January 31st Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Walter "Dean" Cox

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President Emeritus Walter T. Cox is a member of Clemson University's Class of 1939, and was the third alumnus to rise to the status of president (1985-1986). "Dean" Cox served Clemson in almost every role imaginable, from an offensive guard for the football team while a student, to the football team's line coach, from the baseball coach and ticket manager, to an assistant to the president and director of alumni affairs, from dean of students, to vice president for student affairs. Dean Cox devoted his life to Clemson, and even after his retirement was often seen around campus saying hello to fellow Tigers.

In his playing days, Cox was a starter on the football team, including the 1940 Cotton Bowl Championship team that won Clemson's first-ever bowl game. He was also named All-State that year and later returned to the team as a coach. He was inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame in 1984.

A Belton native, the son of Walter T. and Grace Campbell Cox came to Clemson in 1935 as a freshman cadet. Except for a year of military service during World War II, he never left. As a student, he was a company commander in the Cadet Corps, a letterman in the Block "C" Club and an All-State guard on the football team. After graduating in 1939, he stayed on for a year of postgraduate study, during which he anchored the Tiger front line that helped defeat Boston College in the Tigers' first post-season game, the Jan. 1, 1940, Cotton Bowl.

During the '40s, he worked for Clemson athletics in a number of capacities (assistant football coach, business manager, baseball coach, recruiter, IPTAY promoter). He even filled in for the boxing coach, who was called into the military, and helped clear land, with handsaws, chains and mules, for the football stadium.

In 1950, Cox became the director of public relations and alumni affairs and assistant to the president. In 1955, he was named vice president for student affairs and took a leadership role in directing Clemson's transition from military to civilian status.

"Dean Cox," as he was known to generations of Clemson students, served as vice president for student affairs for three decades. During his tenure, enrollment grew from 2,700 to more than 12,500, and he presided over some of the most important milestones in Clemson's development into a major university, including the enrollment of women and the peaceful desegregation of the student body. At the request of the Board of Trustees, he left the student affairs post in July 1985 to become Clemson's 10th president. The third Clemson graduate to be the school's president, he served until Max Lennon assumed the presidency in March 1986.

Cox once again was called upon to fill a key position temporarily when, from July 1986 until March 1987, he served as vice president for institutional advancement. Although he retired from full-time employment in April 1987, he remained active as a consultant and goodwill ambassador for the university.

Reminders of Dean Cox are all around Clemson University.

He was inducted into Clemson's athletic Hall of Fame in 1984, and the Walter T. Cox Jr. Plaza, dedicated in November 1998, occupies a central area on the university's campus in front of the University Union. Walter T. Cox Boulevard, the portion of S.C. Route 93 that passes through the Clemson University campus, was named for him in June 2002.

Credit to http://www.clemsontigers.com/

January 30th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Banks McFadden

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Banks McFadden played three sports at Clemson from 1937-1940. McFadden was an All-American in both football and basketball in the same calendar year (1939), which makes him the only Clemson athlete to accomplish that feat.

McFadden was named the nation's most versatile athlete for 1939-40 as he earned Clemson's first wire-service AP All-American recognition.

On the basketball court, McFadden led Clemson to the 1939 Southern Conference Tournament Championship, the only postseason tournament title in Clemson basketball history. The Tiger center was Clemson's top scorer each season and finished his career with a then Clemson record 810 points.

In track, McFadden won three events in the State Track Meet in one afternoon, setting state records in all three of them. Earlier in the same year he placed first in five events in a dual meet, scoring 25 points while the opposing team's total score was 28 points. His senior year he also pitched in one game for the Clemson baseball team.

On the gridiron, McFadden was a triple threat player, leading the Tigers to a 9-1 record and Clemson's first ever bowl bid. With McFadden batting down four passes in the second half, and averaging 44 yards on 11 punts, the Tigers defeated a Frank Leahy coached Boston College team, 6-3, in the 1940 Cotton Bowl in Dallas, TX.

McFadden was a record setter on the field as a runner, passer, and punter as he led the Tigers to the state championship in track twice in his three years on the team.

McFadden was elected to National Football Hall of Fame in 1959 and received the Distinguished Alumni Award from Clemson in 1966. McFadden was a charter member of the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame and South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame.

He is the only Clemson player to have his jersey retired in two sports.

McFadden was the number-four pick of the Brooklyn Dodgers (football) after the 1939 season, which is still the highest draft pick ever by a Clemson player.

McFadden played one year in the NFL and led the league in yards per rush.

McFadden coached the defensive backs at Clemson for 26 years and he was also the head basketball coach from 1947-56. Clemson's McFadden Building, dedicated in 1995, is in his honor.

McFadden was named to Clemson's Centennial team in April, 1996 and ranked as Clemson's #1 football player of all-time by a panel of Clemson historians in 1999. McFadden was inducted into the Clemson Ring of Honor in 2005.

McFadden is buried on Cemetery Hill behind Clemson Memorial Stadium.

Credit to www.clemsontigers.com

January 29th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Wyndie “Dumb Dumb” Wyndham

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Wyndie Wyndham played blocking back on offense and linebacker on defense from 1948-1950.

Excerpt from Frank Howard’s Book, Howard: The Clemson Legend

When Wyndham first came to Clemson everybody called him 'Friendly'. I didn't know at first why they called him that- because he was the most unfriendly boy on the team - but I later found out that Friendly was actually his given middlename.

You hear a lot nowadays about how quarterbacks 'audible' at the line of scrimmage to change the play that was called in the huddle. We did that 50 years ago. We did it by adding and subtracting . One day at practice we were running a play. I think I had called for them to run 54. But I saw that the tackle was in too close and the play wouldn't go so I hollered, "Add two!"

Well, 'Friendly' Wyndham was bumfuddled altogether. He stopped and he came back and said, "Whatta you mean, coach?" I said, "Well, I'll tell you. The play I called was 54. Add two used to make that 56. I don't know what it is now, but I think it's still 56. And I want you to run 56."

Then I looked at him and said, "Boy, you're so dumb you ought not to be one, you ought to be twins." After that, all his teammates didn't call him 'Friendly' anymore. Or just 'Dumb'. Because of my remark about twins they started callinghim 'Dumb-Dumb'.

But he was a great one. In 1950 we was playing Missouri out there. We got ahead of one of Coach (Don) Faurot'steams. It was in September -- the second game of the season - and it was hot as the devil. We were playing some two platoon football then, although Dumb-Dumb played in both the offensive backfield as a blocking back and at linebacker on defense. I started substituting freely because of the heat and the fact that we were comfortably ahead.

I wanted everybody to geta chance to play. Dumb-Dumb came up to me and said, "Coach, how about not putting more than six of them sorry ones in on defense with me at one time. I can protect six of them, but I don't think I can protect more than six."

Missouri had scored in its last 125 games. It was something like 13 or 14 seasons since they'd been shut out. They hadn't scored on us up to that point and Dumb-Dumb said he'd like to be a part of stopping their string. So I told Dumb-Dumb that I'd stand on the 50-yard line and that I'd have all the players I wanted to get in the game on defense stay to my left. I'd have all the offensive players stand to my right. Then I told him he could be in charge of the defensive substituting as long as he saw that everybody got in the game.

We were getting ready to kick off to them after scoring a touchdown. It was a high, but short kick. They had a big 'oltackle. He was about 6-6 and weighed about 290 back in the days when boys wasn't so big. That big tackle backed up under the ball and had his hands up in the air to catch it. The second the ball touched his hands, Dumb-Dumb hit him right in the stomach and knocked him cold. They recovered the ball and went on offense. The right halfback ran with it. Dumb-Dumb tackled him and knocked him out. The fullback ran with it on the next play and Dumb-Dumb knocked him out. Then the left halfback ran with it and he knocked him out.

