NU thoughts

Last week I predicted a 21-17 Clemson victory in the Gator Bowl. I'll stick with that prediction, though I do admit to being a little concerned about this game. Most of this concern comes from not having seen the Huskers play more than a handful of plays this year - so I have no idea of what to expect. Some of it comes from the long layoff between game 12 and the bowl game for both teams - who knows what effect that will have on either or both teams. Some of it comes from common sense - Nebraska is improved under Bo Pelini.

When I look at Nebraska's season a couple of things stand out -

Nebraska is ranked 12th in total offense. The bulk of those numbers, however, were put up against Western Michigan, New Mexico State, Iowa State, Baylor and Kansas State. The Huskers faced two defenses in the top 22 all year (San Jose State and Virginia Tech) and were held to 315 and 333 yards respectively.

Nebraska's 65th ranked defense may be a little under rated - they held Texas Tech to 421 yards and Missouri to 462 - not bad. On the other hand, they gave up 377 yards to the 107th ranked Virginia Tech offense at home (but this was relatively early in the season).

Nebraska has scored at least 4 non-offensive touchdowns, so this could be something to look for.

I'm not sure Nebraska is used to the speed they are going to see on the field on Thursday. C.J. Spiller and Jacoby Ford are world class sprinters, so the big play factor would seem to be in Clemson's favor.

Overall, I expect a close, relatively low scoring game. Nebraska has the size advantage, Clemson has the speed advantage. When the Huskers play a bad team (or non-BCS team) they win. Win they play a good team they typically lose. In the end, Clemson will make one more play and survive in Jacksonville.

Tigers outlast Gamecocks

Terrance Oglesby had a career high 25 points, including 6-10 shooting on 3 pointers, and three other Tigers scored in double figures as Clemson beat rival South Caraloser 98-86 on Tuesday. The Tigers are now 13-0.

Freshman Andre Young stepped up big, playing 26 minutes, scoring 13 points and dishing out 8 assist while only committing one turnover. Young's extended playing time was the result of early foul trouble for Demontez Stitt.

The Tigers ripped the nets for 55% from the floor and 48% from three point land. The Tigers also shot 80% (16-20) from the free throw line to counteract the Gamecocks 10 more attempts from the line.

On the bad side, the Tigers committed 20 turnovers and saw an 18 point lead whittled to 8 before putting the game away. Also, once again, Clemson fell behind early, but quickly erased a 14-3 deficit. That's fine against Miami and South Carolina, but won't cut it against the better ACC teams.

Clemson hosts East Carolina (8-4) Saturday.

Hoopla

Amazing what one big win can do for a basketball program. Clemson's convincing win at Miami last week has everyone hopping on the Tiger bandwagon.

As Clemson climbs in the polls Seth Davis of Sports Illustrated thinks the Tigers look like a Sweet 16 team and Jason King of Rivals.com wouldn't be surprised if the Tigers beat North Carolina.

I was also impressed with the victory over Miami on the road, especially after falling behind 21-9 early, but I'm not sure this team is there yet. Despite Jerai Grant's coming out party against Hurricanes, I still have questions about the Tigers bench that may not be exposed until the ACC tournament (potentially 3 games in three days) or the NCAA tournament (foul trouble).

The Tigers face an improved South Carolina team in Columbia tonight in another early season test.

The man with a plan

When Dabo Swinney was named interim head coach on October 13 I was one of the many who questioned the choice. A WR coach with no coordinator experience chosen over two former head coaches? A guy who was working in real estate development just 5 years prior? This is the guy Terry Don Phillips chose to lead this dysfunctional, underperforming group of misfits that had the team on the brink of collapse?

Shortly thereafter though I began hearing positive things about Swinney. Very positive things. He was universally lauded for his handling of the AARC fiasco in 2006 as the athletic department's representative during those meetings and this appears to be the setting from which Terry Don Phillips first became aware of Swinney's leadership.

Swinney's first move upon being hired as interim? Canning Rob Spence. Bingo. Spence was a good man and may end up as a good OC at Syracuse, but his time at Clemson had come and gone. The players had lost confidence in his play calling and nothing positive would have come of his continued employment.

In his initial press conference that day Swinney said the Tigers would be the toughest team on the field under his leadership. In 5 of the 6 games under his leadership he proved correct.

He's allowed his players to play, his stars, especially C.J. Spiller, to shine and infused an air of confidence, toughness and responsibility in the team. In fact, they've become a team again.

There are those that will shrug off the 4-2 record under Swinney saying things like "We would have had the same record under Bowden". Really? When did Tommy Bowden beat Boston College? My guess is that this team would have gone 2-4 in the same six games under Bowden, maybe even 1-5. I don't think this team beats BC on the road under Bowden/Spence. I doubt this team wins at Virginia under Bowden/Spence. I question whether this team would have beaten SC under Bowden/Spence. Yes, Bowden had a nice record against SC (7-2), but remember under my scenario Clemson would have been 4-7 and had no shot at a bowl game at this point. My guess is they would have folded and ended 4-8.

But Swinney wouldn't let that happen. Instead this team crushed SC and is now 7-5 and playing on New Years Day in the Gator Bowl. Nothing short of remarkable.

Swinney also presented Phillips with a master plan on how to resurrect Clemson football. It's clear that Swinney had been preparing to be a head coach for some time.

Swinney's plan?

· Take less salary as the head coach to surround himself with proven, veteran assistants. It's laughable how the media chides Clemson for 'saving money' by hiring Swinney on the cheap, when in fact it was Swinney who requested much less money as part of his plan.

· Establish a strong administrative support aspect of the football program. As part of his research Swinney came across the fact that Alabama had a 20 person strong administrative support team for football. Clemson had a 6 person support team. Swinney hired Woody McCorvey as Director of Football Operations, a position that didn't exist previously. This is an area of the program that will continue to be developed and improved.

· Paying top dollar ($400K plus) for a defensive coordinator that is interested in playing Swinney's preferred attacking, blitzing style.

· Embraced the history, traditions and faces of the Clemson program. From putting Jeff Davis on the staff, to reaching out to Danny Ford, to rubbing the rock and creating the Tiger Walk, Dabo has done the right things to generate excitement around the program.

With each loss, questionable play call or strategy move "message board guy" and "national media guy" will be howling for Swinney's head and deriding Phillips' decision to hire him. It's more predictable than death and taxes.

I'm not privy to Swinney's entire plan, but it's apparent that he knows what he is doing and has a plan to bring championships to Clemson.

Upon being named permanent head coach on December 1 Swinney was asked if he thought Clemson was taking a chance on him. "No. I've never failed at anything in my life." "Failing" in college football is in the eye of the beholder, but my guess is Swinney doesn't fail.

In that same first press conference Swinney was asked when he thought Clemson could expect to win a championship. "Next year. It'll always be next year as long as I'm the coach". Bingo again.

He's young, energetic, passionate about Clemson football, a good recruiter and pays attention to detail. We've seen how he handles adversity.

Whether Phillips made the right decision or not won't be known for some time, but I for one believe he chose the best man for the job.

Clemson whips Canes 91-72

Down by 12 early, the Tigers rally on the road and beat Miami handily. K.C. Rivers had 28 points and Terrance Oglesby scored all of his 17 in the second half to lead Clemson. Jerai Grant added 9 points (7 in a 90 second span in the second half), 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 blocks in 17 minutes off the bench.

Grant played an important role. He entered when Trevor Booker picked up his 4th foul with the game still in doubt and proceeded to play lights out to help the Tigers pull away down the stretch.

The Tigers are off until a Decmeber 30th game at South Carolina.

How bad is ACC football?

You hear it every Saturday (and most Thursday’s) during the college football season. The ACC is “down”. The ACC is terrible. The ACC should not have an automatic berth in the BCS. On and on and on by the talking heads.

