While most of us were getting geared up for the start of August camp, key figureheads congregated in Columbia for an announcement on the Clemson-South Carolina rivalry.
As long as the Tigers and Gamecocks no longer play for a cheap-looking, Hardees best-eating-in-town-up-and-down-and-all-around trophy I'm good with it.
An article by the AP here. And another here.
One of the most legendary rivalries in college sports has never had an official name, until now.
Clemson University and The University of South Carolina are taking their rivalry to the next level with the South Carolina Department of Agriculture’s Palmetto Series. The goal of the year long series is to use friendly competition across all athletic programs to connect fans with farmers in South Carolina.
In a press release, Commissioner Hugh Weathers said, “South Carolina has a rich tradition in both sports and agriculture, and we hope fans will come together and continue to select Certified SC Grown.”
Clemson Athletic Director, Dan Radakovich, said he hopes the sports that don’t normally get much media attention will have the opportunity to be in the spotlight.
“The footballs, the basketballs, the baseballs, that has gotten an awful lot of media attention over the years,” he said. “But those young men and women that are playing soccer, that are playing golf, that are playing tennis, they’re into the rivalry as well.”
If you are familiar with the roots of this rivalry -- and the roots of Clemson's very existence as an institution -- you know that the agriculture theme is an important theme. Basically, Ben Tillman and others thought the aristocrats in Columbia were putting on a sham of an agriculture program. So they decided to start their own school. And then they started playing football against each other a few years later.
And here we are...
Here's the Palmetto Series web site.
-- Manie Robinson of the Greenville News discovered a bit of a typo on Clemson's practice field yesterday. Oops.
-- David Hale of ESPN was hanging out in Clemson yesterday, and he filed this dispatch.
Watson, the Tigers' star quarterback, was cleared to resume normal football activities last week, but he took the practice field Tuesday wearing a brace on his left knee, one he expects to wear the remainder of the season.
Beyond that, there were few signs of the knee injury, which he suffered in a Nov. 15 loss to Georgia Tech last season.
Asked if his knee felt 100 percent healthy, Watson said, "I guess so. I can't really tell if I'm 100 or not, but I feel good. They cleared me to play, so I'm just out there helping my team out."
Watson said the brace on the knee was simply a precaution and that it didn't limit his mobility.
Watson said he's been doing most normal exercises since this spring, but Tuesday's workout in shorts and 95-degree heat was his first showcase in a formal practice setting.
"I was very excited," Watson said. "When we reported yesterday, I was just happy to be out there with my teammates."
-- Notre Dame takes a big hit with the loss of running back Greg Bryant.
Notre Dame will be without Greg Bryant, its second-leading rusher in 2014, for the upcoming season because of disciplinary reasons, coach Brian Kelly announced Tuesday.
"There are certain expectations within our program that must be met on a daily basis," Kelly said in a statement released by the university. "Quite simply, Greg did not meet those expectations."
Kelly previously had suspended Bryant for the first four games of this season for violating team rules. Kelly said Bryant will be allowed to practice with the team and remains on scholarship. Bryant, a five-star recruit from Delray Beach, Florida, hasn't lived up to expectations. He appeared in three games as a freshman, carrying the ball three times for 14 yards. He rushed for 289 yards on 54 carries last season, a 5.4 yards per carry average that led Irish running backs.
-- In Dallas, Chad Morris wants to build off of Larry Brown's success.
On recruiting the state of Texas:
“We came in December 1. Because of the relationships we have in the state and not just me but several coaches on our staff, we were able to come in and sign the No. 3 class in our conference in 64 days of being together on a 1-11 football team. That should tell you that there is so much to sell on the Hilltop. We have a great academic system. Obviously, everybody knows us for that. But there is some long, storied tradition, and we have to recapture that and grab that momentum and energy that the city of Dallas is after. They want a winner. Larry (Brown) proved it in basketball. There is an excitement level on campus, and we want to carry that momentum forward. But those high school coaches have been phenomenal. Being one of those guys, I can honestly tell you that without their help, we wouldn’t have accomplished the recruiting class that we got this last season.”
On what his offense will look like at SMU:
“It will be very similar to what we did at Clemson and prior to that at Tulsa. We’re a two-back run oriented football team. We’ll take the play action shots down the field. We’ve got to establish the run. The passing game, obviously, we have to develop that. They’ve been known for their passing game. For us to able to do what we need to do and play fast paced, we have to be able to establish a run game.”
Pretty cool photo of Morris' son, Chandler, being introduced to Southlake Carroll head coach Hal Wasson:
-- In Buffalo, Sammy Watkins shows explosiveness.
Any early concerns over Sammy Watkins’ recovery from hip surgery were squashed in about 0.2 seconds at the Buffalo Bills’ training camp practice Monday night.
The wide receiver lined up against cornerback Rod Sweeting during one 11-on-11 segment at St. John Fisher College, shimmied outside, cut back in and gained instant separation for a 55-yard touchdown from quarterback EJ Manuel.
In the same drill, Watkins cut free from Stephon Gilmore to haul in a deep touchdown from a scrambling Tyrod Taylor.
“I’m feeling great,” Watkins said. “I’m feeling more explosive than last year.”
-- And Ryan Montbleau with a nice version of "Jet Airliner:"
LW