That's when the Missouri captain went up to the referee and asked him to "get that wild so-and-so out of this game before he kills every one of us." Dumb-Dumb made sure all the subs - the boys he called 'the sorry ones' - got in the game, but we still managed to shut them out, 34-0.

We blanked four teams that year - Presbyterian, 55-0; Missouri, 34-0; North Carolina, 27-0; and Auburn, at Auburn,41-0 in the last regular season game. Then we beat Miami in the Orange Bowl. We didn't lose a game that season. Our only blemish was a 14-14 tie with South Carolina in one of those 'Big Thursday' games. We ended the season 10-0-1and ranked 10th in the Associated Press poll.

Going back to that 1949 Gator Bowl game, one play Dumb-Dumb made in it I'll always remember. The Missouri quarterback was named Harold Entsminger - and he was a good 'un. He pitched to one of his halfbacks –Nick Carras or Dick Braznell - I don't remember which one. Then Entsminger was leading the interference. DumbDumb was backing up the line. Well, he ran over the quarterback to get at the ball carrier and he knocked both of them out.

Dumb-Dumb was a killer.

Coaches And Player Quotes-Clemson Defeats Wake Forest

Courtesy Of Clemson Sport Information Department
Coach and Player Quotes

Clemson Head Coach Brad Brownell

Overall thoughts:
“I thought we started the game a little rusty, maybe a little nervous. We certainly did some things well, but we just didn’t make shots. We only had two turnovers in the first half, so I thought our ball movement was good and our concentration was good. But we’ve had some problems, at times,
scoring, and we didn’t make any shots. I thought Wake came out and did some good things initially and caught us on our heels just a touch. But our guys rallied back and, for the last thirty minutes, I thought we played pretty well. I was proud of the way we competed and executed. I thought we did some really good things in the last thirty minutes of the
game.”

On the importance of Bryan Narcisse today:
“He’s a high energy kid. When he’s active like that, it really helps take some pressure off of other guys. He has had maybe a little bit of an up-and-down season. But he hit a big three late for us. He defended well against (Travis) McKie for the most part when he was on him. His length helps us in terms of activity defensively and also with some rebounding.”

On if Andre Young is starting to emerge as a go-to player:
“He has to be. We all knew that he was going to be the guy coming into the season. There have been some times when he hasn’t been as consistent as we would like. That’s part of the process of being a primary player, of being asked and expected to make big plays and big shots. The last two games, he’s been able to do that for us. I think our guys certainly look for
him.”

On his team’s flat start to the game:
“I was angry about our defense early on because we talked about being an energy team and playing really hard. I actually said something to our staff. When I was talking to them upstairs, right before we came down, I didn’t like the look in their eyes. It’s a 12 o’clock game, and we haven’t one this much, especially at home. I didn’t know if we were ready for a
competitive fight. We were a little bit on our heels.”

On the team’s good assist-to-turnover ratio:
“We just took care of the ball. Wake is not a high-pressure team, so you’re not dealing with a team that’s trying to gamble and steal and those kinds of things. I think our guys have gotten a little better offensively. I think we’re a little more comfortable. We just made some more good decisions, especially in the first half.”

Wake Forest Head Coach Jeff Bzdelik

Overall Thoughts:
“Turnovers killed us. When you’ve been struggling offensively and you start the game the way we did, you have to be able to build on that success. We didn’t take advantage of the lead we had in the first half. We had some opportunities: open shots and free throws that you just have to make. There-in lies the story of the game in my mind.”

On Clemson’s defensive adjustments:
“I don’t think it was as much of an adjustment as you would think. We need to play better. We don’t screen well to get people open and we just have to play better. We have to take advantage of the opportunities that we get. We can’t turn the ball over as much as we did today. We have to play better.”

On Andre Young:
“Look at his line: five assists, two steals, no turnovers, 19 points. It’s important to have seniors that have been around for a while and who understand this game. That just takes time."

Coach and Player Quotes-Tiger Baseball Opens Practice

Tiger Baseball opened practice on Friday. The Clemson Sports Information Department released the following quotes from the coaches and players.

Head Coach Jack Leggett
Opening Statement
“I was thinking this morning that this is my 35th year of coaching and 33rd as a head coach of Division I baseball. Every year, I get as excited about the first day of practice as I did the year before. I’m going to keep doing this job as long as I keep getting excited about it. “This is a great looking group of players we’ve had out here in the fall. They’ve been working hard and I’m excited about seeing them out here in practice gear. I’m also excited about seeing them work together as a unit. I’m excited about the preparation it takes to win.”

On this year’s offensive style
“In order for us to score some runs, we’re going to have to be very good at execution. We’re going to have to be able to move runners around, get our bunts down, hit behind runners when we can, and everyone is going to have to be very unselfish. We have a few guys who have some power, but at the same time, we don’t want to build our game totally around that. If you’re sitting around waiting for that to happen with these bats, it’s not going to happen."

"We have a few guys who are going to take care of some home runs for us, but it’s important for us to stick to our game this year. We’re going to have to do what we’ve been working on in the batting cages and take our fundamentals out to the baseball field. If we do that, we’ll have a chance to be a very good offensive team. There are going to be some guys who didn’t get a lot of playing time last year that are going to have to step up and that’s what this baseball program is all about.”

On this year’s pitching rotation
“I like our pitching. I think our pitching is going to be one of our strong points. Kevin Brady is back, which is a huge plus. We also have some experience with Dominic Leone, Scott Firth, David Haselden, and Joseph Moorefield. We have some young guys coming in that are going to help us out. I’m excited about what we have a chance to do on the mound. I think we have a chance to have a good defensive team and offensively, we’re going to be a work in progress, but I think we’ll become very solid in that area as well.”

On younger players stepping up
“Some of the guys who played behind the starters last year are going to get a chance to see a lot of playing time this year. Steve Wilkerson has had a great fall and really practiced well for us. He’s had a lot of enthusiasm and some leadership in the infield. He’s going to have a chance to play a lot of second base for us, which will allow us to move Jason Stolz over to his natural position at shortstop.

“We’re also going to probably move Richie Shaffer over to third. He’s been working really hard at that position and he’s a great offensive player. Moving him over allows us to play Jon McGibbon at first base. McGibbon is a guy who didn’t get to play a lot last year. I’m also excited about Phil Pohl and Spencer Kieboom behind the plate and offensively. We just have to figure out our outfield. We lost Jeff Schaus, Will Lamb, and Chris Epps, but we have a lot of new guys vying for playing time out there.”

On outfielders
“We have six guys working for a spot out there. Thomas Brittle has a chance to play centerfield. A freshman, Tyler Slaton, has been practicing very well. Dominic Attanasio has a chance to play if he gets everything together. Joe Costigan also works hard out there. Brad Felder has transferred into the program and has a chance to see some time out there. Mike Triller, another freshman, has been working hard all the time. Garrett Boulware is another player we’re really excited about. He’s a T.L. Hanna High School graduate and he’s a guy who has a chance to help us as a catcher down the road, but we’ve been looking for a way to get him in the lineup. Phil Pohl and Jon McGibbon can also move out to the outfield. We have a lot of competition and it’s going to work itself out in the next couple of weeks.”

On using playing time as motivation
“Playing time is definitely a motivating factor for these guys. These players come to practice every day and they know they have a chance to play if they work hard and do all the little things it takes to help the team win. Everyone knows there are opportunities and there’s a chance for improvement from everyone. If they keep their nose to the grindstone and do what they’re supposed to do, they’re going to have a chance to play.”

On moving Richie Shaffer to third base
“The plan right now is to move Richie to third and get Jon McGibbon at first. Richie has come a long way at third and has really been working hard over the fall. He’s wanted to play third base since he got here, but needed to help the team at first base. This will allow McGibbon to get in the lineup this year. He’s come a long way and I think he’s going to be a really good player for us.”