While I’ll be the first to acknowledge that the ACC doesn’t have an elite team (or two), I would also argue that the ACC isn’t as bad as some would lead you to believe.

Here are some facts that lend credence to my point:

(1) The ACC is 6-4 against the vaunted SEC in head to head matchups (2 more coming up in bowl games).

(2) The ACC is 4-0 against the Big 12 in head to head matchups (1 more coming in the Gator Bowl).

(3) The ACC is ranked #1 in the Sagarin ratings.

(4) The ACC has 10 teams (of 12) in bowl games.

(5) The ACC had 20 former players selected to the Pro Bowl this year vs. 13 for the SEC, 8 for the Big 12 and 7 for the Big 10.

(6) Over the past three years the ACC has had 25 first round selections in the NFL draft, more than any other conference and the ACC’s 115 draft picks overall is also first among conferences.

(7) In the past 3 years an ACC defensive player has been the first defensive player selected in the NFL draft.

While I’m not suggesting that Virginia Tech or Boston College would whip Oklahoma and Texas on a regular basis, I am suggesting that the hype that surrounds the Big 12 and SEC has more to do with television dollars than the quality of football and football players in the conferences.

The two worst ACC teams had 4 (Duke) and 5 (Virginia) wins respectively. Meanwhile, the Big 12 had 5 teams with losing records, the Big 10 and SEC had 4.

What it suggests to me is that these leagues (especially the Big 12) are top heavy as opposed to the “parity” of the ACC. The Big 12 has 5 teams in the AP poll, but they also have 5 teams with losing records. Conversely, while the ACC only has two teams in the AP top 25, it also only has two teams with losing records.

Last time I looked Iowa State, Texas A&M and Baylor were still in the Big 12, but you wouldn’t know that listening to the “Big 12 is the best conference” crowd. For their purposes the Big 12 membership stops at 5 and these three teams are the never talked about step-children in the group home or “institution”.

Often times when you hear an announcer or color analyst praising one conference and bashing another it relates directly to what TV or radio contract a particular conference is tied to. For example, expect to hear ESPN heap more praises (if that's possible) on the SEC in the future as the network begins broadcasting SEC games.

Gator Bowl tickets become a hot item

Clemson has sold it's initial allotment of 13,500 tickets and has requested more. The Clemson athletic department is expecting 30,000 Clemson fans to travel to Jacksonville for the Gator Bowl on January 1.

Most of these fans will be staying in hotels and buying food, gas and other items in the Jacksonville area. And Florida State still wonders why Clemson was chosen over the Seminoles for the Gator Bowl.

ACC Bowl Predictions

I finished the ACC season with a 65-31 record straight up (67.8%) and 49-32-1 record (60.5%)against the spread.

The bowl season is typically unpredictable with the long layoffs before the teams play and the motivation or non-motivation of given teams. Nonetheless, here are my predictions for the bowl games involving ACC teams.

Wake Forest 20 (-3) vs. Navy 16
North Carolina (E) 23 West Virginia 21
Florida State (-5) 27 Wisconsin 21
California (-7) 31 Miami 20
Rutgers 23 N.C. State (+7) 20
Maryland (+ 1 ½) 27 Nevada 24
Boston College (-4) 26 Vanderbilt 17
Georgia Tech (-3 ½) 31 LSU 24
Clemson (-2 ½) 21 Nebraska 17
Virginia Tech (+ 1 ½) 21 Cincinnati 20

Tigers destroy Ospreys, 76-36

Clemson moved to 11-0 in workman-like fashion behind Trevor Booker's 16 points and 10 rebounds on Tuesday.

Yet you still have to wonder about the overall depth of this team beyond 8 or maybe 9 players (if Jerai Grant is contributing that night). Tanner Smith and Andre Young appear to be able to contribute off the bench, but Bobo Baciu appears to be a longer term project and Brian Narcisse only saw 3 minutes of action in a 40 point rout.

Secondarily, free throws are cropping up as an issue again. The Tigers were 12-19 (63%) for the game. I realize two of those misses were by seldom used Zach Anderson, but when your point guards combine to go 4-8, you have to be a little concerned.

Clemson plays at Miami (7-2) on Sunday in the ACC opener for both teams.

1 vs. 343

The Tigers finally cracked the top 25 on Monday and also reached the top spot in the RPI rankings. To celebrate this momentous feat the Tigers face a team on the complete opposite end of the spectrum in North Florida - who happens to be ranked 343 out of 343 teams in RPI at this point in the season.

North Florida's had a rough go of it so far, losing by 15 to Savannah State, 33 to BYU, 34 to Cal Poly, 18 to Rice, 8 to Charleston Southern, 15 to Lipscomb and 34 to Belmont. Ouch.

The Tigers still have work to do (and some bench help to find) before facing Miami in the ACC opener on Sunday.

Bowl Goodies

Interesting story from the Greenville News on what Clemson players receive as gifts from the Gator Bowl. Another interesting facet is the financial terms - it really doesn't matter what bowl the Tigers are in as they share bowl revenue equally with the other members of the ACC. So whether they play in Boise (Humanitarian) or Miami (Orange) they end up with the same amount of cash at the end (assuming the same number of ACC teams are in bowls).

Tigers begin prep for Huskers

Clemson began preparing for Nebraska on Friday and continued the work on Saturday. The Tigers face the Cornhuskers January 1 in the Gator Bowl.

Dabo lands first commit

Four star safety Jonathan Meeks of Hargrave Military Academy became Dabo Swinney's first commitment as head coach. The 6'2 193 lb Meeks played high school ball in Rock Hill, SC before attending Hargrave. He will enroll in Clemson in January.

Update on Korn and R. Taylor

It seems that Willy Korn's injury has been around since his original injury over 15 months ago. It makes you wonder how these things get by the coaches and training staff when year after year, quarterback after quarterback, we hear that guys are 100% then they have surgery. Simply amazing.

Also an interesting tidbit on Rendrick Taylor and speculation whether he will be back at Clemson next year or use his final year of eligibility somewhere else.

Tigers crush Dogs

Ten Clemson Tigers broke into the scoring column as the Tigers cruised past S.C. State 90-63 Saturday to move to 10-0. K.C. Rivers had 19 points and Trevor Booker 18 to lead the Tigers.

The Tigers next game is against North Florida (when did they start playing basketball?) on Tuesday.

Maryland-Nevada setting record pace for bowl tix

People wonder why Clemson was invited to the Gator Bowl with a 7-5 record? Uhh, how about fan support during an economic downturn. I'm sure more people would be willing to travel to Jacksonville for New Years than Boise in December, but here's a report on the ticket sales for each school in the Humanitarian Bowl between Maryland and Nevada.

As of Monday afternoon the University of Maryland says it's sold about 16 tickets to the game. The University of Nevada says it's sold 8 so far.

Tigers officially hire 3 new coaches

Two had previously coached at Clemson (one of these is a former Clemson player - Pearman), all three coached at Alabama as some point in their careers.

Power Rankings - Pre-Bowl

1. Florida 156.0439
2. Oklahoma 153.8462
3. Texas 152.2409
4. Utah 150.0000
5. Alabama 149.2566
6. Ohio State 142.5070
7. Georgia 142.0868
8. Texas Tech 141.8067
9. Boise State 140.6863
10.USC 139.8459
11.Penn State 139.5658
12.Michigan State 139.0756
13.Pittsburgh 138.3754
14.Oklahoma State 132.7031
15.BYU 132.2829
16.TCU 132.0278
17.Cincinnati 131.9328
18.Oregon 128.2314
19.Georgia Tech 126.8207
20.Missouri 124.5637
21.Boston College 123.9819
22.Mississippi 123.6695
22.Northwestern 123.6695
24.Iowa 123.4594
25.Oregon State 123.1093

Tigers nearly flame out against Liberty

Clemson (9-0) avoided a disastrous loss by edging Liberty 80-75 Sunday at Littlejohn Coliseum. K.C. Rivers led the Tigers with 32 points.

