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Clemson returns to work
By: Larry Williams
CLEMSON -- In Clemson's football offices and meeting rooms, today will be the most uncomfortable Monday in November in at least a decade.
Late Saturday night in South Bend, the head coach referenced what it was going to be like the next time he'd be in front of his team -- not just players, but coaches too.
He mentioned it again last night in his regular day-after conference call with reporters.
Over the years there have been plenty of paint-peeling days from the head man, even after wins. Even this year there have been some hard Monday lessons imparted. The horrific coverage breakdowns at Wake Forest come to mind, as do the major tackling problems at Florida State.
But today? Nah, nothing compares.
The Tigers' last November loss was in the same place, a double-overtime defeat to the Irish.
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney has a lot to address in practice today as the Tigers begin preparing for Malik Cunningham and Louisville. (Ken Ruinard - USA Today Sports)
But there were some positive developments even in a rare loss, as DJ Uiagalelei looked mostly sensational in place of Trevor Lawrence. And even then, the Tigers had a week off to prepare for a visit from Pittsburgh (which they demolished).
You have to go back to 2016 to find Clemson's next November loss, when everything caught up to a bored team in a 43-42 loss to Pitt.
But even then, the devastation didn't even last through the night: Tumult elsewhere near the top meant the loss didn't cost the Tigers much at all.
The next November loss came in 2014, a 28-6 defeat at Georgia Tech. That was dispiriting, unquestionably, because Deshaun Watson went down and Cole Stoudt generated zero confidence that he'd be able to help engineer a stop to South Carolina's five-game rivalry streak two weeks later. But the defense was still excellent, having limited Georgia Tech's prolific offense to just two touchdowns (the other two were pick-sixes by Stoudt).
So the vibe at that moment in 2014 was more trying to figure out a way to generate some offense in the remaining games against Georgia State and South Carolina. Watson would come to the rescue against the Gamecocks, beating them on one leg, and Stoudt would find a higher groove against Oklahoma in Game 1 under Tony Elliott and Jeff Scott.
In 2013 the Tigers lost 31-17 at South Carolina, but even Steve Spurrier walked away saying Clemson was the better team. That was merely a matter of turnovers turning the game the other way.
Let's just cut to the chase: In our mind, the aftermath of a 37-13 loss at N.C. State in 2011 is the last example that remotely compares to what they're going through right now.
That team, Swinney's third, broke a lot of new ground and set the course for the greatness to come. But that team wasn't mature enough or mentally tough enough to avoid four losses.
At present, the toughness part is in serious question after Saturday's meltdown at Notre Dame. Physical toughness. Mental toughness. The foundation that separates great from really good.
The fact that we're wondering if the same things that limited the 2011 team will limit this team here in 2022 is pretty startling.
Last week, Swinney was asked about the building blocks of a physically tough team.
"How we've prepared since August, all through camp, to develop that physicality -- you don't just show up in November and say, 'All right, we're a physical team. All right, we're going to be tough today.' That doesn't work. You're probably 4-4 right now. It doesn't work that way.
"So it goes back to camp and creating that callousness in your body, so to speak. And then it's just how you practice. So we practice tough and physical on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. I've always believed in that. We're never going to get away from that. Unless they just say we have to go out there in underwear every day, we practice tough on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. And we've done that for 14 years. And we get better as we go. And I think we've been a very physical team for a long time. You don't win at the highest level -- you're not going to beat Alabama if you're not a physical football team. Just not going to happen. ... You have to have a toughness. A physical toughness and a mental toughness."
The premise behind all that was that Clemson was built for the challenge that awaited in South Bend, and the challenges beyond. Built not just to hold up against Notre Dame's bully-ball offense but to win those battles at the line of scrimmage. And on the other side, built to push the Irish around with an offensive line that was supposed to mash people this season.
In some ways it was a surprise to see Clemson wilt so thoroughly in those areas Saturday night. And yes, we're including the between-the-ears frailty we saw return at the quarterback position.
But was all really that surprising? The cracks with this defense were evident coming in, as Wes Goodwin's first group still hadn't put a complete game together. Still spent a half trying to figure out how to tackle Syracuse's quarterback. Still got pushed around by Florida State and missed all those fits and tackles on the way to allowing more than 200 yards rushing in Tallahassee.
Some folks spent the open date railing against the idea that DJ Uiagalelei wasn't going to totally flush the Syracuse game and return to the form he showed earlier in the season.
Uiagalelei's continued funk shouldn't be that much of a surprise; his 13-game sample size in 2021 still outweighs his six-or-so-game sample size from this year of playing high-level football.
The offensive schematics and strategy Saturday? Yeah, that could be put in the surprising category. It's almost as if the forecasts of high winds spooked Brandon Streeter and Co., leading them to change their approach late in the week to the point that they forgot what made this offense good in the first place.
Particularly after an open date, a staff shouldn't have to be reminded that Will Shipley should be featured more. It shouldn't have to be reminded that Uiagalelei was at his best earlier in the season when he was featured in the running game. That's not all on scheme, because there were several opportunities for Uiagalelei to flee the pocket and pick up yardage Saturday night and he didn't do it. But this was a bad night for the offensive braintrust.
So where do they go from here? That's the big question, and it's complicated by the fact that not just one thing is going wrong but a lot of things regressing at the precise time of year when this program is accustomed to progressing.
It's a foreign place to be for a program that is not just unaccustomed to losing in November (four defeats in the playoff era), but totally unaccustomed to the lashing it's getting today from the head coach.
After this, some fresh coats of orange and purple paint might be needed within the walls of Dabo Land.
Big DEALS on officially-licensed CLEMSON gear at The Tiger Fan Shop HERE!