On Daniel Gossett
“Daniel Gossett did a really great job for us in the fall. I thought he came on and got stronger physically and started to understand the transition from high school to college baseball. It took him awhile to figure that out, but I think he’s going to be really good for us in the spring. He’s a tough, hard-nosed competitor. He’s also a hard worker and has a great attitude. He has a great future here.

“No one has a real role right now. Daniel could start for us, he could be a reliever for us, and he could even close for us. It’s about getting him as much work as we can in the next few weeks.”

Phil Pohl, C/1B/F
On first day of practice:
“We couldn’t have asked for a better day to start practice. This is perfect. Being from New York, this is what I came down here for. We’ve all been working really hard throughout the fall, and we’re excited to get out here for day one. The season is right around the corner and we’re looking forward to getting out there and getting it done.”

On this year’s lineup:
“We lost some huge guys last year in Brad Miller, Jeff Schaus, John Hinson, Chris Epps, and Will Lamb, but this year we’re going to be young and we’re going to be eager. I think we’re going to be ready to get out here and prove to everyone that we’re going to pick up right where we left off.”

On practice shirts’ slogan, “Hunt or Be Hunted”:
“This was one of our mottos from weightlifting in the fall, and we wanted to take that philosophy from the weightroom and bring it to the field. We want to get after it and really go after the prize this year.”

On last year’s ending:
“The way last year ended is definitely a motivating factor for us. Most of the guys who were here last year have been thinking about it all offseason. We’ve been working extremely hard this fall to go out and right what happened last year. I wasn’t please with how last season ended. We definitely don’t want to go out that way, especially on our home field. I’m looking forward to fixing that this year. I hope that drives us a lot. I know I definitely haven’t forgotten about it…I think about it every day. February 17 is the first day we’re going to be able to get back on the right track, and I think we’re going to do that.”

On this year’s offensive style:
“We’re a fast team. Guys like Steve Wilkerson and Jason Stolz are very fast on the basepaths. At the same time, we have guys with a lot of power. Jon McGibbon has really come a long way and is going to be a big bat in our order. Richie Shaffer is a guy who has the most talent of anyone I’ve played with. We have a lot of power and we’re going to be able to put the ball in the gap.”


Richie Shaffer, 3B/1B
On being a leader:
“I’ve had two years in this program under a lot of great guys like Kyle Parker and Jeff Schaus, who have been staples in this program for a long time. I’ve taken a lot of their leadership skills and tried to keep it up. It’s pretty exciting to be considered one of the guys who needs to step up and be a leader this year. But, this is a team effort. We’re only as good as our weakest link. It’s going to take a combined effort from everyone to get all the young guys up to speed and to get the ball rolling, but I think this is going to be a fun season.”

On this seasons “unknowns”:
“You hear the phrase “question marks” a lot. I don’t really view it as that, but as just a lot of guys who are trying to go out and prove themselves.”

On transition to third base:
“I’m excited. It’s a chance to go back home for me. That’s where I was coming out of high school, but the team needed me at first, so that’s what I had to do. You have to do whatever is in the team’s best interest.

“I’ve been working hard in the fall at third. This is my natural position and I feel comfortable over there, so there’s no learning curve, which is helpful. I’m just going to hit the ground running and help out the pitchers as best I can. I have to work on the instinctual things, the split-second decisions…with more repetition comes more improvement and more confidence.”

On playing in the Cape Cod League:
“That was a great experience. I really had a lot of fun. There was great competition and you were facing the best of the best every day. I’m glad I got to experience that and it’s something I’ll never forget. I played third there and it felt good to get my feet wet before coming out here. It was a good experience and I learned a lot by playing with other players and coaches.”

Kevin Brady, RHP
On pitching in the fall:
“I’ve really been working on my breaking ball during the fall. I took some time off over the summer to let everything heal, and Coach (Dan) Pepicelli and I have been doing a lot of breaking ball work, and I feel great. I feel like all my pitches are there.”

On pitching staff:
“I feel like everyone has to go out there and do their job. We have the components to be a great team this year. The hitters are going to do their job and the pitchers are going to do theirs. Bottom line…we have to go out there and play Clemson baseball. Everything else will take care of itself, on and off the field.”

On personal expectations:
“I always go out there on the days when I’m told to pitch and give it everything I’ve got. I want to leave everything on the field and be satisfied with my performance when I walk off the mound.”

January 28th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Don Testerman

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Testerman was born in 1952 in Danville, Virginia. Testerman was a part of one of Clemson’s great games in 1974. Clemson travelled to Neyland Stadium to face the Tennessee Volunteers. Testerman had a big touchdown run for Clemson late in the game. Testerman’s 68 yard run over right-tackle for a touchdown gave the Tigers a 28-21 lead with 7:16 left in the game. The Volunteers would win the game, but Testerman would finish with 146 yards and the one touchdown.

Testerman finished his Clemson career with 104 carries for 545 yards (5.24 yards per carry) and 4 touchdowns. He also had 7 receptions for 63 yards (9 yards per reception).

Testerman played 4 NFL seasons from 1976-1980 for the Seattle Seahawks and the Miami Dolphins. Testerman had 230 carries for 865 yards (3.76 yards per carry) and two touchdowns. Testerman also had 73 receptions for 594 yards (8.14 yard per reception) and 5 touchdowns while in the National Football League.

Testerman is now retired and periodically substitutes for Albemarle High School.

January 27th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Cliff Austin

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Cliff Austin was a tailback at Clemson from 1978 through 1982. Austin is remembered as a solid running back at Clemson, scoring a touchdown in the Orange Bowl that helped lead Clemson to the National Championship.

Austin was also a part of some unique circumstances at Clemson, something many remember him for even more than his play on the field.

Austin had to sit out all of the 1979 season with a knee injury he suffered when tackled on a run late in the fourth quarter of the Spring Game in 1979. This injury prompted Coach Ford to sit players during the Spring Game on a few occasions during his time at Clemson.

Austin was also on the Clemson team that traveled to Tokyo, Japan to play Wake Forest in the Mirage Bowl in November of 1982. At almost the exact moment that the Clemson plane touched down in Japan, word came to Clemson that Austin’s mother had passed away suddenly back in the United States. Austin was placed on the next available plane back to the states to be with his family. Some accounts have Austin on Japanese soil less than 2 hours.

Austin is possibly best remembered for his role in a strange incident at the 1982 Orange Bowl. Austin was among three or four players that became “stuck” in an elevator for several hours on game day. The Miami Fire Department finally was able to get the players out of the elevator, but the story made the airwaves the night of the game as the NBC commentators made reference to the incident.

On the field, Cliff Austin broke the Clemson record for most rushing yards in a game with 260 in a route of Duke in October of 1982. Austin was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the 3rd round in 1983 and went on to a five-year career in the NFL.

Credit to http://www.clemsontigers.com/

January 26th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Terrance Roulhac

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Terrance Roulhac played for Clemson from 1983 until 1986 as a wide receiver. Roulhac was a product of Jacksonville, Florida. Roulhac was one of three Tigers plucked from the Jacksonville area within a three year span. Terrance Flagler and Kenny Flowers were also big recruits from the Jacksonville area that became an integral part of Clemson’s program.

Roulhac had 92 receptions in his career for 1,487 yards and 16 touchdowns. His yard per catch over that period of time was 16.2. Roulhac also had 42 kick returns in his career for a 26.4 yard average.

Roulhac was a part of one of the most dramatic endings in Clemson football history when Clemson traveled between the hedges in 1984 to face the Georgia Bulldogs. Clemson was cruising, up 20-6 at halftime on two Mike Eppley touchdown passes and helped by three interceptions from the defense. Georgia was able to crawl back into the game, tying it at 20 on a one-yard Cleveland Gary touchdown run. The Dawgs took the lead on Kevin Butler's third field goal of the game coming with six minutes to play, but Clemson responded with a 48-yard Donald Igwebuike field goal with 2:10 to go.

