Tuesday April 29, 2008

2008=Crucial Year

2008=Crucial Year
We live in a world today where everything is huge and we over-hype and over emphasis almost every aspect in our lives. From a sports standpoint we have a sense of urgency as a fan and feel like every game is the biggest game ever and every game is a must win situation. I usually try to look at the big picture and usually try to keep things in the proper perspective. I seldom think games or seasons are as big as we always seem to make them out to be.

With that said, excuse me for adding to the flame.

In my opinion, the 2008 football season is crucial here in the Palmetto state. Tommy Bowden and Steve Spurrier are not on the hot seat and neither will lose their jobs but it is crucial. It is crucial for the perception of each program and their futures.

Bowden and his program are at a crossroad. They can either take the next step or continue to have to answer questions wondering when he was going to get over the hump.

Spurrier and his program are also at a crossroad. He has to show some signs that his program is ready to compete and he needs to convince others that it can be done in Columbia.

If either fail to take the next step then both should be prepared to field more questions even though each will have less answers.

My first day as a sports talk show host was the Monday after NC State defeated Clemson in Death Valley in 1998. Two weeks to the day West was fired. I have had only a couple weeks of crucial, critical football games under my belt as a host. The other games and years were big but not critical. Fans still wanted to win and occasionally Bowden would approach the hot seat. But really outside of the week after the Wake Forest game in 2003, the reasonable fan never really felt like Bowden was in trouble and could lose his job.

There have been key years but not crucial ones. His first year the Tigers showed promise in going 6-6 but they played well and lost close games to good opponents. In Bowden’s second year he had the Tigers 8-0 and ranked fifth in the country before Georgia Tech ripped their hearts out. The Tech game and the FSU game may have been big but they were not crucial.

In 2001 and 2002 the Tigers went 14-11 and the program needed a spark but you never felt he was in trouble and the years were big but not critical once again. The 2002 season ended with a talented freshman quarterback in Charlie Whitehurst and renewed enthusiasm hit Tigertown but a 5-4 start and the loss to Wake hurt. I guess the FSU game, the 63-17 pounding of South Carolina and the bowl win were as big as it ever has been for Bowden. They might have been crucial.

The 2004 season was a step back and an inconsistent campaign but the last three years Clemson has won 25 games and each time you think the program is about to take off, it does not. However, each time you think the program will flounder, it rebounds instead.

The last three seasons have given Tiger fans a glimpse of just how good this program can be. Clemson has played toe-to-toe with the best but again the inconsistencies have hampered the championship goals.

So, this is the year that I think turns into a crucial one for Bowden and the program, not to keep his job but to take it to the next level. This is the year that I think Bowden has to get over the hump. The talent is here. There are always question marks and concerns but I believe there are less question marks and concerns at Clemson this season than any other school in the ACC. The schedule is also conducive to a championship kind of season. Clemson has a few stumbling blocks but few teams stand in the way of a double-digit win campaign.

Some will say that the talent has been there and the schedule has also been manageable and I would not argue that point. I would point out in the argument that injuries and luck have not been on the Tigers side.

From a talent level standpoint, it is clear to me that Clemson has upgraded its recruiting significantly over the last three years and the NFL-type talent is here and the depth is here. Now it is time to expect the results. Clemson has competed for the Atlantic division but now it is time to win it. The Tigers have been one play away or needed some help from others but now is the time to make that play and not have to depend on others.

I think it is important to tell prospects about your program and it is important to tell them your vision. However, it is much more important to show then what you have done. Eventually they want to see it.

Speaking of recruiting, I will finish this blog from a Clemson standpoint by going back to my original thought about both programs in the Palmetto state. The Gamecock program faces maybe an even more critical season. The 2008 campaign may be even more crucial to their future. Spurrier needs to show fans, boosters, high school coaches and high school prospects that his plan can work at South Carolina. He needs to show them how they have been able to do it at USC instead of how they will in the future. Spurrier needs to give the program an injection of the confidence he is famous for. South Carolina needs to show signs that they can compete in the SEC and winning is not impossible there.

I hear South Carolina fans say that Bowden is entering his tenth season and he has not won a championship. They are factual when they point that out. But the same can be said for them. USC is entering year ten of Lou Holtz and Steve Spurrier. Ten years ago if I told you two Hall of Fame coaches like Holtz and Spurrier would spend ten years in Columbia, don’t you think they would have been more successful than this?

The 2008 season is crucial for USC because the supporters need to feel hope. If Spurrier fails, then what? If Holtz and Spurrier can’t win in Columbia then who can?

When we sit back in November and evaluate the programs and their futures I think we will have lines clearly drawn between the two programs once again. Both programs have 12 games to prove whether they can take the next step in a crucial season. Prospects will be watching and I know you and I will be watching as well.

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