Week 15 ACC Prediction

In the final week of the regular season I had one of my worst weeks of the year against the spread going 2-5-1, while managing to go 5-3 straight up. That brings my totals to: 64-31 (67.4%) straight up and 48-32-1 (60.0%) against the spread.

This weeks prediction:

Virginia Tech (-1) 17 Boston College 14

Clemson edges Illinois

An old, ugly friend came back to visit the Tigers (8-0) on Tuesday in Champaign - missed free throws. But the Tigers used a stifling press to force 17 turnovers and held Illinois to 2-8 shooting in the final 5 minutes, including not getting a shot off at the buzzer, to edge the Illini 76-74 in the ACC/Big 10 Challenge.

The well-rounded Tiger attack showed 4 starters in double figures, despite Terrance Oglesby only taking 5 shots in 26 minutes of action.

While the victory was nice, it certainly showed some areas that could use improvement and especially that Clemson's younger players, including Tanner Smith and Andre Young, have some work to do before being able to contribute in ACC play.

Former Tiger Danny Pearman hired

Dabo Swinney hired former Clemson Tiger Danny Pearman to his coaching staff on Tuesday. It is unclear at this time what Pearman's responsibilities will be.

It's also being reported that Swinney is interested in former Mississippi State defensive coordinator Charlie Harbison to join the staff in some capacity, most likely as defensive backs coach, but this has not been confirmed.

Koenning Resigns

In a widely expected move Les Koenning resigned Tuesday as Clemson's defensive coordinator. What this means as far as who will be the DC during the bowl game goes is anyones guess at this point.

Tigers Headed to Gator Bowl

From no bowl to New Years Day in 4 quarters. That's Clemson's reward for thrashing the Gamecocks last Saturday. The Tigers will play Nebraska in Jacksonville on January 1, 2009.

Yabba Dabo Do!

Dabo Swinney was named Clemson's 25th Head Football Coach today.

Power Rankings after week 14

1. Alabama 153.4314
2. Florida 152.3809
3. Texas 152.2409
4. Oklahoma 151.4006
5. Utah 150.0000
6. Ohio State 142.5070
7. Georgia 142.0868
8. Texas Tech 141.8067
9. Boise State 140.6863
10.USC 140.1833
11.Penn State 139.5658
12.Michigan State 139.0756
13.Pittsburgh 135.5233
14.Oklahoma State 132.7031
15.BYU 132.2829
16.TCU 132.0728
17.Cincinnati 130.9524
18.Ball State 128.7815
19.Oregon 128.4314
20.Boston College 127.9412
21.Georgia Tech 126.8207
21.Missouri 126.8207
23.Mississippi 123.6695
23.Northwestern 123.6695
25.Iowa 123.4594

Reports: Dabo to be hired

Multiple sources out of Clemson say that interim head coach Dabo Swinney will be named head coach at Clemson as early as Monday.

Swinney spent Sunday afternoon meeting with Clemson Athletic Director Terry Don Phillips, after spending Saturday crushing Steve Spurrier.

A Can't Miss Hire

On November 19, 1998 Clemson Athletic Director Bobby Robinson fired head football coach Tommy West. West, who had been an assistant under Danny Ford at Clemson from 1982-1989, finished his 5+ years as the head man at Clemson with a 31-28 record.

During the coaching search that ensued, two names quickly rose to the top. One was a relatively unheralded defensive coordinator from a Southeastern Conference school. The other was a 44 year old head coach at a Conference USA school that had just completed an undefeated season and held a long family coaching lineage.

The Tigers were at a crossroads at the time. Coming off of the unprecedented success under Danny Ford (96-29-4) and Ken Hatfield (32-13-1), the West era represented a drop into mediocrity that the Tigers hadn’t experienced in more than 15 years.

Robinson, sensing the Tigers needed an infusion on offense, turned to the experienced head coach with the innovative offense and quirky offensive coordinator. That coach’s name was Tommy Bowden. The offensive coordinator that came with Bowden to Clemson from Tulane was Rich Rodriquez.

The defensive coordinator who wanted, but did not receive, the Clemson job in 1998 was Bob Stoops. He returned to Florida for one more year before being selected as the man to rebuild the Oklahoma Sooners. Within 2 years Oklahoma had won the national championship.

Meanwhile, back in Clemson Bowden and company struggled to a 6-6 record and a Peach Bowl loss in 1998. 1999 showed the Tigers race off to a 8-0 start before a heartbreaking last second loss to Georgia Tech ended the Tigers run and led to a 9-3 final record. It was a foreshadowing of events to come.

Rich Rodriquez left Clemson after the 2000 season to become head coach at his alma mater, West Virginia. Interestingly, Tommy Bowden is also a graduate of West Virginia. It’s not clear whether Bowden was interested in the West Virginia job or not, but nonetheless it went to the offensive coordinator with the innovative offense, not the experienced head coach.

After an initial 3-8 campaign in 2001, the Mountaineers took off under Rodriguez finishing first or tied for first in the Big East 4 of the next 6 years. Rodriquez finished his stint at West Virginia with a 60-26 record before being hired at Michigan in December of 2007.

Also, during December of last year Tommy Bowden finally became weary of the big expectations associated with Clemson and quickly became a hot name for two open jobs – Baylor and Arkansas. While Baylor settled on Texas native Art Briles, Arkansas was after Bowden pretty heavy and Bowden reciprocated. Bowden had one foot out the door and in fact had cancelled several previously scheduled engagements in the Clemson area for December in anticipation of becoming the new head coach at Arkansas.

Clemson AD Terry Don Phillips was in a precarious position. While Bowden did all the right things off the field, his teams continually fell short on the field. Sometimes agonizingly short, but short nonetheless.

Phillips decision was a difficult one. Keep the head coach that had built the current program, had a solid recruiting base, and a seemingly powerful team returning and pay the price, or look for a new head coach and risk losing some of the star players to the pros or transfer.

Phillips, as all AD’s do, had a “short list” of coaches he would be interested in if Bowden bolted for the Hogs. At the top of that list was a defensive coordinator at a Southeastern Conference school that Clemson was about to play in the Chik-Fil-A Bowl.

Ultimately, after consultation with Clemson president Jim Barker, Phillips decided to keep Bowden by offering him a new contract that included a $3.5 million dollar buyout.

The defensive coordinator that Phillips was interested in last December was Will Muschamp. Muschamp subsequently agreed to become the defensive coordinator at Texas.

After Bowden’s departure earlier this year Muschamp quickly rose to the top of Clemson’s list again. Texas, faced with interest from Clemson, Tennessee and Washington, agreed to make Muschamp the head coach designate at Texas and increase his salary to $925,000 per year.

In the last 10 years Clemson has had the opportunity to hire:

Bob Stoops
Rich Rodriquez (probably twice)
Will Muschamp

Each time, Clemson missed. The current job opening at Clemson may be filled by a big name coach or a no name coach. No one knew who Bob Stoops was when he was the DC at Florida. Tommy Bowden appeared to be the “next great thing” by leading Tulane to an undefeated season. Subsequently it appears that the true brains behind that operation was Rodriquez. Muschamp was thought of well enough to be named head coach in waiting at one of the top 3 jobs in the country after less than a year in Austin. Tommy Bowden is at the beach.

Terry Don Phillips can’t miss on this hire. It may be a no-name or a big name. But a miss here could set the program back 15 years and the descent into mediocrity will have begun.

