Archive for February 2007
Just try and imagine the following scenario: Work out till you can’t move on Friday, then you run five miles afterwards. The next morning you wake up at 6 o’clock in the morning, get to the airport, and board a plane with seats that are way too small. After you get off the plane and wait on your baggage, you grab a cab; “RCA Stadium, please.” As soon as you get there, a microphone is shoved in your face. People are measuring your arms and hands, pinching your skin, making you lift more weights even though your arms are about to fall off… time starts to fly by. You put on a shirt with “Adams” pressed on the back that they give you. Then you head out to the field, stretch out, tighten your shoelaces, and run a 4.64 in the 40-yard dash, the fastest out of all the other defensive linemen. Your fate is sealed and your agent comes up to tell you that “you don’t have to worry about money anymore” before he scurries off in an Ari Gold-like fashion to scream at someone on his cell phone. The experience of the NFL combine might have gone something like this former Clemson Defensive End Gaines Adams. NFL scouts have been salivating over tapes of Gaines Adams crushing tiny UNC players for a few months now and they have been dying to get him on a football field to see what he can do first hand. All eyes were on the consensus All-American at this weeks NFL combine and he did not disappoint at all.
Gaines Adams: Still lurking about in Cam Sexton’s nightmares.
“I heard tingks… good tingks.”Fortunately for the Clemson football program, they can now brag that along with Adams they sent five Tigers to the combine this year. Unfortunately for our football team, two of those players never got to complete their senior season in Death Valley. Former Tiger linebacker Anthony Waters ended his season last year in the first game via a torn ACL when the Tigers trumped Florida Atlantic. Waters used his time wisely though, making leaps and bounds with his upper body strength and providing leadership and help to his teammates from the sidelines. Waters, still a little shaky on his feet, did not participate in running drills but was able to compete in everything else. On the bench press, he had 25 repetitions of 225 pounds. The other former Tiger, cornerback C.J. Gaddis, decided to forego his senior year and enter the draft early after his rollercoaster junior year last season. Gaddis possess great strength as well as blazing speed, attributes that helped him make his decision to jump early for the NFL. He ran a 4.45 in the 40-yard dash, one of the faster times for day six. He also had 20 repetitions of 225 pounds on the bench press which is impressive seeing as most defensive backs in the draft only manage to make it to the mid-teens. Many experts thought he needed another year from his up and down season last year, though physically he is more than ready for the next level and can learn what he needs to from coaches on his further team. Personally, I think he just wasn’t ready mentally. He’d constantly forget his assignments and get blown deep. It reminded me of Ty Hill in his junior season. I think that if he had stayed, he would have been an All-American easily. I think he won’t do jack sh*t his first few years in the league, if he does anything at all. That senior year in college is so crucial for maturation and finishing of players and it gets over looked way too much. But hey, I can see his side of the point. I can imagine his viewpoint as being the following: I’m in a program that’s not going to win any rings next year and my coaches left Anthony Waters in to tear his ACL late in a lopsided game, who’s to say they won’t do it to me and get me hurt?
He never listened to our coaching staff, what makes you thinkhe would listen to the “experts”?
The other two former Clemson players that were invited to the NFL combine are Duane Coleman and Chansi Stuckey. Both men put up average numbers but that can be attributed to their off season schedules. All is well however, because both make up for their average numbers at the combine from their performances during games and their leadership qualities. Stuckey and Coleman have game changing abilities and attributes. Stuckey is known for simply making jaw-dropping circus catches that he makes seem impossibly easy. Coleman seems to have a knack for knocking lungs loose and having perfect coverage technique and closing speed. Also, Coleman is one mean motherf*cker on the football field. He is just crazy enough to punch someone twice his size right in the face (2003 Peach Bowl & 2004 Brawl w/ USC… see below). You need a meanstreak in the pros to survive and Coleman has a great one. Although, his worries should be focused elsewhere as he has been red flagged for his off the field problems, more than likely spurned by his recent arrest on charges of possession of marijuana.