Georgia had a final shot to pull off the win when RB Troy Jackson ran for a 24-yard gain, but the drive stalled on the Clemson 45. Facing 4th and nine with :19 to play, Georgia head coach Vince Dooley chose to send out Butler to attempt a college football record-tying 60-yard field goal. Even with the wind slightly in his face, Butler blasted it through for the 26-23 lead with :11 to play. The Georgia sideline erupted and got nailed for an unsportsmalike conduct penalty.

Clemson's Ray Williams fielded the ensuing Butler kickoff and threw it across the field to Terrance Roulhac who took off across midfield. He got down to the Georgia 35 before going out of bounds with what appeared to be one second remaining. The clock read 0:00 leading to a conference on the field with the officials and coaches. The determination was that the clock had expired, ending the game.

Clemson fans in the stadium to this day will tell you that Roulhac went out of bounds before the clock expired and the Tigers should have been afforded the opportunity to kick a tying field goal. Instead, Butler goes down in history and the game is still regarded one of the best in the history of the rivalry.

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January 25th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Don King

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Don King played for the Clemson Tigers between 1952 and 1955. During his time at Clemson, King set the record for most rushing yards in a single contest when he gained 234 against Fordham in 1952, which is a freshman record. That was the only game he was a starting tailback.

King led the team in passing all four years at Clemson and even led the team in rushing in 1953. He paced the team in rushing, passing, punting, and punt returns in 1953. He was given the "Swede" Nelson Sportsmanship Award by the Boston Gridiron Club in 1953. This award is given to the player who most exemplifies sportsmanship in college athletics for the United States.

King was the team captain in 1955 and was named second-team All-ACC in 1953. He was named ACC "Sophomore Back of the Year" in 1953 as well. He was a two time All-ACC honoree and scored a touchdown on his first rushing attempt in 1952. King was inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame in 1992.

Credit to http://www.clemsontigers.com/

January 24th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Mike O'Cain

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Mike O'Cain lettered for Clemson from 1974-1976. O'Cain hails from Orangeburg, South Carolina, where he attended Orangeburg-Wilkinson High, the same school that produced Woody Dantzler. O'Cain quarterbacked Orangeburg-Wilkinson to a 13-0 record, a state 4A title, and a #12-national ranking his senior season. His high school coach was Dick Sheridan, who was inducted into the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004.

Upon graduation from high school, O'Cain decided to further his academic and athletic career at Clemson. A four-year letterwinner, he was the most valuable player of Clemson's 1976 team, working as both the punter and quarterback. He completed 91-182 passes for 1,291 yards and six touchdowns during his career. He still ranks 16th in Clemson history in passing efficiency. Also a gifted runner, he held the single-game quarterback rushing record until 1994 with 140 yards against N.C. State in 1976.

He received his bachelor's degree in recreation parks administration in 1977 from Clemson. Three years later, he married his high-school sweetheart (Nancy Farnum).

O'Cain began his coaching career at Clemson in 1977 as a graduate assistant. He was on the practice field and on the sidelines learning the game from some veteran coaches at the time and realized the thrill of victory, as the Tigers had an 8-3-1 season that culminated with a trip to the Gator Bowl, Clemson's first bowl appearance in 18 years.

O'Cain then coached the offensive backfield at The Citadel for the 1978-80 seasons. In 1981, he moved to Murray State, where he was an assistant under current Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer. He remained at Murray State through the 1984 season. After one year as the assistant head coach at East Carolina, he joined Sheridan as quarterbacks coach at N.C. State. O'Cain served as a top assistant under Sheridan from 1986-92 and was a part of a staff that coached the Wolfpack in six bowl games.

In 1993, Sheridan decided to retire just five weeks prior to the start of August practice and O'Cain was promoted to head coach. This short period of time for preparation did not inhibit O'Cain and the Wolfpack. He took N.C. State to a 7-4 regular-season record and an invitation to the Hall of Fame Bowl. He was the only rookie coach in the nation that year to lead a team to a bowl game.

The next year, O'Cain guided the Wolfpack to a second-place ACC finish with an 8-3 record. One of the victories was over Clemson in Death Valley, as O'Cain became the first Clemson graduate to gain victory against his alma mater in Death Valley. Overall, he had a 2-2 record in Death Valley. He completed his season with a victory over Mississippi State in the Peach Bowl. O'Cain became the second coach in N.C. State history to take a team to a bowl in his first two seasons with the program.

O'Cain and his wife, Nancy, have two daughters, Jenny (19) and Lizzi (17). O'Cain is an active member of the Tiger Brotherhood Organization, FCA, and the Clemson Community.

Credit to www.Clemsontigers.com

January 23rd Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Homer Jordan

(Photo Uploaded By Alan Cutts)

Homer Jordan was a Clemson football player from 1979-1982. Jordan quarterbacked Clemson's 1981 National Championship team and was the offensive MVP of the Orange Bowl.

Jordan earned first-team All-ACC honors in 1981, his junior season, and finished first in the ACC in passing efficiency and 12th in the nation. Jordan was an honorable mention All-American selection in 1981. He was runner-up for ACC MVP behind teammate Jeff Davis, but the team voted him MVP in 1981.

Even though he was injured for much of his senior season, he helped lead the 1982 team to a 9-1-1 record and number-eight national ranking. He also earned honorable mention All-American honors as a senior.

Jordan ranked as Clemson's 18th greatest player of the century, according to clemsontigers.com. He was inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame in 1993.

Credit to clemsontigers.com

January 22nd Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Stacey Driver

(Photo Uploaded By Alan Cutts)

Stacey Driver was a tailback at Clemson from 1982-1985. Driver played as a running back at Griffin High School and was given the title of All-State and All American.

Driver spent the better part of his career as Clemson’s “other” running back. Terry Allen came to Clemson and took some of Driver’s carries away.

But Driver was a part of a unique game at Clemson. The 1983 team was on probation and could not officially win the ACC Championship. However, as the Tigers finished the ACC Regular Season with a home game versus Maryland, the Tigers would earn the league’s best ACC record if they could beat the Terrapins and Boomer Esiason.

This was the game where Central Spirit amassed over 300,000 balloons for the record launch. Driver guided Clemson to a big game, and as Driver scored a touchdown late in the game to give the Tigers a 42-7 lead, Clemson’s play by play announcer Jim Phillips said on air “Bring on Nebraska”. Nebraska, at the time, was the #1 team in the nation and Clemson was ineligible for a bowl game

In 1987 Driver signed with the Cleveland Browns as a free agent; he played for one season before sustaining a serious knee injury.

January 21st Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Joe Blalock

(Photo Uploaded by Alan Cutts)

Joe Blalock lettered for Clemson between 1939 and 1941. Blalock was Clemson's first two-time All-American. He was a starter on the Cotton Bowl team of 1940. For three consecutive years, he was the Tigers' leading receiver, and he averaged 20.3 yards per catch for his career. He also played basketball at Clemson from 1940-41. He was a fifth-round draft pick of the Detroit Lions after the 1941 season.

Blalock was inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame in 1973 and is also a member of the South Carolina Hall of Fame. In 1996, he was named to Clemson's Centennial team. A panel of historians ranked him as Clemson's #16 football player of all-time in 1999.

Credit to www.clemsontigers.com

January 20th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Obed Ariri

(Photo Uploaded By Alan Cutts)

Obed Ariri was a two-sport athlete on the football and soccer teams from 1976-1980. He shined as a kicker, as he set or tied nine NCAA records for field goal kicking and scoring while at Clemson. When he graduated, he was the NCAA's all-time leader in career field goals made with 63. He also set seven other ACC and eight Clemson records. Until 1994, he was the career leader in kick-scoring points for Clemson and the ACC.