Spurrier: Clemson has better coach, better team

From the legend his own self.

Tigers blast SC

Business as usual for the Tigers. A complete game (finally) leads to a convincing win over the Gamecocks. Clemson 31-14.

Game Day: Tigers brace for Spurrier

The Tigers and Gamecocks kick it off in a few hours.

Emotional Day for Clemson Seniors

A prediction eerily similar to my own

Will it be the last game in Clemson orange for these seniors or just the last game in Death Valley? The road team has won the last three games in the series and I think the Gamecocks have a good shot at winning today.

Clemson will have to get their play makers, namely C.J. Spiller, in space to have a decent chance against an apparently tough S.C. defense. I know this - an injury to Cullen Harper could either proved disastrous to Clemson or open up the opportunity for a legend to be born.

Tigers ease by Presbyterian, 79-58

Tigers move to 7-0 behind Trevor Booker's 25 points. The competition increases on Tuesday when Clemson hits the road to face Illinois.

Or maybe not...

New reports mention the names Troy Calhoun (Air Force) and Jim Leavitt (South Florida) as names that Terry Don Phillips is interested in interviewing. This has been one whale of a cloak and dagger, hide and seek coaching search, exactly what Phillips wanted.

Stay tuned as this situation can change at a moments notice, and probably will as many teams finish their regular season on Friday or Saturday, freeing up many to interview with Phillips assuming they are on his list and share interest in the Clemson job.

Leavitt's charming personality, award winning press conferences and general aura should play well in Clemson. Or maybe not.

Clemson Interviews Patterson

Several media outlets are reporting that Clemson has interviewed TCU head coach Gary Patterson.

At this point, the job appears to be between Patterson and interim head coach Dabo Swinney.

Tigers blast Savannah State, 81-49

Clemson routed another patsy on Tuesday, beating Savannah State by 32. Three Tigers hit double figures, but once again the free throw shooting was below average (13/21, 61.9%).

Week 14 ACC Predictions

In week 13 I was 5-1 straight up and 5-1 against the spread. That moves my yearly totals to 59-28 straight up and 46-27 against the spread.

Miami (- 1 ½) 21 N.C. State 17
Virginia Tech (-8) 21 Virginia 10
Georgia 24 Georgia Tech 17 (+8 ½)
South Carolina (+1)17 Clemson 13
Florida 34 Florida State (+15 ½) 21
Boston College (-7) 21 Maryland 13
North Carolina (- 8 ½) 27 Duke 10
Wake Forest (- 4) 20 Vanderbilt 14

Korn to have surgery

Willy Korn will have surgery to on his right shoulder next week, following a long line of Clemson QBs to mysteriously develop shoulder problems during the season.

Stats are for champions (part 6)

In installment 6 of "Stats are for champions" we take a look at the stats for teams still alive in the national championship race and how their stats aligned with the history of the 10 previous national champions.

Teams eliminated this past Saturday: Texas Tech.

In summary, the past 8 national champions (starting in 2000) look like this: Of those 8 title winners only one (Ohio State in 2002) finished below 10th (23rd) in total defense. The average ranking of the total defense for those 8 teams was 8th.Offense has not been as important statistic in determining the national champion. The average rank for those 8 offenses was 23rd and only 2 of the 8 champions (Miami in 2001 and Texas in 2005) had offenses finish in the top 10. The 2002 Ohio State team actually won the national title while being ranked 70th in total offense. The 2007 LSU team finished 26th in offense and the 2003 LSU team finished 31st in total offense.

With that in mind, here is an updated look at the teams, in my opinion, that remain with a realistic chance at the national title and their current defensive rankings:

USC - 2
Alabama - 3
Florida - 9
Texas - 53
Oklahoma - 56

USC's chances are slim to none, while Alabama and Florida will duke it out next week. The Big 12 picture should become a tad clearer this weekend, but no promises there, as whichever team doesn't make it to the Big 12 Championship game (either Texas or Oklahoma) may still have a shot at the title. So, stay tuned.

Sapp Out, Korn to undergo tests

Ricky Sapp will have surgery to repair a partially torn ACL and will miss the South Carolina game, while Willy Korn will undergo further tests to determine if there is additional damage to his shoulder.

Power Rankings after week 13

1. Texas 154.9274
2. Alabama 154.4691
3. Utah 150.0000
4. Florida 149.8854
5. Oklahoma 147.8992
5. Georgia 147.8992
7. Ohio State 142.7050
8. Texas Tech 141.1001
9. Boise State 140.6417
10.Penn State 139.5658
11.Michigan State 139.0756
12.USC 137.8151
13.Oklahoma State 135.9817
14.Missouri 132.3148
15.BYU 132.2829
16.TCU 132.0728
17.Pittsburgh 131.5996
18.Cincinnati 131.2452
19.Oregon State 126.9672
20.Ball State 126.1268
21.Boston College 124.3697
22.Northwestern 123.6695
23.Iowa 123.4594
24.Oregon 123.3002
25.Florida State 122.8419

Tiger Hoops move to 5-0

The Tigers edge Charlotte 71-70 on the road. Free throw shooting takes a step back. Next up for the Tigers are a couple of yawners with Savannah State and Presbyterian.

Tigers D shuts down UVA

In one of the ugliest games known to mankind the Tigers edge Virginia, 13-3 to move to 6-5. A dominating performance by the defense, which came up with 4 Virginia turnovers, made the difference as the offense sputtered back to the Rob Spence days.

Tigers blast Wofford to move to 4-0

Clemson dominated the Terriers from beginning to end as all 14 Tigers saw playing time and 10 scored.

The Tigers next game is at UNC-Charlotte on Saturday.

Week 13 ACC Predictions

In week 12 I was 2-3 straight up and 2-3 against the spread. That moves my yearly totals to 54-27 straight up and 41-26 against the spread.

Georgia Tech (-4) 21 Miami 16
North Carolina 27 N.C. State (+11) 19
Clemson (- 2 ½) 29 Virginia 20
Boston College (+ 1 ½) 20 Wake Forest 17
Virginia Tech (-17) 35 Duke 14
Florida State (+1) 24 Maryland 21

Muschamp to replace Brown at Texas (some day)

In a move that's not real surprising, Texas named Will Muschamp as their coach in waiting this afternoon.

Korn's zip, Spiller and Booker POTW

Apparently Willy Korn is still dealing with the aftereffects of his shoulder surgery. Stop me when you've heard this story before from a Clemson QB...Charlie Whitehurst, Will Proctor, Cullen Harper and now Korn.

No big surprise, but C.J Spiller is the Offensive Back of the Week for the ACC. What an incredible year he is having for an average football team.

Trevor Booker won the honors for basketball, as the Tigers won the inaugural Charleston Classic going 3-0, with wins over Hofstra, TCU and Temple.

Philly's Eagles are no brainiacs

Hmmmm, so damn near half of the Eagles weren't aware that games can end in ties during the regular season, and a couple even asked their trainer about the rules.

Power Rankings after week 12

1. Texas 154.9274
2. Florida 154.8739
3. Alabama 154.4691
4. Georgia 147.8992
5. Utah 146.4477
6. Texas Tech 145.8824
7. Michigan State 143.6975
8. Ohio State 143.3919
9. Oklahoma 143.1093
10.Boise State 139.8319
11.USC 137.8151
12.Pittsburgh 136.7881
13.Oklahoma State 135.9817
14.BYU 135.5233
15.Penn State 134.5302
16.Missouri 132.3148
17.North Carolina 129.9160
18.TCU 128.1895
19.Cincinnati 125.2941
20.Oregon State 124.0336
21.LSU 123.5294
22.Oregon 123.3002
23.Vanderbilt 122.6891
24.Ball State 122.6050
25.South Carolina 121.4668

BBall Tigers move to 3-0

with victory over Temple.

