I feel that if we have 20 - 30 different plays, 10 run and 10-20 pass plays. Master these, learn to execute these 100% of the time, then I think we could be more successful than with 100 different plays and none of them being executed properly.

I mean, if you think about it, there are some pass plays that are undefendable based on the coverage. If man to man coverage, the crossing routes are next to impossible to defend if executed properly. If zone, the curl and out routes are virtually impossible to stop if executed properly. The slant is a great route and play if you execute it. These are 3 BASIC patterns that are extremely tough to defend if only we can execute!

In terms of run plays, we need to take the "risk" out of the playbook. Reverses and sweeps seem to be as ineffective as they are effective. I think we should focus on dives, off tackles, counters, and the stretch plays and forget all the sweeps and outside runs.

Anyway, just some thoughts on things going forward

Thanks,

One of the benefits of the information age is the ability to communicate information very quickly. Unfortunately, given the anonymity of the internet, people can voice opinions in a way that they would never do in any encounter. I agree that fans who populate a team website are passionate about that team and that is why such sites exist. The only problems occur when fans attack other fans or they confuse what they think or feel as a fact. Could you imagine some of the more vocal posters saying the same things at the Esso Club during happy hour??

In response to your blog on Thursday, I too hate to see Dabo being criticized when I truly believe he and the rest of the staff and team are doing their best, but part of being a fan is being able to discuss whatever the current issue is with your team, be it good or bad. Right now, the fans are not happy because we are 2-3, and although Dabo might not agree with the fan's prescription for a fix, he should not be surprised that they are unhappy, or questioning his decisions. Something tells me that Dabo understands this, and realizes that criticism will come after a loss, and that the fans are not wrong for being critical because that is what fans do. One reason I think this is because Dabo seems to have a capitalistic view of the game, in that players (and coaches) are rewarded for performance, and that if one player is not getting it done, then that player is taken out and replaced with another. That is fair for players, and it is also fair for coaches. That said, you can get in trouble if you don't understand that we are all human, and that great players and coaches make mistakes. I still think Dabo is going to succeed, because I think he is willing to do whatever it takes to win.

Go Dabo and Go Tigers!

I do love your columns, as I think they’ve really improved over the past few years. I’m with you on the problems in the athletic department and in Sikes Hall; those people need to go.

I read your “We Are Experts” piece and agree with it, for the most part. However let’s not forget that Swinney, nor his predecessor Bowden, was nowhere near the league of Bobby Bowden, Jim Tressel, Bob Stoops, Frank Beamer, etc. Beamer and Papa-B took over crap programs, Swinney and Bowden did not. Second, I think to criticize the so-called “experts” is a bit much. No, no one’s an expert. But for any company or organization, when you hire inexperienced people for leadership positions, there naturally is a high failure risk involved. And that chance of failure isn’t there for no reason. When you hire experienced people, the failure risk drops and your chances at success increase dramatically. It doesn’t take an expert to realize that the Swinney hire will, in al likelihood, be probably the most detrimental hire since the Hootie Ingram and Red Parker years. It just takes common sense.

Gene Chizik was a very risky hire for Auburn, no doubt, and his success so far in my mind is because of his hiring of Gus Malzahn as OC. Once Malzahn leaves the Plains for a HC job, which I fully believe he will in a year or two, we’ll see just how good Chizik is. Because right now, Malzahn is the one thing making Chizik look like a genius. But we at least can say that Chizik did the smart thing in his hires, Swinney has not. Because Chizik realized what side of the ball needed the overhaul and did just that. Swinney did the exact opposite. So it doesn’t take an expert to realize Swinney’s decision-making is poor, it just takes common sense.

Please, please, please quit bragging on Clemson basketball. Because of Purnell's stubbornness to stay with the press, we made teams like Virginia, Georgia Tech, and Virginia Tech look like NBA franchises last year. Why did the other team shoot so well? Maybe it was because they were getting high percentage dunks or wide open 3s when they beat the press over and over. You say that it is what Clemson does (our trademark), and the press tires the opponent and causes them to make fatigue errors at the end of the game. I didn't see much fatigue at the end of the season from all of those teams that started dominating us after we beat Duke in late January. The Clemson basketball team last year made me feel just as bad as the current Clemson football team has made me feel this year, and I'm not optimistic about this season.

