Sunday September 28, 2008

A Tale of Two Halves by ClemsonPoker489®

A Tale of Two Halves

It was the best of halves, it was the worst of halves...alright, that’s as far as I’m taking that, but it’s hard to deny that the Tigers looked like two completely different teams on Saturday. In the first half, when they didn’t shoot themselves in the foot, James Davis, CJ Spiller and company were unstoppable, the offensive line was opening up running lanes and adequately protecting Cullen Harper, and the defense was flying around the field. In the second, Davis touched the ball 6 times, Spiller cramped up, the offensive line couldn’t block 4 of your closest friends, and the defense...no, the defense still flew around, made highlight reel hits, and kept the Tigers in the lead longer than they had any right to be.

The game turned on one play, with a 76 yard reverse to Darrius Heyward-Bey that set up Maryland’s first touchdown, which brought them to within four. After the way Clemson dominated the first half, to suddenly be up by such a slim margin was shocking. It was all downhill from there. The offense mounted only three more first downs, two of those coming on the final, desperate drive. A Tiger team that could only be stopped by themselves in the first half, couldn’t propel themselves in the second. Whatever adjustments were made by Ralph Friedgen and staff at halftime, they worked to perfection.

Unlike the Alabama tilt, there are good things to talk about here, and they deserve mentioning.

The Good

The aforementioned defense. Ricky Sapp and Daquan Bowers played key roles in the running game, providing back side support on several occasions. The linebackers looked sharp, if this game was any indication of Brandon Maye’s development, the future is bright at the position. Gilchrist and Hamlin both made great plays in the passing game, and the secondary as a whole played well in run support. Big hits and flying to the ball were on the menu all day.

Third Down...on defense. Coming into this game the Tigers were allowing opposing offenses to convert third down 44% of the time. That improved on Saturday, holding the Terps to 5-15 on third down. Still, a call for caution, as Maryland converted a third and eight and a third and five on the final, clock killing drive.

CJ Spiller. The Junior continues to prove that he is the best offensive threat on an offense that, supposedly, is full of them. This year, and on display again in this game, he’s added an ability to get those tough yards by lowering the shoulder to his already overflowing arsenal of jukes, spins, and speed.

The Bad

Playcalling. Rob Spence’s worth and wisdom have been much debated on these boards this year. I’m not going to get into an overall breakdown of his scheme, but on this day there were some baffling calls. The decision to nearly abandon the running game in the second half, the decision to throw the ball on third and two inside the ten on the first drive of the game, when Davis and Spiller had been running wild, a screen pass on 3rd and 24.

Cullen Harper. The numbers ended up looking reasonable enough (15/22, 151 yards), but the decision making was suspect. On two different third downs, Harper threw the ball out of the field of play. That is unacceptable. Third down represents your last opportunity as an offense to stay on the field, and thus, demands that you do everything in your power to get to the marker. Throwing the ball away is preferable to forcing something that isn’t there, but less desirable than tucking the head and trying to find the mark. I don’t know if Harper’s shoulder played a part in his reluctance to run, but those decisions were baffling. There doesn’t seem to be a deep threat that teams have to respect with Harper in the backfield, which leads to plays like the third down pass (which was complete and got the first) on which three Maryland defenders were able to huddle around Tyler Grisham. Cullen Harper has to get better if Clemson is going to rebound this year.

Mistakes. Dumb mistakes, more accurately. Xavier Dye setting up a 3rd and 18 with a thoughtless personal foul penalty on the Tigers’ final drive. Aaron Kelly failing to fight for the football on the lateral, and holding a DB unnecessarily on a Spiller TD run. Three turnovers, and six penalties for 50 yards in all. While 6 penalties isn’t an outrageous amount, they stick out because of the damage caused. A terrific Spiller punt return called back, a third and three was converted, only to be turned into a third and eight thanks to another Kelly hold.

The Ugly

Third Down on offense. Much like the Tiger D, the offense struggled coming into Saturday on third down, converting just 31% of the time, unlike the D, they did not improve in any meaningful way. 4-12 on the day, the most telling statistic is 0-1. 0-1 is what Clemson did, combined, on three scoring drives. The “1”, obviously, was the third down prior to the FG, which failed when Harper threw the ball away. On drives on which Clemson was successful, they had to avoid third downs altogether.

What’s Next

Most immediately, a trip to Winston-Salem in a week and a half. Long term, it’s anyone’s guess. On the bright side, the Tigers dropped their annual game to an overmatched opponent early. Being more realistic, there are no overmatched opponents between here and Duke. Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Florida State, with three of four on the road represent the meat of the schedule. If the Tigers do not improve, they’ll be hard pressed to earn a split of those games.