Links of interest:
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I don’t really have a lot to say about this game. Just a few comments:
– I was disappointed in the Bulldogs’ play in the first half. Ben Dupree said after the game that the team had “started slow”, and the team did appear a bit sluggish.
Beyond that, I wondered about the lack of creativity in the playcalling. Everyone expected to see some different things from the offense in this game — unusual formations, trick plays, etc. Yet for the most part it was basic football, and basic football that went nowhere.
On The Citadel’s second offensive possession of the game, the Bulldogs faced a fourth-and-five from the Clemson 48. The call? A punt. Why not go for it there, or try a fake punt?
Clemson needed less than two minutes to score after the kick. That wasn’t particularly surprising. On Saturday, field position wasn’t nearly as important as possession. (Actually, that’s true for a lot of games.)
– I was puzzled by the decision to kick the second field goal. 52-3 or 52-6, what’s the difference? The game was almost over, and fourth-and-nine from the Clemson 12, while not the likeliest of conversion attempts in terms of being successful, represented the Bulldogs’ best (and final) chance to score a touchdown.
– Dabo Swinney’s decision to finally take Tajh Boyd out of the game almost came one play too late.
– The team broke out yet another helmet design for this game. I’m not sure why you would use the season finale (and a road game) to introduce a new helmet logo, but at this point I’m used to the ever-changing uniforms. The only thing that seems to be a constant is getting the name of the school wrong on the jersey.
– I appreciated Clemson’s all-out effort for its Military Appreciation Day, which included one of my classmates reciting the Pledge of Allegiance (via a taped segment on the videoboard). Perhaps I could have done without the Clemson band ending its halftime show with a Toby Keith number, but that’s a minor quibble.
– Also excellent: the performance of the Summerall Guards. Great job. After the first half, something positive was sorely needed. The Guards came through in style.
– I sat in the end zone section on Saturday. At one point a stream of celebrities walked right by me up the stairs, including Andy Solomon, Jeff Hartsell, John Rosa, and Spike. The only one to give me a high-five as he walked by was Spike. The others made their way to seats reserved for the elite patrons.
– Speaking of Spike, he was doing work throughout the game. He must have posed for several hundred pictures while wandering all over the field, making friends wherever he went. I would give him the nod as the Bulldogs’ game MVP.
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My thoughts on the season as a whole, and the future, will come later. For now, I just want to say thank you to the seniors. Now finish the job and get that diploma (unless you’re a fifth-year graduate student, of course).
Below are a few pictures. I didn’t take as many on Saturday as I usually do, in part because my location was not really conducive to in-game photos.
Filed under: Football, The Citadel | Tagged: Clemson, The Citadel |
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