As a soccer player, he once scored a game-winning goal against South Carolina only eight days after kicking three field goals to defeat Notre Dame in football.

Ariri was a seventh-round draft pick for the Baltimore Colts in 1981. He played for Tampa Bay in 1984. He was inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame in 1998.

Ariri was born in Nigeria, and his middle name Chukwuma means "God Only Knows". He became a skilled soccer player and was scouted by then soccer coach IM Ibrahim. After watching him play in Nigeria, Ibrahim offered Ariri a soccer scholarship to Clemson on the spot.

He was so popular in campus during at Clemson that his Senior year someone printed "Obed Ariri for the Heisman Trophy" bumper stickers.

Ariri was drafted in the seventh round of the 1981 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts but was cut from the team days before the season. He was on the initial roster of the USFL's Washington Federals but did not last the entire season due to inconsistency and poor performance. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers acquired Obed in the 1984 pre-season but was waived before final cuts. After kicker Bill Capece flopped in the final Buccaneer pre-season game, Ariri was hired in time for the start of the regular season and he was their regular kicker that season, only to be released during the 1985 training camp. He was nicknamed the "Automatic African" by his teammates.

Credit to http://www.clemsontigers.com/ and wikipedia.

January 19th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Charlie Waters

(Photo Uploaded By Alan Cutts)

Charlie Waters lettered at Clemson from 1967-1968 and arrived in Tigertown as a quarterback, but was switched to receiver for the final 15 games of his Clemson career. Later, playing with the Dallas Cowboys, he intercepted 40 passes.

Waters played quarterback at North Augusta High School and made the 1965 Shrine Bowl team. Waters signed a scholarship at Clemson and by the spring of 1968 as a junior, he was competing with Billy Ammons for the starting QB job. When Ammons hurt his knee in spring practice, Waters won the position.

Clemson started the season 0-3-1 and when Ammons’ knee healed, he took over the starting job and Waters shifted to WR for the remaining 15 games of his Clemson career.

A three-year letterman from 1967–69, Waters was an All-ACC selection in 1969 at WR as a senior. During his Clemson career, he caught 68 passes for 1,196 yards and 17.1 yards per catch, to go along with four TD receptions. He still ranks eighth all-time for yards per reception and eighteenth all-time in receiving yards. Waters was inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame in 1981. He also was inducted into the North Augusta and South Carolina halls of fame.
Waters was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the third round of the 1970 NFL Draft. Although he nearly was released during training camp, Waters was converted to defensive back and started his rookie year as a backup to Cliff Harris. Waters ended up starting 6 games after Harris had to serve military duty. Waters had 5 interceptions that season, as the Cowboys would go on to lose Super Bowl V. His performance was good enough to make the NFL all-rookie team as a free safety in 1970.

The next year he was moved to cornerback, where he struggled for four years in a backup role. Waters was moved to Strong Safety in 1975 to replace Cowboys great Cornell Green. . He responded with 3 interceptions for 55 yards and a TD. That season, the Cowboys would end up reaching Super Bowl X before losing to Pittsburgh.

Waters made his first All-Pro team in 1976 with 3 interceptions. He returned to the Pro Bowl in 1977 and would make his final Pro Bowl appearance in 1978.

Waters injured his knee before the start of the 1979 season and would sit out the entire year. He returned in 1980 and had 5 interceptions. After getting 3 interceptions in 1981, he retired with 50 interceptions, the second-most in franchise history.

After retirement, Waters entered coaching as the defensive coordinator for the Denver Broncos in 1993 and 1994 and then for the University of Oregon.

In 2006, the Dallas Cowboys hired Waters as the new color commentator for the Cowboys Radio Network, working alongside Brad Sham. Outside of football, Waters works with longtime teammate Cliff Harris at a gas marketing company. In February 2007, Waters announced that he would be leaving the radio booth after only one season, citing a busy work schedule that did not allow him enough time to prepare for the game broadcasts.

Credit
http://en.goldenmap.com/Charlie_Waters
www.clemsontigers.com

January 18th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

David Treadwell

(Photo Uploaded By Alan Cutts)

David Treadwell lettered for Clemson from 1985-1987 as a field goal kicker. Treadwell holds a special place in the hearts of all Clemson football fans for his last second field goals that beat Georgia in consecutive seasons, 1986 and 1987. Both field goals came in the last 10 seconds of the game to beat the Bulldogs: 31-28 in 1986 and 21-20 in 1987. Six times in Treadwell's career he made field goals inside the last three minutes of games that won or tied games for the Tigers.


Treadwell's kicks were significant reasons Clemson won the ACC Championships of 1986 and 1987. He was also the starting kicker in 1985 and in his first game as a starter, booted a field goal as time ran out to beat Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.

Treadwell came to Clemson as a walk-on. He spent the 1984 season learning from All-American Donald Igwebuike. Today, Igwebuike ranks first and Treadwell second in Clemson history in career field goal percentage. Igwebuike made 74 percent of his field goals, and Treadwell connected on 71 percent. During the 1989 NFL season they were both ranked among the most accurate field goal kickers in the NFL.

Treadwell once made 63 consecutive extra points, third longest streak in Clemson history. That senior season was certainly memorable and gratifying for Treadwell because he was named a first-team consensus All-American, the only consensus All-America kicker in Clemson history. He was also a first-team Academic All-ACC selection that year.



Following his Clemson career, he played in the NFL for six seasons. He had his best year in his first season when he was chosen to the Pro Bowl and made the NFL All-Rookie team as a member of the Denver Broncos. He played in Denver between 1989-92 and retired after two seasons with the New York Giants (1993-94). Five years into his career he was the third most accurate field goal kicker in NFL history. Treadwell was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987.




Treadwell also received All-AFC and All-Rookie honors, and went on to start in Super Bowl XIV. He remains among the all-time NFL leaders in field goal accuracy. Treadwell also received the Mackey Award as the AFC leading Scorer and was the Byron Whizzer White Humanitarian Award nominee for the Denver Broncos. Extremely active in the civic community, David Treadwell has served on the advisory boards for the Denver Broncos Youth Foundation and the Colorado Sports Council, receiving numerous awards for his charitable contributions including the Make-A-Wish Foundation Outstanding Contributor Award, Denver Bronco Community Action Player Award and the U.S. Navy Pride of the Rockies Award for Outstanding Community Service.

While playing in Denver, David created the “Kicks for Kids” program to benefit Make-A-Wish, and he has also served as official spokesperson for the Leukemia Society of Colorado, the Girl Scouts of America Cookie Drive, the DARE program and the Metropolitan State College Plain and Fancy Ball.

David also attended Law School, graduating from the University of Denver College of Law in 1996. Upon passing the Colorado State Bar, David practiced law for Montgomery, Little and McGrew focusing on real estate transactional law. Also, during that time, David assisted the Denver Broncos Football Club in a successful political campaign to build a state of the art football stadium now known as Invesco Field at Mile High. Subsequently, David embarked on a six year broadcasting career that included being a radio sports talk show host for Clear Channel Communications of Colorado and a television Sports Director/Anchor for Fox 31 News – KDVR, while maintaining an Of Counsel status with the law firm of Montgomery, Little and McGrew.

Recently, David Treadwell has joined Effective Presentations as a partner and keynote speaker. In addition, David Treadwell is currently serving as President of the Denver Broncos Alumni Association.



(Credit to Clemsontigers.com)

Excuses For Clemson Defense Should Not Involve Number Of Plays

Scott Rhymer
Scottrhymer.tps@gmail.com

One of the discussion points when Chad Morris walked onto campus at Clemson University last January was the impact that a high-octane offense can have on a defense. It is very logical to see how an offense that is geared to run upwards of 80 plays per game is going to have a negative impact on a defense. If your offense is running 80 plays per game, your defense is going to run more plays per game as well, often with little to no break.

