Tigers Will Take More Chances Against Tech |
ORLANDO - If Clemson is going to be conservative during Monday's Mazda
Tangerine Bowl, it will last for only one drive. "Four-down territory for us would be maybe the 38-yard line, right around there," Bowden said Friday. "If it's third-and-three, we might take two runs to get three yards, but we're going to get it. Our first drive might be take one down to get it, punt it, and try to back them up. "Other than that, it's going to be trying to score every possession." Bowden has long said getting points on each possession is his ultimate goal, however the urgency to do so increases dramatically against a team such at Texas Tech. With well over 5,000 yards total offense and a school record for points under its belt, the Red Raiders present a unique challenge for the Tigers on both sides of the ball. Can the defense slow quarterback Kliff Kingsbury? Can the offense score enough points to keep up? It's an intriguing chess match. And it could force an already creative mind such as Bowden's to dig even deeper, not to mention take more chances. "Every team we've played we're multiple formation, multiple motion, trick plays...We're trying to score every possession," he said. "It will be the same thing this game, other than the fact that four-down territory could be moving (back) substantially." If Tech's season-long pattern holds true, Monday's game will be a high-scoring affair that comes down to the wire. The Red Raiders average 37 points per game, but allow 33. Seven times this season Tech has scored 42 points or more with a high of 62. Eight times they've allowed at least 31 points, with a high of 60. So while Bowden's goal of scoring on every possession might have a better chance of coming to fruition in this game than any other, it figures to be a defensive play which makes the ultimate difference. Goodness knows the defensive backs will get plenty of chances to make such a play. "Being in the secondary you look forward to games like this because you usually don't get this kind of action," said senior cornerback Brian Mance.
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