler connected with Matt Bailey for 20 yards while in the formation; and after Zachery rushed 18 yards to the Gamecock two, he scored on the next play. Clemson upped its lead to 14-6 on its next possession when Dantzler hit Gardner on a slant-in. Gardner raced 24 yards untouched for six. Dantzler was 3-4 for 59 yards on the drive. But the Gamecocks came right back and cut the Tiger lead to 14-12 with 1:21 left before halftime, as they marched 71 yards in 13 plays capped by Andrew Pinnock’s four-yard run. Petty’s two-point pass was unsuccessful. Clemson struck first in the second half when Zachery scored from four yards, capping an eight-play, 63-yard drive. Zachery and Rambert combined for 51 yards on seven carries on the drive. Clemson looked to be in control of the game when the Tiger defense sacked Petty on four consecutive plays (over two possessions) at the end of the third quarter, but South Carolina did not die. After Ryan Brewer returned a punt to the Tiger 31, South Carolina cut Clemson’s lead to 24-18 when Pinnock, who had 18 carries for 76 yards, scored from 14 yards. The two-point play was unsuccessful. Kenny Harney then picked off a pass deep in Tiger territory, but South Carolina could not punch it into the endzone and had to settle for a 29-yard field goal by Florio, making the score 24-21. Clemson then drove 66 yards in five plays for the clinching score. Facing fourth-and-10 at the 29, Clemson went for the jugular. Dantzler lobbed a pass into the endzone and Gardner snared the ball for six with 6:41 left in the game. 1998 at Clemson Clemson 28, South Carolina 19 Clemson defeated arch-rival South Carolina for the first time on its own field since 1990 by a 28-19 score in the before 84,423 fans, at Memorial Stadium. The Tigers also broke the seven-year streak that saw the visiting team win the annual state championship game. South Carolina took advantage of a Tiger defense, that was without its leading tackler, Chris Jones, on its first posses-sion of the game when Gamecock quarterback Anthony Wright scrambled around right end four yards for the score. Troy Hambrick’s 20-yard run to the Tiger 19 set up the score on the 14-play, 80-yard drive. The Tigers responded with a 13-play, 72-yard, 6:15 drive capped by Brandon Streeter’s seven-yard shovel pass to Javis Austin for a touchdown. The Gamecocks threatened on their next possession by driving into Tiger territory, but red-shirt freshman safety Charles Hafley got his first career interception to stem the tide. Hafley, who also had a career-high eight tackles, a caused fumble, and a touchdown-saving pass breakup, was named the ACC Rookie-of-the-Week for his efforts. Austin scored his second touchdown when he ran four yards around right end with 6:28 left in the second quarter. Austin, who had nine carries for 50 yards and three catches for 32 yards, capped the 12-play, 58-yard drive that saw the Tigers convert all three third-down opportunities, including a Streeter to Rod Gardner hookup to give the Tigers first-and-goal. On South Carolina’s second play of the second half, Tiger reserve outside linebacker Howard Bartley dropped into coverage and picked off Wright’s pass for his first career interception. Bartley then raced 48 yards to paydirt to give Clemson a 21-7 lead early in the third quarter. The Gamecocks cut into the Tiger lead early in the fourth quarter on Steve Mixon’s one-yard plunge. But Courtney Leavitt missed the extra point and Clemson held on to a 21-13 lead. The Tigers responded two possessions later with a six-play, 53-yard scoring drive. On third-and-nine, Streeter con-nected with Travis Zachery in the flat. Zachery, who had 53 rushing yards on 17 carries and three catches for 32 yards, avoided would-be tacklers and raced 26 yards for six. South Carolina came right back with a scoring drive capped by a Petty to Mixon four-yard pass to cut the deficit to 28-19 with 7:01 remaining in the game. But Petty’s two-point try fell incomplete and kept the Tiger lead at two scores. Clemson kept the ball for the remaining time on its next drive to seal the game. Clemson was led on defense by safety Robert Carswell with 11 tackles. Harold Means also had 10 tackles, three tackles-for-loss, and two sacks. Adrian Dingle, who was playing in his last game as a Tiger, added 1.5 sacks to give him 10.5 on the season, then a Clemson single-season record. The Tiger defense had five sacks to South Carolina’s none. 1997 at Columbia, SC Clemson 47, South Carolina 21 Clemson scored 44 unanswered points, including a 27- 0 run in the third period, and defeated archrival South Carolina 47-21 at Columbia, SC. Nealon Greene completed 12-15 passes for 157 yards and three touchdowns and Tony Horne became the first player in Clemson history to score a touchdown on a punt return and a reception in the same game. The Tigers celebrated a 47-point performance, the most points scored by