Tuesday June 12, 2007

You Tell Me

You Tell Me
I was talking to a good friend over the weekend and he asked me the question that I get asked on a weekly basis. “How are we going to do this year?” I know you are not supposed to answer a question with a question but I asked him, “How can you tell?”

Now that is not the answer that he was looking for but it was an honest answer. Clemson football in a like the final episode of the Sopranos because there are more questions than answers.

Starting next week I will break down a different position each week. I will break down Clemson’s talent and depth and each opponent’s talents. But keep in mind it is only an educated guess and it is only June.

If you really wanted to know the truth about how we will do then answer a few questions that I will have. So here goes:

*Who will be the quarterback?

*How long will it take before Willy Korn takes over?

*Will Clemson get quarterback play like they did against FSU and Boston College or Virginia Tech and Maryland?

*Will James Davis look like James Davis?

*Will C.J. Spiller be back?

*How will Ray Ray adjust to tailback?

*Who will be the right tackle?

*How will the right tackle play?

*Will Barry Humphries continue to improve at his current rate?

*Who will step up at receiver?

*Will Rendrick Taylor stay healthy and live up to expectations?

*Will Aaron Kelly look like his freshman play or his sophomore season?

*Will Kelly block anybody?

*Will Jacoby Ford continue to be a bigger part of the offense?

*Will the offensive game plan look like the first half of 2006 or the second half?

*Will Ricky Sapp continue to develop into an every down player?

*Will the interior defensive line be as dominant as I think?

*Will Phillip Merling live up to his potential?

*Will Antonio Clay be back?

*How effective will Clay be?

*Will Tramaine Billie be back?

*How effective will Billie be after missing last season?

*Will D’Andre McDaniel be as good as I think he can be?

*Will Crezdon Butler be consistent?

*Will Marcus Gilchrist be the star I think he can be?

*Will Clemson play any man-to-man defense?

*Will Clemson be able to pressure the quarterback?

*Can the Tigers tackle better than they did against USC last year?

*Can the Tigers eliminate the mistakes that plagued them late in the season?

*Who will handle the punting?

*Who will handle the snapping?

*Who will handle the place kicking?

*Will Death Valley be rocking like it was against Georgia Tech or will it resemble the Cooper Library like it did against Maryland?

*Will the injury bug be as devastating as it was in 2006?

*Can the Tigers win the close ones?

*Will Jimbo Fisher make a difference in the FSU offense in his first game at FSU?

*Will Tom O’Brien have NC State turned around by their fourth game?

*Is Georgia Tech as good as some of the pre-season magazines make them out to be?

*Is Virginia Tech going to play in Death Valley like they do at home?

*Can the Tigers avoid a letdown and win on the road in Maryland?

*Is the Wake Forest game going to be switched at the last minute to Winston-Salem?

*Are the Deacons a one-hit wonder?

*Will there be a drop off in coaching under Jeff Jagodinski at Boston College?

*Can South Carolina beat Clemson two straight years for the first time in 37 years?

*Will South Carolina replace Sidney Rice?

*If the Tigers start slowly, can they rebound?

*If they start quickly, can they keep the momentum?

*Can the Tigers get a break and get some good luck?

I know that many of those 48 questions won’t be completely answered until November 24 but they are the keys in my opinion. Again starting Monday I will begin to try to answer some of those questions here on the blog and the radio show. I would invite you to participate today and in the future on the blog. One last point—those are a lot of questions and you could get the feeling that it might be a down year for the Tigers but I do the same list for Georgia, Florida State or Tennessee. Every program has question marks and turnover. Players come and go and with their arrival and departure come the questions.

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