So as Clemson parted ways with Kevin Steele several days ago, there were murmurings from those in the media and within the Clemson fanbase that wondered if Steele was dealt a bad hand of blame for a defense that finished 71st in the nation in yards per game. Was the offensive mind set at Clemson under Chad Morris partly to blame for having a defense ranked so low in the national statistics?

The short answer is, maybe. But before you judge for yourself, you need to understand the math that goes into these statistics and try to correlate that from one year to the next.

In 2009, Steele’s defense gave up only 314.3 yards per game and finished the year ranked 20th in the nation. 2010 saw the Clemson defense give up 320.2 yards per game, which ranked Steele’s defense 19th in the nation. And in 2011, with Chad Morris calling the plays on the offensive side of the ball, Clemson gave up 394.4 yards per game for the ugly 71st ranking.

But those numbers don’t factor in the number of plays run, which obviously can have a huge impact on defensive numbers.

In 2009, Steele’s defense was on the field for 967 plays over the course of 14 games. That is an average of 69 plays per game. Taking the yards per game into the equation, Clemson’s 2009 defense gave up 4.55 yards per play.

During the 2010 season, Steele’s defense was on the field for 865 plays over the course of 13 games. That is an average of 67 plays per game. Taking the yards per game into the equation, Clemson’s 2010 defense gave up 4.78 yards per play.

During the 2011 season, Steele’s defense was on the field for 986 plays over the course of the 14 game season. That is an average of 70 plays per game. Taking the yards per game into the equation, Clemson’s 2011 defense gave up 5.63 yards per play.

Simply placed into yards per play, the 2009 Clemson defense was Steele’s best unit. If this past year’s defense gave up the same number of yards per play as the 2009 unit (4.55 yards per play), Clemson’s defense in 2011 would have averaged 318.5 yards per game given up on defense. That would have ranked Clemson’s 2011 defense 16th in the nation this year, even with the Chad Morris high octane offense placing the defense on the field for more plays per game.

Using that same formula to compare the 2010 defense with the 2011 defense, you can find similar results. If this past year’s defense gave up the same number of yards per play as the 2010 unit (4.78 yards per play), Clemson’s defense in 2011 would have averaged 320.2 yards per game given up on defense. That would have ranked Clemson’s 2011 defense also at 16th in the nation this year, even with the extra plays.

Clearly, either the 2009 or 2010 Clemson defense would have been much more productive than the 2011 defense, regardless of the difference in the number of snaps played under a fast paced offense.

You can flip that around as well. Using Clemson’s 2011 yards per play (5.63), the Tiger defense would have given up 388.5 yards per game in 2009 (which would have ranked 79th in the nation that year) and 377.2 yards per game in 2010 (which would have ranked 67th in the nation that year).

So when looking and comparing the defenses, yards per game should not necessarily be the determining factor in comparing defenses that played under very different offensive systems across those there years. Yards per game can be skewed a bit based on the number of plays the defense is out on the field trying to defend.

It is certainly understandable for a defense at Clemson to give up more yards per game when the offense is running 80 plays per game as opposed to when an offense runs only 60 plays per game. A fast paced game is going to cause more plays and more yards than a slowed down game. But that, by itself, is not an excuse for a defense being ranked 71st in the nation in yards per game.

So what is a reasonable benchmark for a defense at Clemson to rank when you are playing with a fast paced offense? We can use 2011’s final stats to help project that.

I took the 15th, 20th, and 25th ranked defenses in 2011 (Wisconsin, Penn State, and California) and averaged their plays per game on defense. I picked those three simply because they were good (not great) defenses to use as a comparison.

Those three teams combined to run 2598 plays over the course of the season and gave up a combined 12,967 yards. That is an average of only 65 plays per game, five plays per game less than Clemson. That averages out to 4.99 yards per play. So, at least in 2011, a good (but not great defense) would average somewhere around 4.99 yards per play.

If you project 4.99 yards per play to the number of plays Clemson ran this year on defense, the Tigers in 2011 would have given up 349.3 yards per game. That would have ranked Steele’s defense 34th in the nation.

To translate that…if Clemson is going to run a high paced offense that runs 70+ plays per game, a reasonable expectation for a good (but not great) defense would be to rank somewhere around 35th in the nation. Of course, Clemson was 71st in the nation this year, which is obviously not getting it done.

Finally, a quick look at the top 10 defenses in yards per game in the nation, you will find that all of those defenses were on the field for less plays than Clemson’s defense was in 2011. The top 10 defenses for yards per game in 2011 with their number of plays per game are as follows:

Alabama (55), LSU (64), South Carolina (64), Florida State (66), Georgia (62), Michigan State (65), Illinois (65), Florida (65), Central Florida (61), and Virginia Tech (62).

To expect a Clemson defense, running at 70 plays per game, to be in the same ballpark as those ten defenses in total yards is simply unreasonable.

However, Clemson should compare to teams like Penn State (69 plays per game and ranked 20th in yards per game), Southern Mississippi (74 plays per game and ranked 29th in yards per game), and West Virginia (71 plays per game and ranked 33rd). Those are examples of good (not great) defenses.

Clemson was not good. Clemson was not great. Clemson’s defense in 2011 was bad.

And that can’t all fall down to the fast paced offense of Chad Morris. Other teams have done more with similar numbers of snaps as Clemson had this year.

Improvement on defense for Clemson in 2012 may not be that the Tigers have a top 10 defense. That may be too much to ask based on the pace of the offense. But it is not too much to ask to have a top 30 defense…something that other teams were able to do with similar number of snaps.

The new defensive coordinator at Clemson will not be asked to make miracles happen. A top 30 defense in yards per game with the type of offense Clemson runs is a recipe for a lot of wins. Heck, we won 10 games this year with the 71st best defense in the nation…imagine what would happen if cut that in half to the 35th best defense in the nation in 2012?

January 17th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Marvin Sims

(Photo Uploaded By Alan Cutts)

Marvin Sims lettered for Clemson from 1978-1980 as a fullback. At Clemson, Sims carried the ball 316 times in his career for 1,541 yards and 4 touchdowns.

One the highlights of Sims’ career at Clemson was the 1978 regular season finale against the Gamecocks. The rivalry game was played in front of a record crowd of 68,000 fans against South Carolina. Clemson had been constructing the South upper deck stands, luxury suites, and press box during the season, and it had sold 15,000 tickets to the game prior to its completion. The structure was finished just two days prior to the game, much to the relief of Athletic Director Bill McLellan.

The environment was electric, especially when Clemson jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter behind a running attack that would finish the game with 397 yards. Three different Tigers (Steve Fuller, Marvin Sims, and Lester Brown) all went over 100 yards rushing, the first time Clemson had three 100-yard rushers in a game since 1950. The Tigers coasted to a 41-23 victory, the ninth straight win to close the regular season.

Sims was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in 12th round (324th overall) of the 1980 NFL Draft. Sims played in 32 games for the Colts, carrying the ball 54 times for 186 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Credit to Clemsontigers.com

January 16th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Dwayne Meadows

Photo Uploaded By Alan Cutts

Dwayne Meadows came to Clemson as a product of Spartanburg High School in 1984. Meadows freshman year saw him playing alongside Michael Dean Perry and William Perry on Clemson’s defensive line.

Meadows best day as a Tiger came in September of 1985, when he had 13 tackles against Georgia in a loss to the Bulldogs.

In the Spring of 1987, Meadows “retired” from Clemson football after getting married and having a child. Meadows wanted to graduate early to support his family, and his “retirement” from playing football had the full support of Danny Ford.