Clemson downs TCU in hoops

to move to 2-0. The Tigers play Temple this afternoon for the tournament championship in Charleston.

The Search

I had my typical spiel on the coaching search planned for today, but then things got weird...or weirder depending on your point of view. There is a ton of information out there, but it's often conflicting and sometimes incredibly inaccurate (Gary Patterson to K-State anyone?).

So, instead I decided tell you what we know for sure (maybe) and what I think. Some enterprising (or lonely and deluded - take your choice) individuals have taken to tracking the Clemson plane around the country. Recent trips have included stops in Detroit and Oklahoma City. Detroit? Read on.

What We Know (for sure, maybe, at least what we've heard)

Terry Don Phillips flew to Detroit last Friday and interviewed Lane Kiffin. We had heard sometime back that Kiffin was out of the picture ("Clemson isn't LA" is what Phillips was quoted as saying) and we believe this is just a due diligence type of interview/meeting.

Terry Don Phillips flew to Oklahoma City this past Tuesday. After some initial confusion, it was sorted out that Phillips was interviewing/meeting with Oklahoma defensive coordinator Brent Venables. Oklahoma has an off week this week. Again, we believe this is a due diligence type of interview/meeting. A fall back guy, if you will.

Bud Foster, defensive coordinator at Virginia Tech has publicly said that he expects to be interviewed as early as this weekend. Virginia Tech played Miami on Thursday night. Once again, I believe this is due diligence on Phillips part, making sure that if his ultimate plan falls through that he has other guys in mind.

It's been pretty quiet on the Will Muschamp front, but that is expected to change next week. Notice a pattern in 1-3 above? Kiffin is unemployed. Venables has an off week. Foster's team played Thursday night. Texas is off next week.

Speculation

Now for the fun - speculation. I've heard that the search had turned towards a "proven head coach" type of search. That would seem to eliminate the guys that have already been talked to (and Foster and Muschamp), which is why I keep mentioning due diligence. My take is that it eliminates them from being the #1 choice (not necessarily public #1, but #1 to TDP). If #1 (we'll get to that in a minute) falls through Phillips needs to quickly move to #2.

I believe that candidate #1 is Tommy Tuberville of Auburn. He of the $6 million buyout and imploding team. Word is that TT wants out and some powerful boosters want him out (déjà vu all over again, except this time TT's team is not undefeated). Some even suggest that negotiations towards the buyout are in progress. There are lots of rumors on this front and I have heard lots of TT to Clemson talk.

Tuberville fits the bill in a couple of ways. His teams are tough and physical. He recruits well. But more importantly (for Terry Don Phillips that is), he fits the "proven head coach" criteria AND he would be available in the time frame Phillips wants to hire the next coach (i.e. NLT December 10).

A lot has to happen for this to become reality for sure. Auburn (or boosters) have to be willing to part with $6 million or some portion thereof, not to mention pay a new coach. Clemson has to come to grips with Tuberville - the admin - not the fans (though some fans aren't on board with this either). Let's just say Tuberville isn't known as a stickler for academic accomplishments.

Which leads us to choice #2. Which I believe is Will Muschamp. If things can't be worked out with Turbeville or if he stays at Auburn, I believe Phillips will turn to Muschamp. The question is if Tuberville leaves Auburn (and doesn't go to Clemson), will Muschamp prefer that job over Clemson? From a purely football perspective, probably. But would Muschamp be interested in dealing with the types of boosters that are rife at Auburn. By SEC standards the "big time" Clemson boosters are relatively tame. Would Muschamp want the headache?

Muschamp, too has a reputation for being tough and his defenses physical. Would he be available by December 10? What if Texas is playing in a BCS game or better yet the BCS title game? What has he agreed to (if anything) with Mack Brown?

Which leads us to the fall back guys listed above. Assuming Turbeville and Muschamp don't work out for whatever reason, Phillips has to have a #3 guy (again, not publicly, but privately). That's why he is interviewing all of these available candidates now.

All of that to say - I believe the list as of this moment looks like this:

1. Tommy Tuberville
2. Will Muschamp
3. Brent Venables
4. Dabo Swinney
5. Bud Foster
6. Lane Kiffin

ACC Update

Boston College shut out Notre Dame last week. No non-conference games on tap for this week.

vs. FCS Teams 15-0
vs. Big 12 4-0
vs. MAC 2-0
vs. C-USA 4-1
vs Independents 3-1
vs. SEC 3-3
vs. Big East 2-2
vs. PAC 10 1-1
vs. Big Ten 0-1
vs. Sun Belt 0-1

Week 12 ACC Predictions

Week 11 showed me with a 4-2 straight up record, but 2-4 against the spread. That moves my yearly totals to 52-24 straight up and 39-23 against the spread.

Here are my week 12 picks:

Miami 23 Virginia Tech (+ 5) 21
Clemson (-10 ½) 34 Duke 23
Wake Forest (- 3 ½) 21 N.C. State 17
North Carolina (- 3) 27 @ Maryland 17
Florida State (- 6 ½) 28 Boston College 17

Basketball pulls in top 18 class for 2009

Oliver Purnell continued the building process by hauling in a 2009 class ranked #18 by Scout.com. The class is headlined by Milton Jennings a 5 star recruit from Summerville, SC.

Stats are for champions (part 5)

In installment 5 of "Stats are for champions" we take a look at the stats for teams still alive in the national championship race and how their stats aligned with the history of the 10 previous national champions.Teams eliminated this past Saturday: Penn State and Oklahoma State. In summary, the past 8 national champions (starting in 2000) look like this: Of those 8 title winners only one (Ohio State in 2002) finished below 10th (23rd) in total defense. The average ranking of the total defense for those 8 teams was 8th.Offense has not been as important statistic in determining the national champion. The average rank for those 8 offenses was 23rd and only 2 of the 8 champions (Miami in 2001 and Texas in 2005) had offenses finish in the top 10. The 2002 Ohio State team actually won the national title while being ranked 70th in total offense. The 2007 LSU team finished 26th in offense and the 2003 LSU team finished 31st in total offense.

With that in mind, here is an updated look at the teams, in my opinion, that remain with a realistic chance at the national title and their current defensive rankings:

USC - 1
Alabama - 4
Florida - 14
Oklahoma - 51
Texas Tech - 57
Texas - 60

This weeks schedule has South Carolina at Florida, Mississippi State at Alabama, Texas at Kansas and Southern Cal at Stanford. Oklahoma and Texas Tech are off this week as they prepare to meet in Norman next week in a gigantic game.

We'll continue to update this as the season progresses.

Oklahoma Coordinators

After a wild day of rumor and speculation involving both Oklahoma coordinators, it finally came to light that Clemson AD Terry Don Phillips met with OU defensive coordinator Brent Venables Tuesday evening. Just earlier that day Venables was rumored to not be a candidate any longer. This just shows you that no one really has a clue of what is going on with the search.

Other names that keep popping up that we will provide an update on later in the week: Tommy Tuberville of Auburn, Mike Leach of Texas Tech, Phil Fulmer of Tennessee, Bobby Johnson of Vanderbilt, Will Muschamp of Texas, and Gary Patterson of TCU.

