Clemson Football: 2008 Is Year of the Tiger with Tommy Bowden's Talented Squad

Columnist Written on May 14, 2008

(Page 2 of 2)

On the other side of the ball Clemson is as talented athletically as they've ever been, however the glaring flaw is the lack of experience within the front seven. Losing Philip Merling and leading tacklers Tramaine Billie and Nick Watkins leave less than seasoned players to battle for those starting positions. Daquan Bowers, one of the most heralded recruits in Clemson history, has enrolled early and looks as good, if not better than advertised which should serve to solidify the defensive line and give them quality depth.

While the front seven is long on talent but short on experience the back four should be the class of the ACC. The starting secondary combined for 22 pass break and 13 interceptions and features a Bronko Nagurski watch list member in Hamlin. Safeties Michael Hamlin and Chris Clemons teamed with corners Crezdon Butler and Chris Chancellor to all finish as top ten tacklers that are as equally adept at playing the run as the pass. Backups Marcus Gilchrist, Byron Maxwell and DeAndre McDaniels all saw significant time and will strong be contributors. This unit will be the heart and soul of the Clemson defense.

The difference between this talented Clemson squad and the other teams within the top five of college football has nothing to do with the teams at all. The difference is their schedule, Clemson can very realistically run through the 2008 season without playing a team ranked higher than 20. Clemson's toughest games of the year are the out of conference contests with Alabama and rival South Carolina. Of their league games only Boston College has caused the Tigers problems lately. BC has been Clemson kryptonite thus far but this season the Eagles look to be only a shell of the team that has stymied the Tigers for the last three years.

The late season struggles for the Tigers have been well documented in recent years. Second half collapses have come to epitomize the Bowden era in Tigertown and this season he has the talent and the team to turn the corner and begin to dominate an ACC that is weak for the time being. Nothing short of a conference championship will suffice for Tiger Nation and Bowden's team is talented enough to deliver the ACC title and a little extra back to Clemson, South Carolina.

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written on May 14, 2008 Opinion

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