Posted by Chili

God doing a bit of snooping for his old team. Dabo will have a beer stained, handwritten report on the PJ offense on his desk by morning.

Posted by Willy Mac

It’s no secret that Clemson has both ends of the talent spectrum operating within the offensive scheme that Billy Napier has concocted to run every Saturday. As the season rolls on and criticism grows louder, Dabo Swinney and Napier are going to have to figure out a way to win quickly. With a defense that’s building a reputation for brick-walling offenses around the league it might be best to let them win the games and take a ground approach to offensive game planning. In essence, the coaches could take the team in a very vanilla direction in terms of the offensive game planning.

Time and time again the option attack offense has shown that, if run properly, it is nearly unstoppable (I know Tom: “Option, Option, Paul Johnson, Option, Pau-” …We get it already.) It’s especially good for teams that might not be able to block too well or match up physically with other teams. The problems with running a full blown Wing-T option is that it takes too long to implement, it’s one dimensional, and it won’t attract the players we need to create some noise on a large scale. However, a quick pitch option run out of any kind of power formation could potentially change the face of Clemson’s sour offense in dramatic fashion. The biggest plus about this approach is that it could be injected immediately in many of Clemson’s current sets creating many spread and I-formation option attacks that could be run with very little practice.

With this approach, going with a vanilla offense no longer has to be so… well… vanilla. It put’s greater emphasis on execution and holds everyone responsible as opposed to one player who didn’t do their assignment. In fact, the quick option paired with a staunch defense was the foundation that the glory days of Clemson football was built upon. Another huge plus to installing a quick option attack is that it could potentially take more pressure off of our stagnant passing attack and receivers by getting more defenders in the box to stop the run. Perhaps this could be the help the Tiger receivers needed. Their inability to get separation from the defensive coverage has been just one of a handful of glaring weaknesses they’ve shown throughout this season.

It also doesn’t necessarily mean that the passing game has to be cut out of the picture completely in this proposed offense. With Kyle Parker’s passer efficiency ratings falling and with the youth on the team starting to make itself apparent it might be one of the better choices to move forward for this team. An offense like this could also mature some very green receivers in a hurry and force them to concentrate on more than just catching the football. There are just as many cons as there are pros in adding a speed option. Quarterbacks can be injured very easily in an option attack offense. Some players might not buy into it as they were promised something different when they committed to Clemson.The idea could completely backfire and be abandoned after just a series or two.

The talent that the Tigers possess in terms of team speed and the “it” factor beg to differ against the cons. The situation at hand is practically begging for at least a minute sprinkling of running and pitching behind a blocking fullback or tight end. One thing an option attack can do is bring a team together and test their worth as a unit. It could answer several rumors about team unity and cohesion that the Tigers have been facing this year in more ways than just developing catchy phrases and gimmick slogan t-shirts.

Posted by Willy Mac

I gotta agree with him here… That call was bull hockey. It’s a big conspiracy against all Clemson folks. Danny’s my home boy. He keeps it real.

Posted by Willy Mac

Posted by Chili

Danny Ford, along with some people who aren’t God, was announced to this year’s ACC Football Championship Game Legends class.

The Legends will be honored at this year’s Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship Game weekend. They will appear at the ACC Coaches and Awards Luncheon at noon on Friday, Dec. 4, and will be honored at the “ACC Night of Legends” held at the Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay on Friday evening. They will also be recognized during pre-game ceremonies at Raymond James Stadium for the 5th Annual Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship, which has an 8 p.m. kickoff on Dec. 5 and will be nationally televised by ESPN.

From the ACC press release:

Ford, who now lives just outside of Clemson in Pendleton, S.C., began his head coaching career as the youngest head coach (30 years old) in Division I football with a win over Ohio State in the 1978 Gator Bowl. Three years later, he led the Tigers to the 1981 national championship and was named National Coach of the Year. In all, Ford compiled five ACC Football Championships in his 11 seasons as head coach of Clemson. His winning percentage of .760 is the third highest in ACC history and he ranks second only to FSU’s Bobby Bowden in most bowl victories while an ACC coach with six. His 96 victories, while Clemson’s head coach, are fourth-best in ACC history. At one stretch his Clemson teams were ranked among the Associated Press’ rankings for 41 consecutive weeks and his Tiger teams earned 18 wins over nationally-ranked opponents.