Orange Blooded [2196]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 4913
Joined: 1/20/03
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Various in sundry miscellaneous ramblings and so forth
Nov 23, 2015, 11:43 PM
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I'm a bit perplexed over the chaos and oddities in college football this year that I feel compelled to share a few musings:
1. I know I am not the only one when I say I am scratching my head that LSU would even consider letting Miles go. Yes, I hear they "expect" national championships (http://espn.go.com/ncf/story/_/id/14204487/good-possibility-lsu-tigers-buy-les-miles-contract-source). They should be proud that those are their expectations. They've won like 3 in their history. USC has won 11. So has Michigan. And Notre Dame. Ohio State has won "only" 7. Bama claims 14 national championships. How about being competitive? Yes, that’s more like it. But LSU has been competitive. LSU can do much worse than Miles. And in this crazy year where everyone is changing coaches like socks...wow.
2. Syracuse getting rid of Shafer? Did I say everyone is changing coaches like socks? What kind of socks does Syracuse think they are going to get? They could get lucky, but I doubt it. When they get in that proverbial coaching line this year, where in line will they find themselves? Doesn't seem like they've given him enough of a chance. Frankly, I have seen some improvement in their play over the past couple of years. And I'm actually going to miss Shafer's ...colorful...personality!
3. I may be in the minority, but I just don't see giving Ezekiel Elliott a pass for his uncontrolled public comments following Ohio State's loss. I won’t be surprised if Meyer ends up with control problems in his program. He said Elliott is just so…honest? Uh, is that how you spin it? Elliott was out of line. It didn't take Elliott saying it for others to know it. Other observers could draw those conclusions themselves. So Meyer then ADMITS the player is right but it's the wrong forum, but no punishment? I can see the slope getting slippier. There can only be so many cooks in the kitchen. The order and authority structure is there for a reason, and it only takes a crack. I guess the “E” in TEAM is for “Elliott.”
4. The success UNC has had this year simply feels wrong. I truly don’t know why UNC is playing any sports right now. Their academic scandal is so dirty that I’m kind of embarrassed about having to play them in the ACCCG.
5. Clemson’s success this year is not luck. It is not due to other schools’ “underperforming.” It is real. It is the result of a house built, one block at a time, by someone who understands how to build. And that building has been fueled by incredible VISION. Dabo saw it long ago. He has made declarations and assertions along the way. Remember how Tajh’s mother said everything Dabo said would happen did? Dabo is human. He has no crystal ball. But he does have faith. Faith in himself, his beliefs, his core values, his players, his staff, his institution’s support, and, most of all, God. The mimicking and imitation of him and his ways by others won’t create a Dabo clone. There is only one Dabo, whose success is equally tied to the fertile circumstances at Clemson. And there is only one Clemson. I hope, in this crazy day of frenzied hires and knee-jerk firings, a grand oak tree will grow where the strong sapling has sprouted in upstate SC…that the “marriage” of Dabo and Clemson will be a bit of a throwback…you know, thriving where planted and standing strong, reminding the rest of the football world that changing coaches like socks rarely produces the right fit.
6. I’m going to miss Beamer. He did things right. Congratulations to VT for letting that oak tree grow.
7. I’m tired of “musing,” so I’ll just say that I thought no one would wow us like C.J. Spiller. And then came Sammy Watkins. And then I thought no one could wow us like Sammy, and then came Deshaun Watson. Wow. And Dabo keeps saying the best is yet to come! When I think about all the other wonderful players we have had in the past have now, I want to send out a great big “Thanks!” to all of them for their dedication and hard work…and the FUN they have been bringing to the program. It has been mighty fine listening to the silence in Bulldog and Jacket country this year…and seeing in their fans’ glances the affirmation that, whether ESPN wants to downplay it or not, Clemson is on a special run this year.
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