Monday Practice Brief

by Press Release - Mon Aug 16 14:41:13 GMT-04:00 2010

Swinney after practice audio (MP3 Format)

Clemson, SC — Clemson will hold two practices on Monday, the last two-a-day practice schedule of the preseason. Dabo Swinney’s team worked for two hours and 15 minutes in the morning in full gear and is scheduled to work for two hours this evening in helmets and shorts.

Monday will be an active day for Clemson quarterback Kyle Parker. Monday at midnight is the deadline for Parker to sign a contract with the Colorado Rockies. Parker was a first-round selection of the Rockies back in June. The deadline for all college players to sign with a Major League team is Monday night.

Parker completed the morning practice, then left to be with his family in Augusta, GA to work out the contract with the Rockies. Parker will miss Monday night’s practice and Tuesday morning’s scrimmage with Swinney’s permission. “This is a very important decision for Kyle and he has a lot of things to work out, so he has the rest of today and Tuesday off,” said Swinney. “I told him he could take all of Monday off, but he wanted to be here for this morning practice.

“He has done a great job focusing on football since he came back to school. He had a great scrimmage on Saturday. I know he is looking forward to getting this contract settled. We won’t have practice Wednesday because it is the first day of school so we will see him Thursday.”

Swinney was asked about the kicking situation on Monday after the morning practice. “I would say the kicking situation is cloudy at the moment. If we played today the kicker would be Chandler Cantanzaro, a red-shirt freshman from Greenville, SC. He has made 94 percent of his field goal attempts inside the 40 so far in the preseason, the best of our three kickers.”

Starting defensive end Da’Quan Bowers was not at Monday morning’s practice, but is scheduled to return to practice for the Monday evening practice. Bowers has missed the last week due to the sudden death of his father, Dennis Bowers, a week ago Sunday.

Five players were in yellow jerseys on Monday due to injury. Those players were DeAndre Hopkins (shoulder), Rennie Moore (thigh), D.J. Howard (ankle), Ben Ramsey (ankle) and Xavier Brewer (hamstring). Freshman linebacker Justin Parker missed will miss both practices on Monday as he returned home to be with his mother, who is ill.

Swinney also announced to the team after practice that two walk-ons would be granted scholarships for this fall. Those players are running back Daniel Barnes, a native of Charleston, West Virginia, who already has his undergraduate degree and will begin graduate school in the fall, and Brock Henderson, a senior linebacker from Grenville, SC and Wade Hampton High School.