Take a long look at that face, folks. That is what anti-Clemson media bias is going to look like in the year 2024.
Clemson will have won two national titles over a 10-year stretch, but the haterade will still be flowing from the national media.
All because the current biased national media has been allowed to reproduce.
The above picture is of one devilish Chase Herbstreit, son of Kirk Herbstreit. Daddy provided Clemson with some choice bulletin board material last week when he made the observation that Clemson might not be able to run the ball consistently against Notre Dame.
Heck, most Clemson fans were saying the same thing. But never let the facts get in the way of a good anti-media tirade...
And now his offspring, trained for nine years by his father in the art of tearing apart Clemson, is here to doom the Tigers' chances against Georgia Tech.
Clearly Chase is in an advanced placement SECSPN course, given the two SEC helmets above his head.
Folks, this looks like a classic case of Elementary School Media Bias.
One of Dabo Swinney's sons, Clay Swinney, called in to his dad's radio show the other night. And that makes you think it'd be must-see TV if they could get a Clay vs. Chase debate going.
A few Wednesday links:
-- Georgia Tech's long runs haven't been enough, writes the AJC.
Among the many indignities suffered by Georgia Tech in its 38-31 loss to North Carolina Saturday was this indicator of what is ailing the Yellow Jackets offense.
The long running play of the game was provided by quarterback Justin Thomas, who ran for 20 yards in the second quarter. As the team’s long run of the day, it was the shortest such carry since the 2013 Music City Bowl, when the longest rushing attempt was 17 yards.
“We need to have explosive plays, especially against better defenses,” coach Paul Johnson said. “It’s hard to have 14-, 15-play drives and six yards a pop without screwing it up. Somebody’s going to get a penalty or miss a block or miss an assignment or do something, so you need to have some explosive plays.”
-- Really good story here on Leonard Fournette by Ivan Maisel.
Let's not get too far into numbers. You don't need numbers to describe why Fournette is different, although Syracuse coach Scott Shafer did a nice job of it. Fournette filleted the Orange for 244 yards in the Tigers' 34-24 victory on Sept. 26. He had another 112 yards called back because of penalties.
Those aren't the numbers Shafer used. Asked what impressed him from the sideline, Shafer said, "His size and ability to move like a 5-10, 200-pound kid. That's it. He moves like a lot of little guys move."
Fournette is no little guy. He is 6-foot-1, 226 pounds, and a guy who moves the way he moves at that size is different.
"He can make them miss," LSU defensive coordinator Kevin Steele said. "Or he can make them wish they hadn't found him."
So forgive me. If faith is belief without evidence, forgive this faith-based initiative. But here goes:
Fournette is different the way that Bryce Harper is different, the way that Jordan Spieth is different, the way that -- I'm going to go ahead and make the leap -- LeBron is different. Harper, the 22-year-old outfielder and National League MVP favorite of the Washington Nationals, Spieth, the 22-year-old PGA Tour Player of the Year, and LeBron James, the best basketball player on the planet, all share the same traits.
Each of those three professional athletes, born with preternatural talent, succeeded anyway. All of them, saddled with oversized expectations in high school, ignored the seductions of attention and money to chase greatness. That is harder to do than it sounds. For one thing, everyone wants to be great, right up until they see the workload it entails. For another, it's easy to settle for being better than everyone else. It's a commitment to decide to be the best you can be.
-- Pat Forde predicts when the current unbeatens will fall.
Clemson (11)
Record: 4-0, 1-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
What’s gone well: New starters in the front seven on defense have played above expectations. Tigers have survived the injury loss of top wide receiver Mike Williams in the opener. Made enough big plays to hang on against Louisville and Notre Dame.
What could be better: Offensive gameplans, which have been very conservative. Shorter postgame commentary from Dabo to the field reporter. The Dash is by no means anti-celebration after a big victory, but you wonder whether Clemson overdid it following the thriller against the Fighting Irish. Saturday against Georgia Tech should provide the answer.
Expiration date: Oct. 24, at Miami. As long as the Hurricanes season hasn’t fallen apart by then, this feels like a trap game for the Tigers. It will be just their second road game of the year, and they nearly lost the first one at Louisville.
-- Finally, some BYOG, er, B from Gary Clark:
LW