a Clemson team against South Carolina since 1900. After an opening field goal by Clemson, South Carolina retaliated with a pair of rushing touchdowns, two of just 10 rushing scores yielded by Reggie Herring’s sixth-ranked rushing defense all season. The Gamecocks were driving for a third score of the first half when one play turned the course of the game. Troy Hambrick threw a bad pitch and Clemson freshman Chad Speck pounced on his first career fumble recover. With just 1:48 remaining in the half, Clemson’s produc-tive two-minute offense drove for a score. Greene was involved in all six plays, including a pair of double digit yardage runs. He found Brian Wofford for a seven-yard score 33 seconds before halftime. Antwan Edwards, who had been moved to cornerback in week seven, dominated the third period. First, he intercepted Victor Penn’s sideline pass. Six plays later Nealon Greene connected with Tony Horne for a record tying eighth touchdown pass of the season. It as Greene’s 15th scoring pass of the season, a Clemson single season mark. The Clemson defense performed on cue. Tony Plantin, who had a season best seven tackles, combined with Adrian Dingle to sack Victor Penn. Punting from the shadow of their goal line, The Gamecocks booted to Tony Horne. The ACC’s top All-purpose player, made a few timely direction changes and darted 39-yards for a touchdown, Clemson’s first punt return for a score in six years. The Clemson defense as not finished. On the very next South Carolina possession, Edwards was at it again. This time the ACC Defensive Player of the Week took the scoring load into his own hands and pranced 42-yards for a touchdown and a 33-14 Clemson lead. After another 3-and-out by the Clemson defense, the Tigers offensive line and Raymond Priester took its turn at demonstrating its dominance. Seven rushing plays in the middle of the field set up the Gamecocks for another scoring pass, this time to Mal Lawyer, who was Greene’s third different touchdown teammate of the evening. The completion gave Clemson five touchdowns and 34 points in 15 minutes. The 27 points in the third period were the most productive frame by a Clemson team in nine years. The 27 points were scored in just 14 offensive plays, and it marked the first time in history that Clemson had two returns for touch-down in one quarter. Clemson’s offense was not finished. On its first possession of the fourth period, Clemson drove 80 yards in 8 plays, all on the ground. Priester, who had 112 yards rushing on the day, provided much of the yardage on this 24-yard run. Freshman Javis Austin, who had a season high 90 yards for the evening, finished the drive with a 19-yard sprint up the middle behind outstanding blocks from a dominating offensive line. It gave Clemson touchdowns on six consecutive possessions. Clemson Has 24 Wins over Hall of Fame Coaches The opponent this Saturday is South Carolina, coached by future Hall of Fame Coach Lou Holtz. This will be the second straight game for the Tigers against a future Hall of Fame Coach. Clemson played Florida State and coach Bobby Bowden in its most recent game. Clemson has 24 wins and one tie against coaches currently in the College Football Hall of Fame, regardless of site of the game. Bowden is not in the Hall of Fame yet, but he certainly will go in soon after his retirement, along with current coach Joe Paterno of Penn State, who Clemson defeated in the 1988 Citrus Bowl. George Welsh is another current coach who should be in the Hall of Fame some day. Clemson has 13 wins over the current Virginia coach (more than any other school) , two by Tommy Bowden. Bowden defeated the current South Carolina coach last year. Thus, Tommy Bowden already has three wins over future Hall of Fame Coaches in his 22-game tenure at Clemson. Clemson’s Improvement on Offense Significant Clemson has made a significant improvement in many offensive areas since Tommy Bowden and Rich Rodriguez came to Clemson. Clemson scoring is up 92 percent, total offense is up 49.2 percent, rushing yards have increased 101 percent and touchdowns per game is up 105 percent when compared to the season before the Bowden era opened at Clemson. Most importantly, the victory total has gone from 3 to eight, an improvement of 166.7 percent. Below is a chart that shows Clemson’s stats for 2000 compared to the per game stats for the 1998 season. Category 1998 2000 Improve %Impr Total Offense/G 305.0 455.2 +150.2 +49.2% Points/G 19.8 38.0 +18.2 +91.9% Passing Yds/G 184.5 212.6 +28.1 +15.2% Rush Yds/G 120.4 242.6 +122.2 +101.5% Touchdowns/Game 2.54 5.20 +2.66 +104.7% Pass Effic. Rating 114.9 136.7 +21.8 +18.9% Turnovers/game 2.64 1.70 -0.94 -35.6% 3rd Down Conv.% .319 .426 +.107 +33.5% First Downs/G 15.1 23.3 +8.2 +54.3% Wins 3 8 +5 166.7%
)
Upgrade Your Account
Unlock premium boards and exclusive features (e.g. ad-free) by upgrading your account today.
Upgrade Now
