For Tigers, Chance To Play For Title One Game Away |
By BEN WHITEHEAD
Correspondent
CLEMSON - One game.
That?s what it comes down to for the Clemson Tigers.
With the 44-10 win over Wake Forest yesterday, the Tigers put themselves
in prime position to make reservations for Jacksonville.
Tommy Bowden cannot even remember a time since he has been at Clemson in
which the Tigers played that complete of a game.
?The Georgia Tech game last year was a pretty complete game,? said Bowden
during his Sunday Teleconference. ?In that game, though, we didn?t pass
that well. So unless Tim Bourret can think of one, I?d say the closest
we?ve been to yesterday was the Georgia Tech game last year.?
Now, the only thing standing in the way of Clemson reaching the ACC
Championship Game is a win versus Boston College on Saturday night in
Death Valley. It was announced earlier on Sunday that the game would be
broadcast on ESPN2 at 7:45PM.
The Eagles, who have now lost two in a row, looked very beatable last
night against Maryland, suffering a 42-35 loss to the Terps. But Bowden
knows that his Tigers cannot expect the same performance from Boston
College this coming Saturday.
?We?ll see more of a focused Boston College team than what we saw last
night,? said Bowden. ?Maryland had to win that game to be considered in
the bowl game talks. Now, Boston College has to win this game to go to
the ACC Championship Game, so I know we?ll see a more focused team on
Saturday.?
The question remains, though, can the Tigers be as focused this week as
they were against Wake Forest?
Bowden thinks so.
?The electricity will be there. I just have to make sure we don?t channel
that electricity in the wrong direction.?
As for the atmosphere on Saturday night, Bowden said he expects the fans
to be as into the game as they were last year for the Georgia Tech game.
So the challenge is out there for the team, as well as for the fans.
The opportunity to be a part of Clemson history is here. A season that
seemed lost a little over a month ago can be completely turned around with
a win against Boston College. A trip to Jacksonville to represent the
Atlantic Division is on the line.
Four (or maybe five) years of practice, games, conditioning, film
watching, etc. will come down to one game for those seniors playing their
final game in Death Valley.
And how sweet it would be to walk out of that locker room Saturday night
as ACC Atlantic Division Champions.
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