Football is Finally Here

The most anxiously awaited football season in Clemson’s history has finally arrived.  Even with two national championships to boast of, no Clemson football team has ever generated this much excitement before the season began.  So, with the 48-7 victory over Furman, we now have a better idea if what we’ve seen on paper is translatable to the field.  Not total confirmation – just a better idea.  There are no doubt some who will express disappointment  with some of what they saw, but for the most part, it was a solid, if not great performance, against an obviously over-matched opponent.

As I predicted, the quarterback reps were split almost equally between Kelly Bryant and Trevor Lawrence, with Chase Brice also getting considerable playing time.  I expect to see the same type of distribution next week against Texas A & M.  Both Bryant and Lawrence showed early jitters, with both missing open receivers in their first series, but then each settled down and did what he needed to do to remain solidly in the hunt to be considered the #1 QB, Bryant mostly with his legs, Lawrence with his arm.

Clemson’s defensive line was as advertised – a dominant force even when going two and three deep.  Depth at linebacker was impressive.  The secondary had some good moments, but in my view there were too many open receivers in the middle and too many interference penalties on the long passes down the sidelines.  I don’t see the secondary as a weakness, but it certainly was not a strong point yesterday.

Speaking of strong points, how about those special teams.  BT Potter is the real deal, as he got the touchback with every kickoff.  Greg Huegel hit a 35 yarder and a 50 yard field goal.  And Amari Rodgers picked up 87 yards on two punt returns, one going 62 yards.  Another strong point was with the play of the youngsters on the team.  Several true freshmen and first-time players stood out, justifying their hype and their 4- and 5-star ratings, indicating that Clemson is going to be a football power for some time to come.

There were no surprises in the game and one would have to be pretty pessimistic to be disappointed in either the outcome or the performance.  One pundit referred to it as a “vanilla” performance.  I wouldn’t disagree with that.  We’ll certainly need to do more against Texas A & M in College Station, more like “butter pecan” I think.

Meanwhile, we enjoyed a sumptuous tailgate before and after the game.  The highlight of the tailgate was the presentation at our tailgate site of the Bond Distinguished Athlete award to our dear friend and brother, Dr Jim Sutherland.  Jim was an outstanding basketball player in the 60’s, but this award recognized him for what he has done off the court in his career.  As a pediatric heart specialist (now retired), Jim has done outstanding work throughout the world for indigenous children suffering heart ailments.   The Bond award was established by Margaret Bond and her late husband, Steve, who was a golfer at Clemson.  Margaret actually did the presentation, accompanied by other Clemson dignitaries.  Jim spends most of his time now painting, not the sides of houses, but art work.  One of my proudest possessions in a beautiful painting of the scene from the back deck of our previous house on Cooper Ridge.  It hangs prominently on our living room wall.