Conference Power Rankings after week 11

1. SEC 36.67
2. Big Ten 43.36
3. Big 12 44.58
4. ACC 46.08
5. Big East 46.38
6. MWC 51.11
7. PAC 10 56.80
8. WAC 73.56
9. C-USA 86.58
10. MAC 87.46
11. Sun Belt 91.50

Power Rankings after week 11

1. Alabama 155.4622
2. Texas 154.1176
3. Florida 151.8207
4. Utah 150.5042
5. Georgia 147.9832
6. Texas Tech 145.8824
7. Michigan State 145.6975
8. Oklahoma 143.1093
9. Boise State 142.9505
10.Ohio State 142.6050
11.North Carolina 137.7217
12.Pittsburgh 136.7881
13.USC 135.9477
14.Oklahoma State 135.4622
15.Penn State 135.1261
16.Missouri 134.0336
17.BYU 131.0084
18.TCU 128.1895
19.Navy 126.6808
20.Ball State 125.0233
21.Florida State 124.0896
22.South Carolina 123.7815
23.Cincinnati 122.3156
24.Air Force 122.1008
25.Virginia Tech 121.8487

Florida State Game Recap

Basketball season starts Friday.

The Latest List

This list includes names I have heard are interested in the Clemson job in an order that is a combination of Clemson's reported interest and my interest in having them be the next head football coach at Clemson University.

In addition to those listed below, there seems to be a rumor that a big name coach has shown interest. Who that may be is up for debate, as is if the rumor is even true. We'll mention it here, but with an eye towards being skeptical about the validity.


1. Will Muschamp - Defensive Coordinator, University of Texas.
Muschamp has long been my number one choice, but is beginning to slip some with the recent performance of his defense. Sure, it's the old "is it bad defense or the other team's great offense?" argument. At some point though, like this week's game against Baylor, his defense needs to shut someone down.

Other concerns would be an open position in the SEC (Tennessee) and perhaps another soon to follow (Auburn). Additionally, even if he did come to Clemson would he be in it for the long haul, say 10 years, or would it be 3 years or less and on the a "better opportunity"? Things to think about.

2. Dabo Swinney - Interim Head Coach, Clemson University
I was originally going to wait to write this until after Saturday's game so as to not appear to be a bandwagoner if Clemson somehow wins. Swinney has done a remarkable job considering what he inherited. He lost in the 4th quarter to the division leader 4 days after taking over a train wreck of a team. After he week off, he followed that up with a comeback victory on the road against a team Clemson has lost heart breakers to the last three years. The players swear by him. The coaches and team have rallied around him. He appears to have "it". Even if the Tigers lose to FSU he has a decent shot at going 3-3 or maybe even 4-2. That would be remarkable. Win at Florida State and the bandwagon begins to fill up a bit.

3. Tommy Tuberville - Head Coach, Auburn University
Something about this just doesn't excite me. Tuberville is a solid coach. But is he what Clemson needs? The two guys above are 37 and 38 years old. Tuberville is in his mid 50's. Still his teams play solid defense and until this year were rock steady. Is that an anomaly or a potential trend?

4. Todd Graham - Head Coach, Tulsa
One remarkable year at Rice and now in his second at Tulsa. Clemson would be his third job in four years, but certainly the most attractive. If he had immediate success would he move on to the SEC or Big 12?

For a defensive coach his team doesn't have very good defensive statistics. Is it Graham or the OC that is the brains behind this operation?

He'll be 44 in December, so he has some good years ahead of him. Interesting name to keep an eye on.

ACC Update

We haven't updated this in a couple of weeks due to the few number of non-conference games. Since we last visited this subject on October 15 the ACC has only had one non-conference game, a 10-7 Duke win over once unbeatable Vanderbilt.

There are at least three ACC vs. SEC match ups remaining, and this week Notre Dame travels to Boston College.


vs. FCS Teams 15-0
vs. Big 12 4-0
vs. MAC 2-0
vs. C-USA 4-1
vs Independents 2-1
vs. SEC 3-3
vs. Big East 2-2
vs. PAC 10 1-1
vs. Big Ten 0-1
vs. Sun Belt 0-1

Week 11 ACC Predictions

Week 10 showed me with a 2-2 straight up record, but 3-1 against the spread. That moves my yearly totals to 48-22 straight up and 37-19 against the spread.

Here are my week 11 picks:

Virginia Tech (- 3 ½) 20 Maryland 16
UNC 24 Georgia Tech (+ 4 ½) 20
Wake Forest (- 3 ½) 17 Virginia 10
Duke (- 4 ½) 19 N.C. State 14
Florida State 17 Clemson (+ 6 ½) 13
Notre Dame (+3 ½) 20 Boston College 17

Stats are for champions (part 4)

In installment 4 of "Stats are for champions" we take a look at the stats for teams still alive in the national championship race and how their stats aligned with the history of the 10 previous national champions.

Teams eliminated this past Saturday: Georgia.
Teams added this week: Oklahoma State is back in after Texas Tech beat Texas.

In summary, the past 8 national champions (starting in 2000) look like this: Of those 8 title winners only one (Ohio State in 2002) finished below 10th (23rd) in total defense. The average ranking of the total defense for those 8 teams was 8th.

Offense has not been as important statistic in determining the national champion. The average rank for those 8 offenses was 23rd and only 2 of the 8 champions (Miami in 2001 and Texas in 2005) had offenses finish in the top 10. The 2002 Ohio State team actually won the national title while being ranked 70th in total offense. The 2007 LSU team finished 26th in offense and the 2003 LSU team finished 31st in total offense.

With that in mind, here is an updated look at the teams, in my opinion, that remain with a realistic chance at the national title and their current defensive rankings:

USC - 1
Alabama - 4
Penn State - 6
Florida - 16
Texas Tech - 54
Oklahoma - 59
Oklahoma State - 62
Texas - 64

To take this a step further, over the last 8 years the average rankings for the National Champions has been:

Total Defense - 8
Rushing Defense - 15
Passing Defense - 26
Total Offense - 23
Rushing Offense - 29
Passing Offense - 40

Penn State remains at or above all of the markers above, but doubt still remains as to whether the Lions will make the BCS title game. As long as an SEC team (Alabama) and a Big 12 team (Texas Tech) remain unbeaten Penn State may be on the outside looking in. Penn State got a break last week when Texas Tech beat Texas, and now they must hope that the Red Raiders stumble down the stretch (OU and Oklahoma State are still on their schedule).

This weeks schedule has Oklahoma State visiting Lubbock, Alabama travelling to LSU, Florida heading to Vanderbilt, Oklahoma going to Texas A&M, Texas hosting Baylor, Penn State travelling to Iowa and USC hosting Cal. We'll continue to update this as the season progresses.

Conference Power Rankings after week 10

1. SEC 35.25
2. Big 10 41.36
3. Big 12 42.50
4. ACC 44.50
5. Big East 50.00
6. Mountain West 52.89
7. PAC 10 58.40
8. WAC 79.56
9. Conference USA 83.83
10. MAC 88.46
11. Sun Belt 90.25

Power Rankings after week 10

1. Penn State 160.8193
2. Texas 155.0887
3. Alabama 152.6611
4. Florida 148.4244
5. Utah 146.5920
6. Boise State 145.9034
7. Michigan State 144.2017
8. Georgia 143.8842
9. Oklahoma 143.3240
10.Texas Tech 140.8030
11.Oklahoma State 140.2428
12.Ohio State 139.9626
13.Missouri 134.8273
14.BYU 133.7068
15.North Carolina 132.7731
16.USC 132.3530
17.Kansas 132.3529
18.TCU 131.3445
19.Kentucky 131.1975
20.Oregon 130.3572
21.Minnesota 125.6769
22.Ball State 125.4202
23.West Virginia 123.6345
24.LSU 122.8992
25.South Carolina 120.3548

Finally!

The Tigers break through with a win. It really hasn't been 50 years since we've won a game, it just seems like it. So much so that the folks over at Yahoo!/Rivals have this great headline for us leading the story about the game.

C.J. Spiller is "the man". For those who have said he's had a bad year, you are officially idiots.

Updated List of Candidates

Here's an updated look at the most likely candidates to replace Tommy Bowden with my thoughts on each. These are in the order that I think will be most likely, taking into account things I have read and heard.

1. Dabo Swinney - Interim Head Coach, Clemson University
I don't think there is any doubt that Terry Don Phillips wants Swinney to succeed and to be able to name him the permanent head coach of the Tigers. The question is what will it take for Swinney to "succeed"? What if he goes 1-5 or 2-4 in his trial run at the helm?

Swinney took over a team in disarray in the middle of the season 5 days before a game with a divided locker room and a worried coaching staff. Oh yeah, the team is all beat to heck, too, and was without it's marquee player for his first game. Swinney quickly united the fans, team, administration and entire Clemson community. He's said all the right things. He's funny. He's likable. He's a winner. Does Phillips have the stones to hire a guy with no head coaching experience (outside of the six game trial by fire)? How will the Clemson nation react? If Swinney wins a 3 or more of the final 5 I say he's in without a doubt and may even have the blessing of the Clemson Nation.

2. Will Muschamp - Defensive Coordinator, University of Texas
The fear with Muschamp is that he will walk once a bigger job comes, open, say Texas, Auburn, or Tennessee. Well, all three of those jobs are currently filled though one can see the writing on the wall in Auburn and Phil Fulmer may not survive the year in Knoxville.
If those two SEC jobs open up (in addition to potentially others) will Muschamp even consider a job in the ACC?

3. Bobby Johnson - Head Coach, Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt, not surprisingly, is dropping like a rock in the creek. Rumor has it that at least one powerful Clemson booster wants Johnson. The fans are lukewarm, at best.

4. Tommy Tuberville - Head Coach, Auburn University
Are we really going to hire a guy that is about to get fired? More detractors than supporters among Clemson faithful.

5. Gary Patterson - Head Coach, Texas Christian University
I like him, but I'm not sure he has more than 5 supporters among Clemson fans.

6. Jim Grobe - Head Coach Wake Forest University
He says he isn't interested though who knows if that is true. Some Clemson fans love him, some hate him. I'm indifferent at this point.

7. Lane Kiffin - Unemployed.
Reportedly no one has been crossed off the original "short" list, but that begs the question was Kiffin ever on it? Phillips said himself that it is important to have ties to the region and that Clemson wasn't Los Angeles. Hmmmm.

Week 10 ACC Predictions

A little bit of a strange week last week going only 2-4 straight up, but 4-2 against the spread, bringing my season totals to 46-20 straight up and 34-18 against the spread.

Here are my picks for week 10:

Miami (-1) 28 @ Virginia 26
Florida State (- 1 ½) 27 @ Georgia Tech 21
Wake Forest 17 Duke (+7) 13
Boston College 21 Clemson (+5) 17

Stats are for champions (part 3)

In installment 3 of “Stats are for champions” we take a look at the stats for teams still alive in the national championship race and how their stats aligned with the history of the 10 previous national champions.

Teams eliminated this past Saturday: LSU and Ohio State each suffered their second loss, while Oklahoma State was edged by Texas.

In summary, the past 8 national champions (starting in 2000) look like this: Of those 8 title winners only one (Ohio State in 2002) finished below 10th (23rd) in total defense. The average ranking of the total defense for those 8 teams was 8th.

Offense has not been as important statistic in determining the national champion. The average rank for those 8 offenses was 23rd and only 2 of the 8 champions (Miami in 2001 and Texas in 2005) had offenses finish in the top 10. The 2002 Ohio State team actually won the national title while being ranked 70th in total offense. The 2007 LSU team finished 26th in offense and the 2003 LSU team finished 31st in total offense.

With that in mind, here is an updated look at the teams, in my opinion, that remain with a realistic chance at the national title and their current defensive rankings:

USC – 1
Alabama – 5
Penn State – 8
Florida - 13
Georgia – 21
Texas – 43
Oklahoma - 54
Texas Tech - 58

To take this a step further, over the last 8 years the average rankings for the National Champions has been:

Total Defense - 8
Rushing Defense - 15
Passing Defense - 26
Total Offense - 23
Rushing Offense - 29
Passing Offense - 40

After it’s victory over Ohio State Saturday Penn State is at or above every marker, but yet aren’t even guaranteed a shot at the BCS title game at this point, even if they remain undefeated. As long as an SEC team (Alabama) and a Big 12 team (Texas or Texas Tech) remain unbeaten Penn State may be on the outside looking in. The best the Lions can hope for is a Texas Tech victory this week and then hope that the Red Raiders stumble down the stretch (OU and Oklahoma State are still on their schedule).

Texas travels to Texas Tech this week and Georgia and Florida square off in Jacksonville. The view here is that a Tech loss will eliminate the Red Raiders, but a loss won’t necessarily eliminate Texas. The loser of Georgia-Florida will be eliminated. Again, this is a huge week in settling the national picture and really getting down to the nuts and bolts of who is left with a shot at the title. We'll continue to update this as the season progresses.

Conference Power Rankings after week 9

1. SEC 39.00
2. Big 12 41.50
3. Big 10 42.27
4. ACC 46.25
5. Big East 46.63
6. Mountain West 54.11
7. PAC 10 57.60
8. WAC 72.78
9. Conference USA 83.67
10. Sun Belt 85.25
11. MAC 89.92

Power Rankings after week 9

1. Texas 163.3403
2. Alabama 155.9874
3. Georgia 150.2101
4. Boise State 149.5978
5. Utah 147.3740
6. Oklahoma State 143.2773
7. Penn State 142.9505
8. Michigan State 142.3903
9. Florida 141.2965
10.Ohio State 139.9626
11.Oklahoma 139.8109
12.USC 134.9340
13.Missouri 133.6135
14.Texas Tech 133.4034
15.Minnesota 133.0882
16.North Carolina 132.7731
17.BYU 132.1429
18.TCU 130.7190
19.Florida State 129.5318
20.Virgina 127.8361
21.Pittsburgh 127.7311
22.Ball State 125.4202
23.South Florida 123.4244
24.LSU 123.4094
25.Notre Dame 121.9688

Week 9 ACC Predictions

Not a bad week last week: 4-1 straight up and 4-1 against the spread. Bringing my season total to 44-16 straight up and 30-16 against the spread.

On to week 9 we go:

Wake (-3) 20 Miami 16
UNC (-3) 21 BC 17
Vanderbilt 28 Duke (+9 ½) 21
Maryland 27 North Carolina State (+10 ½) 17
Georgia Tech 27 Virginia (-11 ½) 20
Virginia Tech (+4½) 19 Florida State 17

Stats are for champions (part 2)

Last week we took a look at the stats for teams still alive in the national championship race and how their stats aligned with the history of the 10 previous national champions.

In summary, the past 8 national champions (starting in 2000) look like this: Of those 8 title winners only one (Ohio State in 2002) finished below 10th (23rd) in total defense. The average ranking of the total defense for those 8 teams was 8th.

Offense has not been as important statistic in determining the national champion. The average rank for those 8 offenses was 23rd and only 2 of the 8 champions (Miami in 2001 and Texas in 2005) had offenses finish in the top 10. The 2002 Ohio State team actually won the national title while being ranked 70th in total offense. The 2007 LSU team finished 26th in offense and the 2003 LSU team finished 31st in total offense.

With that in mind, here is an updated look at the teams, in my opinion, that remain with a realistic chance at the national title and their current defensive rankings:

USC - 2
Penn State – 8
Ohio State – 10
Georgia – 12
Florida - 15
Alabama - 16
LSU - 24
Oklahoma - 34
Texas – 39
Oklahoma State - 47
Texas Tech - 58

To take this a step further, over the last 8 years the average rankings for the National Champions has been:

Total Defense - 8
Rushing Defense - 15
Passing Defense - 26
Total Offense - 23
Rushing Offense - 29
Passing Offense - 40

Penn State’s rushing defense fell to #23 after last Saturday’s game, but they are at or above the other markers. If Penn State wins this week at Ohio State most observers feel they will play in the national championship game, due to their relatively week remaining schedule and the fact that the Big 10 does not have a championship game. The loser of this game will be eliminated in my opinion, due to the perceived weakness of the Big 10.