“Dwayne Meadows is a winner and he played winning football. But it’s our agreement that he won’t be playing football next season unless we get into a bind. It’s tough to do well in football and do well in school and have his family responsibilities too", Ford said in April of 1987.

Meadows was replaced in the lineup by Vance Hammond and Richard McCullough, who both backed up Michael Dean Perry in 1987.

Thanks to the Spartanburg Herald Journal for quotes from Danny Ford

January 15th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Covington “Goat” McMillan

(Photo Uploaded By Alan Cutts)

Covington “Goat” McMillan played football for Clemson from 1928-1930. He was a tailback on a team that beat South Carolina three straight years. The teams went 8-3, 8-3, and 8-2 in those years.

After playing football he joined the coaching staff in 1937 after coaching at Furman. He was a backfield coach until 1955 when he was made head freshman coach. Some of the players Coach McMillan coached include Banks McFadden, Jackie Calvert, Bobby Gage, and Joel Wells.

McMillian participated in seven bowl games, including the 1940 Cotton Bowl, 1949 Gator Bowl, 1951 Orange Bowl, 1952 Gator Bowl, 1957 Orange Bowl, 1959 Sugar Bowl, and the 1959 Bluebonnet Bowl. Goat McMillan retired at the end of the 1964 season.

McMillan, who lettered at Clemson in 1928 and 1929 under coach Josh Cody’s brilliant young backfield assistant “Red” Sanders — who would coach UCLA to AP four top 5 rankings from 1952-55, returned to his alma mater in 1937 after several years on Furman’s coaching staff. This was a time when Furman was the dominant college football team in South Carolina, compiling a 4-1-1 record against Coach Neely’s first six Tiger teams (1931-36).

McMillan breathed new life into Clemson’s offense. His 1939 Cotton Bowl backfield of All-American tailback Banks McFadden, All-Southern wingback Shad Bryant, sophomore fullback Charlie Timmons (All-Southern in 1940 and 1941), and blocking back Joe Payne outscored 10 opponents 165-45 en route to a 9-1 season.

(Photo By Clemsontigers.com)

McMillan’s 1948 Gator Bowl backfield of All-American tailback Bobby Gage, sophomores Fred Cone and Ray Mathews at fullback/wingback, and Bobby Martin at blocking back went 11-0 in outscoring the opposition, 274-76. But his 1950 backfield was, if not perfect, at least “dreamy.” Coach Frank Howard referred to this great group as his single wing “dream backfield”

Credit to Clemsontigers.com and thestate.com

January 14th Clemson Historic Picture Of The Day

Thomas Ray

(Photo uploaded by Alan Cutts)

Thomas Ray played quarterback at Clemson from 1963-1965. Ray held the Clemson record for passing yards in a game (323 yards) for nearly 33 years, until Brandon Streeter surpassed the record in 1998 at 329 yards.

Ironcially, Ray's career passing yards was only 60 yards more (383) than he had in the one game back in 1965. Ray was instrumental in a Clemson win over TCU on October 23, 1965 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson. The Tigers won the game 3-0.

If you are a member of the Greenville News, you can view some additional photos of Thomas Ray online at :

http://clemson.greenvilleonline.com/content/gallery/tagged/thomas-ray/?page=1

During the offseason, I will update the blog with Historic Clemson Pictures. Editorials will take place several times a week as well, but I hope to have new pictures uploaded every single day. So make sure you stop by the blog daily to see a new picture. The hope is that some of you will see these pictures for the first time and may take something away from seeing these pictures. When possible, I will credit those that uploaded the pictures to Internet sites. In some cases, Clemson fans have sent these directly to me. If you have old Clemson photos, send them to me at scottrhymer.tps@gmail.com

Looking Big Picture, Steele Simply Could Not Return

Scott Rhymer
Scottrhymer.tps@gmail.com

I’m sure that the next few days will be filled with discussion regarding whether or not Kevin Steele was fired or whether he simply walked away. Those semantics will have an impact on contracts and money, but for all other purposes the reality of who made that decision is meaningless.

What matters is that the Clemson defense will be under new leadership next year, possibly with a new look. And looking at the big picture, there really was no other alternative conclusion to a season in which the Clemson defense was as bad as it could be.

To be very fair, Steele’s defense this year was not the most talented or experienced group in the conference. Part of that is attributed to poor recruiting on the defensive side of the ball in terms of impact players. Part of that were early exits to the NFL by underclassman. Part of that was an offense this year that put a lot of quick drives and quick three and outs into the repertoire.

We could sit here all day and talk about the “why's” and add to the bucket of excuses. None if it matters. The only thing that matters is the production. And the production on the defensive side of the ball in 2011 stunk.

Clemson’s defense gave up 394.4 yards per game this year. That was 9th in the ACC with only Wake, Duke, and Maryland behind the Tigers.

Clemson’s defense gave up 29.3 points per game. That was 10th in the ACC with only Duke and Maryland behind the Tigers.

The rushing defense was 10th in the ACC and the passing defense was 6th in the ACC.

When you shake it all up in a basket, the only thing that you can know for sure is that the results on the field warranted a change of direction in the defensive football program.

Kevin Steele, in isolation, is a good football coach. He probably has forgotten more defensive football than most of us will ever know. But you can’t put lipstick on a pig. Clemson, defensively, was an embarrassment in 2011 and Kevin Steele was paid far too much money to have an embarrassing defense.

What you see now in college football is a byproduct of the increasing salaries for head coaches and assistant coaches. And that byproduct of those bulky salaries is going to be a quick trigger for coaches that don’t get the job done.

If you are going to be a coordinator in this day and age and take multi-year contracts that add up in excess of $1 million dollars, you better have some answers to any obstacles that are thrown your way with your unit.

If Steele was paid $50,000 a year, it may be easier to forgive him for somebody else’s recruiting mistakes, youth, and bad breaks. But when you make over half a million dollars a year, fans expect you to overcome whatever obstacles are thrown in your path.

Steele did not avoid those obstacles; he ran smack dab into them.

Looking at the big picture, Steele’s fate was doomed. If Coach Swinney would have brought him back every single first down and point would be over-scrutinized by media and fans next football season. Waiting for the disaster would be the personality that would cast its shadow around the team.

As it is, Steele is gone. He’ll coach somewhere else. And the new coordinator will breath fresh air into the program. And if that sounds like Chad Morris taking over for Billy Napier you are listening very well. Napier was not all the blame for the poor offensive performance, but he had to be the thing that was changed. Steele has suffered the same fate.

Maybe the most profound statement Coach Swinney is making with his coaches is accountability. If your unit does not perform well and improve during the course of a season, it may be your job that is the consequence. Both Billy Napier and Kevin Steele had plenty of good things to hang their hat on at Clemson. And neither is still with the team.

Looking at the big picture, there really was no other way for this to end after the season ended the way it did. Someone will be asked to come in and do to the Clemson defense what Chad Morris did for the Clemson offense.

And Clemson will be better for it…even if the blame did not fall completely on those that had to fall on the sword.

January 13th Historic Picture Of The Day

Joel Wells

(Photo Uploaded By Allan Cutts)

Joel Wells (far right) was a halfback at Clemson from 1954-56, serving as an alternate captian during his senior season. He was an All-ACC selection his junior and senior seasons and led the team in rushing in 1955 with 782 yards.

Wells helped Clemson to a 19-10-2 record during his three years including a trip to the 1957 Orange Bowl. Wells credentials, which included one of the best blockers on the squad as well as a top defensive back, earned him third-team All-American honors in 1955. Wells was also a two-time first-team All-ACC selection.

During his time at Clemson, Wells led the Tigers in rushing for three straight seasons (1954-56). He was the first Clemson player to ever accomplish that mark. That mark also allowed him to be the first Clemson running back to rank in the top 20 in the nation in rushing for consecutive seasons (seventh in 1955 and 18th in 1956).

