Clemson vs. Auburn Post-game Press Conference

by TigerNet Staff - Sat Sep 17 16:07:19 GMT-04:00 2011

Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney

Overall thoughts:

"All the glory goes to God. He has a funny sense of humor. It's only fitting that an Alabama grad would be in charge of the team that ended the winning streak. It's amazing how this team has come together and these guys believe. We don't quit. Tajh Boyd is a guy that has really taken ownership in this team. Our guys believe in him. He noticed the matchup issues in the secondary in the first half and Tajh got the ball where it needed to be. I couldn't be more proud of these guys."

On the comeback win:

"This is the same thing we've done in the first two games. We were down at halftime against Troy, too, but we kept playing. There was no panic on our sidelines. We really moved the ball. We wanted to run the ball in the first half, but when the run wasn't there, it gave us opportunities to throw, which opened up the run in the second half. We had the ball for the final nine minutes in the fourth quarter. That's dominant. We knew Auburn was going to be a tough out. We had the Sun Belt Champions, then the Southern Conference Champions, and then the National Champions and we're 3-0. Now we have to get ready for the ACC Atlantic Division Champions to come in next week."

On play of offensive line:

"They were ready. Robbie Caldwell did a great job getting them ready. They executed. An offense that has 640 yards, that's incredible. That starts with the guys up front. They finished the game. I told our guys that our fronts on both sides were going to be an advantage for us, and they were."

On play of freshmen:

"Guys have to step up. You have to be ready when your number is called. Guys like Brandon Thomas, Mike Bellamy, and Charone Peake were critical in this win. D.J. Howard was an Auburn commit and it was really fitting that he was our leading rusher. He was ready. So many guys made plays today."

On atmosphere of Death Valley:

"The Valley was rocking. I can't thank our fans enough. We need to play well every week to give them something to cheer about. There's no better place in college football than Death Valley, SC. I told our guys that they could either be victim number 18 or the guys who broke the streak. There's no better place to kill a winning streak than Clemson, SC. I'm proud of everyone. Our guys believe. We're 3-0 and we have to stay focused. It's important how we handle success. We have to remember that it was an all in commitment that got us here."