Tuesday July 21, 2009

Letterman's Top Ten List; Dabo Interview

Letterman's Top Ten List
This afternoon Dabo will host the media at The Reserve at Lake Keowee. Here an attempt at a David Letterman Top Ten List. Here are the top 10 things Dabo should not say to the media today or Sunday at the ACC Pre-season Media Days in Greensboro:

10. ”Half the teams will lose each week of the season” or ”Bobby Bowden and Joe Paterno lost football games.”
This was a favorite of the previous few years. Since the advent of the overtime, half of the teams each week do lose but it does not heal the wounds. This is another one that was designed to make us feel better but I never could find my FSU or Penn State shirts in my closet.

9. "That’s OK. Some of our players probably don’t know what state Clemson is in either."
Coach Ford came up with this classic in December of 1981 when his Tigers were preparing to play Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. A reporter asked what he thought about several Cornhusker players not knowing which state Clemson was located in.

8. ”We are just one play away.”
This one only made us more upset because of the cumulative effect. After a while we almost expected this one.

7. Don’t mention seeing what cars opposing players are driving.
Last year when defensive coordinator Vic Koenning made this remark, you knew it would come back to haunt him. This was not the smartest pre-game tactic. Stay away from this one.

6. Don’t mention words like “infrastructure”, “fair marketplace”, “market value” or “conjecture.”
Avoid using the athletic director’s buzz words and actually answer the questions.

5. ”I saw the Son of a *&$#@!”
This one came on national TV when Danny Ford came onto the field to complain to the officials during the Maryland game in 1985. Unfortunately it cost Coach Ford a trip to the sidelines in the 1986 Clemson-Maryland game.

4. ”Why did you turn us in?”
This is mainly for the ACC Media Days in Greensboro. This was what Coach Ford was caught on camera asking NC State head coach Monte Kiffin after the Tigers beat the Wolfpack in Raleigh in the early 80s.

3. ”I don’t come to your office and ask to watch you type.”
Here is a Ford classic. Anderson Independent Mail beat writer Al Muskowitz was covering one of his first Ford press conferences and he asked Ford why his practices were closed to the media. Ford replied, “I don’t come to your office and ask to watch you type!”

2. ”I am Clemson basketball!”
I will never forget when former Clemson basketball coach Cliff Ellis proclaimed himself as the king of Clemson hardwood.

1. ”What do you want me to do Ron?”
I am not sure what South Carolina’s Steve Spurrier was looking for in an answer when he replied to The (Columbia) State’s sports columnist Ron Morris’ question at the end of his press conference after the 31-14 loss to Clemson last November.

We had a couple of callers and e-mailers from the show this morning add to the list.

FSU Rocker emailed “I just off the phone with Arkansas. How you guys doing today?”
That one has been used and did not go over well.

Bill texted “Lucas got his, where is my ticker take parade?”
For those that missed it this is in reference to my typo on the blog where I incorrectly typed ticker take parade two lines after calling it by its proper name of ticker tape parade. Imagine me with a typo.

Dabo Interview
We had Dabo on the radio show this morning for a 25-minute interview. If you did not get a chance to hear it you can listen to it at www.wccpfm.com.

For those that don’t have time to listen to the entire interview here are a few notes from Dabo’s comments this morning:

*He said he will open a few practices this fall. The staff will go into their hideaway next week and this is one of the things they will decide but when they do he will let us know what days will be open to the public.

*Dabo said there will be a slight change to the uniforms this year but he did not have a chance to make major changes. He hinted that there will be changes in the stripes on the pants this year but the tops will remain the same for the 2009 season. He said he met with Nike recently to make more uniform changes for the 2010 and 2011 seasons. Dabo mentioned he was surprised how long it takes to put the changes in place. It sounded like the uniforms will have more of a traditional look in 2010.

*He said Rendrick Taylor will have an important role in 2009. He said Taylor has only played in 26 games in his career but the Tigers were 20-6 in the games he has played. Dabo said Taylor will have a role as a tight end, h-back, full back and in a one-back set. He said Taylor has a future at the next level if he learns the game from the inside out. He said Taylor needs to work hard on his pass protection and learning a new position.

*I asked Dabo if he will still coach with his hair on fire like he did as the interim coach. He said he only knows one way to coach. He says he will not change and will be the only guy he knows how to be. He said his former coach Bill Curry told him three things-1. Just be Dabo and don’t try to be anyone else. 2. Get someone to handle your finances that you trust. 3. Don’t sacrifice your family because of the job.

*Dabo said he is very satisfied with the West Zone and the new football offices. He said he just got his furniture Thursday and they are just getting settled in but the building is second to none.

*On the subject of C.J. Spiller’s Heisman campaign, Dabo said he was extremely proud of C.J. He said he will be a terrific candidate and it will be exciting to watch this unfold.

*He also touched on how coaching has changed and he said society has changed with Twitter, My Space, Facebook, etc. Dabo said kids are visual and communicate in different ways but it is up to the coaches to adjust and adapt to the way society works today.

*Dabo encouraged ladies to join the staff this weekend at the Lady’s Clinic. The events start Saturday in Littlejohn at 9A.M. More information can be found at www.daboswinneyfootballcamps.com.

The Brad Hughes All-State Insurance Agency

Prayer List
We have started a prayer list on the blog. Here are the guidelines:
*If you are offended by prayer or prayer lists then I apologize in advance. The blog is free and the prayer list will be on the bottom of the page so you don’t have to read it.
*If you would like to add someone to the list please e-mail me at mickeyplyler@hotmail.com
*If you want the reason for the prayer to be added to the name please specify in your e-mails.
*Please let me know when it is appropriate to take the person off of the prayer list

Those who need our prayers include:
Finn Brookover, Mrs. Kathleen Bowers, Larry in Naples, FL, RTG-Pawsitive Tiger, Mary-Louise Pawlowski (John's daughter), Jo Ann Bachman, Frank Taylor, Kenneth Bryant, Pruitt Martin, Got igers and his family, David Rowland, Leonard Gillespie and his family, Jim S, Christine Hepfer, Daniel Rosborough, Amy Murphey, Jack Huffman, Nancy Winkler, Dr. Nancy Strom Morgan, John Reeve, Eileen Woodrum, Ethel Southard, Vinnie Brock, Jean-Pierre Bailey, Kaitlyn L, Delores Weaver, Eric Boessneck, John Bowers, Jimmy Ness, Susan Miller, Joyce Harley, Steve Proveaux, John Petrey, Chalmers Carr.