After his senior season, Wells played in the 1957 Senior Bowl before being a second-round draft pick of the Green Bay Packers. Wells is still ranked in the top 20 in career rushing at Clemson. He was inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame in 1974 and the state of South Carolina Hall of Fame in 1974.

During the offseason, I will update the blog with Historic Clemson Pictures. Editorials will take place several times a week as well, but I hope to have new pictures uploaded every single day. So make sure you stop by the blog daily to see a new picture. The hope is that some of you will see these pictures for the first time and may take something away from seeing these pictures. When possible, I will credit those that uploaded the pictures to Internet sites. In some cases, Clemson fans have sent these directly to me. If you have old Clemson photos, send them to me at scottrhymer.tps@gmail.com

January 12th Historic Picture Of The Day

Steve Reese

Steve Reese lettered for Clemson from 1982-1985. Reese was a major reason Clemson was in the top 10 in the nation in rushing during the 1985 season. Reese had 54 knockdown blocks in the last five games of the 1985 season. Reese was a Second-team All-American by Football News as a senior and was an honorable mention choice as a junior. Reese was also a first-team All-ACC award winner. Reese was in on 776 plays for a season average of over 70 plays per game, the most by a Clemson player at that time.

Photo uploaded by Alan Cutts.
During the offseason, I will update the blog with Historic Clemson Pictures. Editorials will take place several times a week as well, but I hope to have new pictures uploaded every single day. So make sure you stop by the blog daily to see a new picture. The hope is that some of you will see these pictures for the first time and may take something away from seeing these pictures. When possible, I will credit those that uploaded the pictures to Internet sites. In some cases, Clemson fans have sent these directly to me. If you have old Clemson photos, send them to me at scottrhymer.tps@gmail.com

January 11th Historic Picture Of The Day

Richard Butler

No...that is not a typo. Most of you know Clemson great Jerry Butler. But did you also know that his brother, Richard Butler, played for the Tigers as well? The photo was taken at the 1982 Clemson vs. Wake Forest game (Mirage Bowl) in Tokyo, Japan and uploaded by Carl "Allen" Cutts.


Richard Butler was a reserve wide receiver at Clemson from 1982-1984 finishing his career with 26 receptions for 349 yards and one touchdown. This past Spring, Butler participated in the Clemson "Sons" game during the Spring Game. Here is a picture from the Orange and White of Butler making a "tackle" during the game.




During the offseason, I will update the blog with Historic Clemson Pictures. Editorials will take place several times a week as well, but I hope to have new pictures uploaded every single day. So make sure you stop by the blog daily to see a new picture. The hope is that some of you will see these pictures for the first time and may take something away from seeing these pictures. When possible, I will credit those that uploaded the pictures to Internet sites. In some cases, Clemson fans have sent these directly to me. If you have old Clemson photos, send them to me at scottrhymer.tps@gmail.com

It Was Said-Following The Wit And Wisdom Of Twitter During BCS Championship Game

Scott Rhymer
scottrhymer.tps@gmail.com

Watching the BCS National Championship game last night proved, at least to me, to be a less than entertaining endeavor. So about midway through the 1st Quarter, I found myself following Twitter and the thousands of tweets about the game.

The Tigerpregame account at Twitter has about 1,000 followers, and there were countless tweets coming accross the wire last night. So I picked out a few of my favorites and placed them here below in chronological order as the game progressed.

What you find via the Tweets is a snapshot of how folks felt last night through the wit and humor of the many folks that found ways to make the game, at least to me, more entertaining last night.

Twitter During BCS Game @Tigerpregame

dennisdoddcbs Dennis Dodd
Hello, LSU? It's me, the 50.

ojclemson65 oliver
Is it just me, or have I already seen this game???

KevinOnCFB Kevin McGuire
Great, Twitter is ahead of the ESPN feed. :(

dennisdoddcbs Dennis Dodd
The St. Louis Blues think this is low scoring.

StevePoliti Steve Politi
I'm really going to have to work at pretending I watched this entire BCS game tomorrow.

DannyFordIsGod Chili
This game should've just been played on a half field.

harveypeeler Harvey Peeler
Wish trailer at bottom of my TV screen would show the tweets I'm reading. Game > Tweet ?

KevinOnCFB Kevin McGuire
Yes! MT @pretzel_logic: I know @KevinOnCFB will agree with me, watching the bands at halftime would be more entertaining than game has been.

KevinOnCFB Kevin McGuire
This halftime field goal kicking promo is about as exciting as the first half was, in all honesty. #BCS

Mobute Mobutu Sese Seko
For the "Total Yards" section of ESPN's graphic on the LSU offense, there was just a picture of a donkey sleeping under an apple tree.

QualkTalk William Qualkinbush
Jordan Jefferson makes Jerry Sandusky look comfortable right now.

accsecblog The ACC and SEC Blog
AJ McCarron is playing himself into an early 2012 Heisman candidate. On the money all night long

HBTigergirl Hannah Burleson
Unfortunately the most exciting part of this game was that injury. This game is BORING!

smartfootball Smart Football
LSU's offensive gameplan tonight is the least effective scheme of attack since Custer's last stand.

ColFootballNews CFN
They're not booing. They're saying we don't really want Jordan Jefferson to come back out and suck.

BTNTomDienhart Tom Dienhart
LSU had weeks to prepare for this game, and this is it? Embarrassing

ACCSports ACC Sports
RT @thekeyplay: THE WORST PART, THERE'S NO HAWAII GAME ON AFTER THIS.

QualkTalk William Qualkinbush
If any kid watching this game isn't familiar with your 3's times tables by now, you aren't paying attention.

Ryan4Niles Ryan McNaughton
If this was Ohio State vs. Wisconsin, we'd be hearing about how awful the offense was, not how great the defense was. #bcs #lsu #alabama

BonnieBernstein Bonnie Bernstein
This game is so dreadful I'm tempted to watch Jersey Shore On Demand.

TalkinACCSports Jeffrey Fann
Please LSU throw one vertical pass

gobblercountry Gobbler Country
WILL THEY CROSS MIDFIELD? I’M ON PINS AND NEEDLES OVER HERE.

heathradio Heath Cline
Only non Bama fan happy with this game is my dog. She's wanted to go for evening walk for 20 minutes. No point in waiting anymore.

@PaulAzinger 10 teams could beat #LSU tonight. Unfortunately they're playing a team they already whooped in their house! #BCS #boring

smartfootball Smart Football
This kind of performance by LSU's offense should get coaches fired. LSU D played fine; got zero help.

EyeOnCFB CBSSports CFB Blog
Just when you thought it was impossible, Trent Richardson breaks free for a 34-yard TD run. YES, A TD. IN THIS GAME. Alabama now up 21-0.

DanBeebe Fake Dan Beebe
I can only imagine that Georgia Southern, after putting up 21 on Alabama, wants another shot.

CBSSports CBS Sports
Easiest way to get to 21 points? Five field goals in seven attempts, a touchdown, and a missed extra point. Of course.

ShakinSouthland DrB
There will be fights on Bourbon tonight

ACCSports ACC Sports
Les is just keeping Jefferson in out of spite, now. Can't be any other reason.

GottliebShow Doug Gottlieb
If this is the game of the Century, how bad has our century been?

JThurnshow James Thurn
“@mattluvJesus: @JThurnshow LSU is West champs and SEC champs, but Bama is National champs, yeah that makes sense.”

JHokanson Justin Hokanson
Les Miles just punted. Down 21. With three minutes in the fourth quarter. Knew that dude was crazy.

aimclemson Greg Wallace
And the best part of this game? Over in 3 hours. Wish I'd had that at the Orange Bowl. #deadlinekiller