Overall, Clemson’s combine invitees gave solid performances that can only help them with their transition to the NFL. Clemson has set it’s pro-day for NFL scouts to take place on Tuesday, March 13th.
Would you like some fatted pork product with your morning wood?
Have you ever thought to yourself, “My morning routine would greatly benefit from the addition of pork products delivered bedside immediately upon my awakening?” If so, then the Wake n’ Bacon is for you. Ed Orgeron loves giving these as gifts and has a custom king size edition that grills 3 lbs. of thick cut bacon and emits an alarm with the aid of 4 air horns. He also has the wristwatch edition, which looks a lot like a small Foreman Grill with a watch duct taped to the lid.
It’s BACON!!!!
I made this picture, so damned right I’m using it again.
As February winds down and the dust settles on this year’s recruiting cycle, we thought we’d take a look back at a particularly contentious situation that occurred on signing day. We’re referring, of course, to the Markish Jones situation.
THE LOWDOWN
Signing day for Markish Jones went down like this; Jones, South Carolina’s Offensive MVP of this year’s Shrine Bowl and a 4-star prospect out of Broome HS, signed his letter of intent (including his mother’s signature) to attend Clemson. He does not immediately fax it to Clemson. Jones calls
Within the week, Clemson coaches petitioned the ACC, who sent the matter to Torie Johnson, director of the National Letter of Intent in
Markish Jones closes his eyes, shuffles the papers, and signs ‘wherever.’
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
Upon hearing of the NLI’s decision, Markish remarked that he was “not disappointed at all. I think it’s best that I just go ahead and to Clemson because it’s about being around people you’re comfortable with.” He also stated that he was 50-50 between schools prior to signing day.
More interestingly, Jones added “I think it’s definitely all for the best right now with all the rules and the ACC talking about Florida State getting on some kind of probation and all that. I didn’t want to make them go through that or me having to go through that.”
Jones did not offer clarification as to what probation he was talking about, but the Spartanburg Herald-Journal noted that an ACC official confirmed that FSU didn’t break any rules relating to its telephone conversation with Jones, and would not face any penalties. It’s possible Tommy could’ve pressed Jones over his conversation with FSU coaches and scared him about the possible ramifications.
Tommy Bowden had this swipe at the FSU recruiting process: “It was pretty much a technical issue as far as legality about who could sign (the letter of intent). After we did the research, it was cut and dry. Obviously it was pretty good work on (
Sterger and her friends are going to settle this dispute with a KY wrestling match. Because when KY wrestling is involved, we all win.
ANALYSIS!
The recruiting process is a nasty beast and it gets hairier and smellier every year. While, arguably, most of the backstabbing and recruit snatching occurs in the SEC (see Urban Meyer: all your recruits are belong to us, pretty much anything Saban touches, Brad Lawing’s “proxy calls”) the ACC is not immune to skullduggery, as this case clearly proves. FSU coaches, knowing that Jones had signed a LOI and chosen a college, persuaded him to bury that contract and fax one to them. FSU has stated that their compliance department doesn’t consider a signed LOI binding until it is in the hands of the coaches. Regardless of this, the coaches knew this was poor ethics, and more than a little desperate. FSU had a recruiting class ranked lower than usual this year, and may have been in dire need of Jones’s service, explaining why they went the extra mile to snatch one from Tommy.
One might dispute that it was Markish’s choice to switch to FSU, and they’d be right, but the point of contention is what exactly made him change his mind. We may never know what the FSU recruiters told him, and what Tommy later told him, but we do know that none of it should’ve happened. Recruiting is big business, and is corrupt enough as it is. The NLI did college football a service by putting their foot down on this matter and setting limits on just how far overzealous recruiters can go. Had Markish Jones come out and objected to being switched to attend Clemson, this situation might not be as clear cut as it is. In a recruiting season that didn’t go exactly as Clemson fans would hope, there was a silver lining.