I am saddened to see Clemson's football season falling apart again, but honestly I feel more apathetic than saddened. For the first time in 35+ years, my family made the collective decision to not purchase our football tickets this season. We dropped our IPTAY dues to the minimum just to keep our points. It had NOTHING to do with the economy or even the mediocre talent of the football program. IPTAY has jerked their members around for the last several years with their point system, seat equity plan and chaotic parking plan. The purpose of all of this, plain and simple, was to squeeze more and more money out of the donors. 2009 was the breaking point, and Clemson is now starting to see the backlash with ticket sales down 15% this year. We paid up several times, but each year our seats and parking were threatened once again. Don't even get me started on parking. I cannot find any fellow IPTAY member who can make any sense of it, and IPTAY cannot even logically explain it. The MAIN reason we came to the games all of these years was because it was fun. Win or lose, it didn't matter. Well IPTAY has sucked all of the fun out of the experience. Their focus is on the almighty dollar and TV contracts. They no longer care about their fans and they are not fooling anyone. We've come to the conclusion that we can just stay at home and watch most of the games on TV. The illusion of Clemson being a national football power has completely evaporated with the end of the Bowden era and the predictable but sad start of the Dabo era. The truth is they have been a very mediocre program for 20 plus years. Combine this with IPTAY pushing their members to the breaking point, and I predict that 2010 will be a disastrous year for IPTAY. The sad truth is that Clemson is NOT a top level football program, and IPTAY cannot keep demanding more and more from their members while the quality of the football program and IPTAY membership keeps declining.

Your comments and thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated.

Consider: Danny Pearman is an assistant Head Coach, Bill Napier is the Offensive Coordinator, Brad Scott is an associate Head Coach, Ken Steele is the Defensive coordinator and Charlie Harbison is the Co-defensive coordinator. It looks like too many chiefs and no one person is accountable for anything except, ultimately, CDS.

I also hear CDS mentioning failure to execute. Does that mean the play book is too complicated and should be simplified or does that mean Clemson does not have the athletes on campus to make the "offense" happen?

Lastly, what do your sources say about the chance of getting the program headed in the right direction this season?

So this leads me to my next point/thought. Why did Dabo go out and get himself a relative "monster" defensive staff, but skimped on the offense? I often wondered this, but I think I have a good guess. I personally think Dabo was given a budget by TDP, essentially saying "You can spend this much on assistants, nothing more". Knowing that he was in more tune with the offensive side of the ball, Dabo went out and did a bang up job with the defense(his relative weak point), and thought that since he thought of himself as a offensive mind AND had CJ coming back that He and Napier could handle the offense. Whatcha think?

Needless to say, Dabo and Napier are way in over their heads. I have full confidence that Dabo will make the change that is needed …. If he is allowed.

Which brings me to my next point/question …
Is the AD and Admin behind the football program?

There is a part of me that says "How could they be, with all the decisions they have made", but I’m still willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. LUCKILY we have a barometer to gauge on whether this theory has merit. Kevin Steele. I don’t believe for one second that Coach Steele will stay at a program that isn't dedicated to winning. If Steele bolts or makes a lateral move at seasons end we will know that there is Bull crap happening behind the scenes and that our Admin isn't serious about football.

But hey Mickey!!!!! At least we will have that magazine academic ranking and our Women's rowing team!!!!!!! YAY!!!!

I am a quiet, loyal listener to your AM program and appreciate the entertainment and updates on my brief drive to work in the morning. I am not one to call in to talk shows but I occasionally hear something that gets me so worked up that I really wish I had the time to call. I will vent by e-mail instead.

During your last hour this morning (Monday), a caller made the statement that "all the fans better show up for the Wake game". You were very quick to tell him that the blame does not fall on the fans. Amen to that but I would take it a step further. As a rain drenched fan who has seen the cost of his tickets sky rocket and the quality of the program slowly drift towards reliable mediocrity, I am not about to buy into that notion any more. I understand that the caller was trying to make the point that we should not lose hope and that we should continue to support this team. I will be at the game in two weeks because I do support the school, have fond memories of my years on campus, know and like several of the players, and don't want to miss the next CJ Spiller miracle run. But I think the role of the fan base in the outcome of these games is oversold. A couple thousand fans from Texas were enough for TCU. All the fans in Death Valley weren't enough to keep Boston College out of the end zone two years ago. We come to watch, to celebrate, to be amazed, to share in a team victory, or to support the team emotionally when it loses. However, the game is won or lost on the field and all the hype about the importance of fan support is a self-delusion the administration and coaching staff feed to keep the money flowing. Fan support that follows success is something you can sell. Long suffering fan support for consistent disappointment is for Cubs fans.

I told my wife when Dabo was hired that I would be satisfied during the first year if the team just played like each game meant as much to them as it did to me. This past weekend, they didn't even meet that low expectation. The coaches and administration wanted a West End Zone project; they got it. They wanted to charge big money for the right to buy seats in the lower deck; they got it. They wanted to sell blocks of corporate seats in the heart of the IPTAY section to banks and insurance companies; they got it. They wanted fans to show up well before the game to cheer on the players: they got the Tiger Walk. We have done enough and we have waited long enough. Schools with smaller fan bases and less talented players are winning.

What we need is an administration that values athletics, even if only for the money and national attention it can provide. We need that administration to find, hire, and support a group of coaches that knows how to win and those coaches need to win with class so that the great victories are not followed by bad publicity that undercuts the goals of the administration and diminishes the achievements of the athletes. If you have these things, you will get the athletes you need to be successful long term.

One thing that is not missing here is fan support.