Either LSU or Georgia is going to suffer their second loss this week when they meet in Baton Rouge, and the loser is most likely going to be eliminated from this discussion. Georgia still has to play Florida next week and whoever survives will still have to win an SEC Championship game.

Texas or Oklahoma State is going to suffer their first loss this week and if it is Oklahoma State that loses that battle, they are probably out of the race, too.

So this is a huge week in settling the national picture and really getting down to the nuts and bolts of who is left with a shot at the title.

We'll continue to update this as the season progresses.

Conference Power Rankings after week 8

1. SEC 37.42
2. Big 10 41.45
3. Big 12 43.75
4. ACC 46.92
5. Big East 49.88
6. Mountain West 53.56
7. PAC 10 57.50
8. WAC 69.89
9. Sun Belt 84.38
10. C-USA 84.83
11. MAC 92.08

Power Rankings after week 8

1. Alabama 158.3433
1. Texas 158.3433
3. Oklahoma State 149.4598
4. Boise State 149.0196
5. Utah 137.3740
6. Ohio State 145.7983
7. Georgia 145.4982
8. Pittsburgh 145.3782
9. Michigan State 144.0126
10.Oklahoma 141.4166
11.Penn State 136.3445
12.Florida 136.1344
13.Minnesota 132.6531
14.South Florida 132.5330
15.Vanderbilt 132.1729
16.TCU 131.4076
17.BYU 131.2125
17.Missouri 131.2125
19.USC 130.6723
20.Ball State 128.6915
21.LSU 128.1513
22.Northwestern 127.7311
23.Texas Tech 127.3710
24.North Carolina 126.1705
25.Notre Dame 123.5294

The Candidates

Here’s a look at the most likely candidates to replace Tommy Bowden with my thoughts on each.

1. Will Muschamp – Defensive Coordinator, University of Texas
There are two major concerns with Muschamp. First, he has never been a head coach so no one really knows how he will do as the head man. As a defensive coordinator your main job is to plan and scheme for your opponent and focus solely on defense. As the head coach you need to worry more about the team as a whole and make decisions in the CEO mode. When to go for it or punt, call a timeout or kick the field goal.

Also, a large part of the head coaching role is to placate boosters and fans (aka “glad handing"), not to mention the AD and the school’s administration. In other words, things not directly related to the football field. Is this something Muschamp wants to do and will be able to do? Will his personality allow him to do this effectively? Huge question.

Which leads us to issue #2 with Muschamp: His fiery personality resonates with players and fans like no other – as the defensive coordinator. Would that translate to a head coaching position? There’s a train of thought that the head man needs to be cool, calm and collected. Not a head butting maniac.

He’ll get his chance next year – somewhere. The question is will it be at Clemson. In a lot of ways, it’s a natural fit. In some others, it’s questionable.

Status: Muschamp is aware of Clemson’s interest.

2. Gary Patterson – Head Coach, Texas Christian University
What does a 68-26 record in the Mountain West Conference get you? Tons of respect nationally, but plenty of questions from the Clemson faithful. He’s beat good teams, in much better conferences, but that’s not enough for some. He’s been in Texas for too long. Why hasn’t someone else picked him up if he is so great (Minnesota did offer him $2 million, which he turned down)? Can he recruit in the southeast?

Status: Patterson is aware of Clemson’s interest.

3. Dabo Swinney - Interim Head Coach, Clemson University
Talk about having your hands full. Taking over a team in disarray in the middle of the season 5 days before a game with a divided locker room and a worried coaching staff. Oh yeah, the team is all beat to heck, too, and will be without its marquee player for his first game.

What has Swinney done in those 4 days since becoming head man? He’s been a refreshing breath of fresh air. Attempted to unite the fans, team, administration and entire Clemson community. He’s said all the right things. He’s funny. He’s likable. He’s a winner.

Swinney is auditioning for a head job, whether it is the Clemson gig or another one. Make no mistake – the next 7 weeks will go a long way towards determining Swinney’s future. If the first few days are any indication his future is bright, whether it’s at Clemson or somewhere else. Swinney has nothing to lose and is going for broke. Which begs the question – if he is hired permanently will he go for broke next year, too or will he retreat to coach speak, non-answers, and the conservative game plans that we’ve seen for 10 years?

Status: As interim head coach Swinney is auditioning for the head job and has a slight inside track. Terry Don Phillips wants Swinney to succeed and will have a tough tough decision to make if he does.

4. Jim Grobe - Head Coach Wake Forest University
For all the talk about the great job Grobe has done at Wake, his record in 6 plus years is only 50-40 overall and 26-32 in the "weak" ACC. His reputation took a huge leap when he led Wake to the 2006 ACC title. You know, the ACC that everyone says may be the worst conference in big time football. So which is it? Is he a great coach who led the smallest 1-A school to a championship or is he an average coach who led a redshirt-senior laden team to a conference championship in the worst conference in America?

Probably a little of both. Not many people argue that the ACC is down as a football conference. Still, he won the ACC at Wake Forest. On the other hand, he had three straight losing seasons at Wake before breaking through and multiple losing seasons with a .500 overall record at Ohio University before Wake. Not very enticing for Clemson fans with ideas of grandeur and big name coaches.

On the other hand, Grobe’s teams are focused, well coached and make few mistakes. Something Clemson fans pine for. The Clemson nation is torn on this one.

Status: Reports have surfaced that Grobe was interested in Clemson last year when it was rumored that Bowden was moving on to Arkansas. Whether that interest remains on Grobe’s side is unknown. I believe it does remain on the Clemson side.

5. Bobby Johnson - Head Coach, Vanderbilt University
What’s not to love? He’s Clemson alum and former player who had the best national story going at Vanderbilt until last weeks upset loss.

Clemson fans are lukewarm at best to Johnson. Some LOVE the idea. Most HATE it. The knock? Start with this being his 7th season at Vanderbilt and none of the others finished with more than 5 wins. There are two 2-10 seasons in there, along with an 11-40 SEC record. And oh yeah, he’s 57 years old.

There is very little slack cut for him with respect to Vandy’s competing with the big boys of the SEC while adhering to Vandy’s strict academic standards.

Status: Surprisingly little support for a Clemson alum and former player.

6. Tommy Tuberville - Head Coach, Auburn University
Wow! A head coach from an SEC school wants to come to the lowly ACC? Apparently Tuberville is interested in getting out of the chaos at Auburn. Reportedly he was interested in the Florida State job before Jimbo Fisher became crown prince in Tallahassee.

He’s 82-34 at Auburn and 51-25 in the SEC, has an undefeated season, one SEC championship and 2 SEC west titles.

What’s not to love? He’s 57 years old and many believe his best years are behind him. 9-4 last year and 4-3 so far in 2008. Some see him as a Tommy Bowden clone in more than just first name. Does he have the fire that Clemson needs or is he just trying to get out of a bad situation?

Status: The Tiger Nation is lukewarm on Tuberville. He has a few supporters, but many more detractors.

7. Lane Kiffin - Unemployed.

What has he ever done to be mentioned with the guys above, who all but for Swinney have actually won a college football game as a head coach. Being a puppet for Al Davis doesn't really mean you were an NFL head coach.

Still a significant number of Tiger fans are on this bandwagon, I'm guessing because he is young and spent some time at Southern Cal.

Status - Unknown.