Clemson returns to work
By: Larry Williams
CLEMSON -- In Clemson's football offices and meeting rooms, today will be the most uncomfortable Monday in November in at least a decade.
Late Saturday night in South Bend, the head coach referenced what it was going to be like the next time he'd be in front of his team -- not just players, but coaches too.
He mentioned it again last night in his regular day-after conference call with reporters.
Over the years there have been plenty of paint-peeling days from the head man, even after wins. Even this year there have been some hard Monday lessons imparted. The horrific coverage breakdowns at Wake Forest come to mind, as do the major tackling problems at Florida State.
But today? Nah, nothing compares.
The Tigers' last November loss was in the same place, a double-overtime defeat to the Irish.
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney has a lot to address in practice today as the Tigers begin preparing for Malik Cunningham and Louisville. (Ken Ruinard - USA Today Sports)
But there were some positive developments even in a rare loss, as DJ Uiagalelei looked mostly sensational in place of Trevor Lawrence. And even then, the Tigers had a week off to prepare for a visit from Pittsburgh (which they demolished).
You have to go back to 2016 to find Clemson's next November loss, when everything caught up to a bored team in a 43-42 loss to Pitt.
But even then, the devastation didn't even last through the night: Tumult elsewhere near the top meant the loss didn't cost the Tigers much at all.
The next November loss came in 2014, a 28-6 defeat at Georgia Tech. That was dispiriting, unquestionably, because Deshaun Watson went down and Cole Stoudt generated zero confidence that he'd be able to help engineer a stop to South Carolina's five-game rivalry streak two weeks later. But the defense was still excellent, having limited Georgia Tech's prolific offense to just two touchdowns (the other two were pick-sixes by Stoudt).
So the vibe at that moment in 2014 was more trying to figure out a way to generate some offense in the remaining games against Georgia State and South Carolina. Watson would come to the rescue against the Gamecocks, beating them on one leg, and Stoudt would find a higher groove against Oklahoma in Game 1 under Tony Elliott and Jeff Scott.
In 2013 the Tigers lost 31-17 at South Carolina, but even Steve Spurrier walked away saying Clemson was the better team. That was merely a matter of turnovers turning the game the other way.
Let's just cut to the chase: In our mind, the aftermath of a 37-13 loss at N.C. State in 2011 is the last example that remotely compares to what they're going through right now.
That team, Swinney's third, broke a lot of new ground and set the course for the greatness to come. But that team wasn't mature enough or mentally tough enough to avoid four losses.
At present, the toughness part is in serious question after Saturday's meltdown at Notre Dame. Physical toughness. Mental toughness. The foundation that separates great from really good.
The fact that we're wondering if the same things that limited the 2011 team will limit this team here in 2022 is pretty startling.
Last week, Swinney was asked about the building blocks of a physically tough team.
"How we've prepared since August, all through camp, to develop that physicality -- you don't just show up in November and say, 'All right, we're a physical team. All right, we're going to be tough today.' That doesn't work. You're probably 4-4 right now. It doesn't work that way.
"So it goes back to camp and creating that callousness in your body, so to speak. And then it's just how you practice. So we practice tough and physical on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. I've always believed in that. We're never going to get away from that. Unless they just say we have to go out there in underwear every day, we practice tough on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. And we've done that for 14 years. And we get better as we go. And I think we've been a very physical team for a long time. You don't win at the highest level -- you're not going to beat Alabama if you're not a physical football team. Just not going to happen. ... You have to have a toughness. A physical toughness and a mental toughness."
The premise behind all that was that Clemson was built for the challenge that awaited in South Bend, and the challenges beyond. Built not just to hold up against Notre Dame's bully-ball offense but to win those battles at the line of scrimmage. And on the other side, built to push the Irish around with an offensive line that was supposed to mash people this season.
In some ways it was a surprise to see Clemson wilt so thoroughly in those areas Saturday night. And yes, we're including the between-the-ears frailty we saw return at the quarterback position.
But was all really that surprising? The cracks with this defense were evident coming in, as Wes Goodwin's first group still hadn't put a complete game together. Still spent a half trying to figure out how to tackle Syracuse's quarterback. Still got pushed around by Florida State and missed all those fits and tackles on the way to allowing more than 200 yards rushing in Tallahassee.
Some folks spent the open date railing against the idea that DJ Uiagalelei wasn't going to totally flush the Syracuse game and return to the form he showed earlier in the season.
Uiagalelei's continued funk shouldn't be that much of a surprise; his 13-game sample size in 2021 still outweighs his six-or-so-game sample size from this year of playing high-level football.
The offensive schematics and strategy Saturday? Yeah, that could be put in the surprising category. It's almost as if the forecasts of high winds spooked Brandon Streeter and Co., leading them to change their approach late in the week to the point that they forgot what made this offense good in the first place.
Particularly after an open date, a staff shouldn't have to be reminded that Will Shipley should be featured more. It shouldn't have to be reminded that Uiagalelei was at his best earlier in the season when he was featured in the running game. That's not all on scheme, because there were several opportunities for Uiagalelei to flee the pocket and pick up yardage Saturday night and he didn't do it. But this was a bad night for the offensive braintrust.
So where do they go from here? That's the big question, and it's complicated by the fact that not just one thing is going wrong but a lot of things regressing at the precise time of year when this program is accustomed to progressing.
It's a foreign place to be for a program that is not just unaccustomed to losing in November (four defeats in the playoff era), but totally unaccustomed to the lashing it's getting today from the head coach.
After this, some fresh coats of orange and purple paint might be needed within the walls of Dabo Land.
Big DEALS on officially-licensed CLEMSON gear at The Tiger Fan Shop HERE!