There’s a certain set of ostrich-skinned cowboy boots that walk the length of the West Endzone on game day Saturdays here at Clemson… and there was talk of Arkansas looking into seeing how much it would take to get those boots to walk in the direction of Fayetteville. Those boots belong to current Clemson Athletic Director Terry Don Phillips. The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics named Phillips the 2005-06 General Sports Turf Systems Athletic Director-of-the-Year for the Southeast Region of Division I-A. He was also a player at Arkansas for their current athletic director, 82-year-old Frank Broyles. He also served as the senior associate athletic director there from 1988 – 1994. When Frank Broyles announced his forthcoming retirement for the end of this year to the Board of Trustees at Arkansas this past Saturday, they focused their attention on two men who were connected to their university and that could possibly replace Broyles. The other man who was thrown in the bubbling stew of rumors is former Clemson head coach Ken Hatfield who also played defensive back at Arkansas, earning a national championship ring for the 1964 season.
On Tuesday, Terry Don announced to the press that he hadn’t even been contacted by Arkansas, but he made it a point that he wasn’t about to pack up and go anywhere. “To be as clear as I can be, I very much enjoy working at Clemson University. I have no intentions of leaving Clemson. I am not an applicant or intend to be an applicant for that job at the University of Arkansas,” stated Phillips, who is now entering the sixth year of his contract as the Clemson Athletics Director. “The University of Arkansas has not called me, I don’t anticipate them calling me, and I’m happy here.”
This off-season has proven to be somewhat of a test for the Clemson administration with many coaches and staff getting generous offers from a multitude of organizations both from the college and professional levels. Most of the key players of the Clemson football coaching staff had been either been considered, contacted, or offered lucrative contracts by teams such as the University of Alabama, the University of South Carolina, and the Oakland Raiders just to name a few. Only one man, former running backs coach Burton Burns, jumped ship. But he can’t really be blamed for accepting the same position under Nick Saban at Alabama, all the while accepting a pay increase that dwarfs what he was earning here at Clemson.
Phillips also stated that he loves Clemson and everything related to it. He also said one of the main reasons he remains steadfast in his decision to not even consider a move from Clemson is the support he receives not only from the fans, his coaches, and the athletes, but the overwhelming support he has received from President Jim Barker and the Clemson Board of Trustees. “I know we have unequivocal support by the president and trustees to have a great athletic program,” Phillips stated. “We have our challenges, but I feel very good about Clemson [and it’s future].” I for one can say that I’m glad that the Texas-native will be strutting his stuff in the West Endzone next fall in those impeccable boots of his.
Current Clemson AD Terry Don Phillips gives Arkansas the preemptive “no no” in their search to replace Frank Broyle. 
Coming soon: Our writeup of the Markish Jones saga.The State said that a “concerned citizen” pointed out Garcia’s drunken conduct to police in 5 Points. In the land of Gamecock Forums, of course this could only have been a Clemson fan, right? To the first poster: if the police were occupied with getting all the drunks in 5 Points home safely, who would patrol that trashy strip for crack sales and QB/WRs slugging student body presidents? I guess Clemson fans have to head to Columbia to “have a good time” according to the second poster, that is, if you define “have a good time” as “have a 27% chance of being assaulted or robbed by a scholarship athlete.” I’m not arguing that Clemson has more to do than Columbia, it is the state capital after all, but 5 Points itself offers almost nothing that tiny downtown Clemson doesn’t already.
One of the many warning signs of a true Kool-Aid drinking, zombified, Darth Visor fearing dolt is that they use a variation of a Gregg Doyel quote to denigrate Clemson, you know, since they can’t use, say, a winning record or academic excellence to do that. I believe the original quote from Doyel was meant to dis NCSU basketball by comparing them to some inaccurate idea of Clemson football. While nothing that comes out of Doyel’s mouth isn’t premeditated to piss off someone for the sake of attention, it is particularly ironic that a Sakerlina fan would slander any other team’s fans with the phrase “overbearing fan base too biased to see…reality.”
Clemson fans have a quote that more accurately sums up our arch nemesis, “South Carolina Football: The arrogance of Notre Dame with the tradition of Wake Forest.” Though this, too, is flawed, as Wake has more than one conference title ever.
Of course this Tiger took the silliness of our Cock-loving enemies down 26 in stride:
