TigerNet -- Blogs -- Mickey Plyler's Blog

Friday E-Mail Bag
Each Friday I publish your comments and answer your questions. To submit a comment or questions please e-mail me at mickeyplyler@hotmail.com.

Mickey,
I know CU has a difficult task this weekend in MB, but I do expect them to win. My question is: if FSU does not advance from the Tallahassee Regional, and CU does advance from MB, will the Tigers host the Super Regional? I know all of this is a long shot, but I would think it is possible for Miss St to win down there. Any idea?
Bill

Bill,
In that scenario the NCAA will accept bids between the two schools. I would think Clemson would have the better chance to host. I would be very surprised if FSU does not advance from their regional.

Thanks for the great e-mail. To reply to your points:
1. I agree that the program is much more competitive. However, fans are always looking to take the next step.

2. Some think I am crazy but I think depth is overrated. If a star player gets hurt then there is a drop off at most places. If Troy Smith got hurt then would OSU had played for the title? Depth is important but I think slightly overrated.

3. Here is a great point. In a world where we want to analyze everything, we do not like to admit the luck factor. We can’t analyze luck but it is so important. Breaks or luck in many cases can make the difference.

4. Another great point. It is obvious that the administration talks out of both sides of their mouths. They want to win but do not realize how other administrations are much more supportive. I know some will not believe this but the facts are against them.

5. This is another good point. I am not ready to say this will be a great season though. I think it can be but luck and other factors like injuries. Overall I still think the program is definitely heading into the right direction.

Thanks for the interesting e-mail. Fans have every right to have high expectations but I think they need to understand why they are not met all of the time. I am not convinced that Bowden will win the ACC at Clemson but I am convinced that the program is in better shape than it was in December of 1998. I do understand being upset when Clemson lost to Maryland, USC and Kentucky because Clemson was better than those teams last year but I also understand that talent is not always the difference. I do like Bowden’s chances as he continues to get the top talent. One of the legitimate concerns of fans is consistency.

One quick note, I spoke with Bowden recently about his job and his job security. He perfectly understands the expectations. He understands what he needs to do and I think understands the concerns of fans. He sounds sometimes like he makes excuses in the media but he is only trying to remain positive. Fans should have high expectations and Bowden understands that.

Mickey,
Love the blog. Read it every day. Question for you: In your opinion, which freshman will have the biggest impact next season at Clemson: DeAndre McDaniel or Willy Korn. Looking forward to reading your response and GO TIGERS and GO BIG POPPI!
-Phil

Phil,
Big Poppi goes down this weekend! I think McDaniel will be a superstar at Clemson and he will have an immediate impact. But Korn is special. I think Korn can be the difference in bowl games in Nashville and Atlanta or the difference in Atlanta and Miami.

Comments:

I thought "Tiger Fan" made some pretty good points, and it was a well-written email, however I think he is failing to address the obvious reason why Tommy gets criticized so often. Inconsistency. We always seem to come out of the losing end of close games, and we have had a few great wins for our program over the past few years, only to follow it up with stinkbombs against lesser opponents. I don't know if he doesn't know how to properly motivate his players or if he clams up on decisions when the game is on the line, but I get so sick of losing games that we shouldn't and then hearing "we were 4 points away with the championship".

The bottom line is Tommy will always be criticized unless he actually gives us a great season, not one filled with excuses and close losses

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=35293>clemsonguy2</a> on June 01, 2007 at 12:00 PM EDT #

Mickey - I really want to buy what you are selling on the administration....the only thing I keep asking, and no answers come, is in your estimation that "other programs" do it differently than Clemson, and therefore our athletic department is at a disadvantage.

Please, so I can quit asking, actually give "facts" and insights into specific issues. Who allows coaches carte blanch when it comes to signing players, who allows certain exemptions, who is hindered, etc, when it comes to our direct competition, the ACC. Do Wake, BC, VT, GT and other programs who are on the rise have more at-risk academic players then Clemson? Do they not have a review board? Do they ever turn away players who are NCAA eligible and sign elsewhere? The only publicly info is on Florida, which you acknowledged had a similar system as Clemson. You have been steadfast in your contention that our competition does it differently, so you must have information about those programs.

Thank you for your time.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=60052>Justwannaread</a> on June 01, 2007 at 01:03 PM EDT #

Clemsonguy2 needs to do a quick refresher on close games. In the 2006 season look at the Wake and FSU games - I would call those close games and we came out on top. 2005- TexAM, Maryland, Chickens. 2004 - Wake, NCSt, Maryland, Miami. Now,you are correct on the stinkbombs: 2004-Duke, 2005-GaTech, 2006-Maryland and Kentucky. The Duke loss was unbelievable, and the Tech and Maryland losses in 05 and 06 cost us a Divisional championship.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=30442>Biguns</a> on June 01, 2007 at 01:22 PM EDT #

Justwannaread,
I am not as familiar with other programs. What I am familiar with is the lies that the administration has told. E-mail me and I will give you my phone number so you can ask specific questions and I can give you specific examples. Dialogue in this case will be easier on the phone. Thanks for understanding.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=1550>Mickey Plyler</a> on June 01, 2007 at 02:40 PM EDT #

For the record, Mickey, I'd like to READ evidence to back your WRITTEN claims.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=13467>fibigcat</a> on June 01, 2007 at 03:04 PM EDT #

Thanks for the response Mickey....I personally do not have a desire to know who is backstabbing whom within the coaching staffs and administrations. To me, that is a completely different issue than whether our processes, decisions and aspects of how the AARC impacts the competitiveness of the program is the issue.

If Clemson is out on a limb by itself in denying entry for student athletes who are NCAA eligible or if Clemson took many many fewer at-risk academic kids there would be an impalance of competitiveness, but the fact that communication doesn't happen, there is a breakdown or lack of respect, etc, means it is a management issue within the school.

If what I understand your response to be, its not be a policy that hinders Clemson's athletic achievement.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=60052>Justwannaread</a> on June 01, 2007 at 03:43 PM EDT #

I guess, thinking about it for a moment, your stance really is equal to complaining about a coach or coaching staff that the normal fan does.....

Disgruntled fans and writers often say: "Hey, our coach isn't as good as theirs and therefore we will never be as good as them!!"

You say: "Hey, our administration isn't as good as theirs and therefore we will never be as good as them!!"

Semantics, I guess.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=60052>Justwannaread</a> on June 01, 2007 at 04:02 PM EDT #

1. competing with top teams? Give me a break, almost everyone with a winning record "competed" with fsu, tenn and miami in the past couple of years. Don't confuse teams slipping with clemson improving.

2. I actually agree with mickey on the depth issue. No big name recruits? If you take away davis, spiller, and korn then out recruiting ranking is completely off the radar. Without those big recruits, we would be in the 40's instead of the 20's and that would be another reason to can bowden.

3. luck? Show me someone that blames luck on their lack of accomplishments and I'll show you a loser. Should we credit our coach for beating the acc champ last year?

4. more of this adm vs bowden crap. The wez and the aarc aren't responsible for the losses in the past few years. Granted, if we had top 5 classes year after year, then it probably would have been different, but that's NEVER going to happen at CU even with the WEZ. if you're basing w-l on talented recruits and players alone, then we should have only lost to the following schools in the past 4 years....uga,fsu,um and vt. That’s it. Ask yourself this, what would BC and WF done with our recruiting classes? Scary to even consider.

5. don't know what to say about this one. I guess that I agree. They have to believe or their the dumbest businessmen in the state.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=66734>sregitog 1</a> on June 01, 2007 at 05:01 PM EDT #

justwannaread,
If you don't want to know the facts then that is OK. Sticking your head in the sand is OK if that is what you chose. The AARC is a neccesity under the promises of the 2001 NCAA recertification but some who had power in it ruined it. A few people in the administration have created an adversarial relationship between their side and academics. It is clear that that is not the case at many places. Powerful people in the administration do not trust our coaches. That is the issue. Like all policies, it depends on the people. We have major issues at Clemson with people in high ranking positions telling lies. As fans, we want to believe them but the facts are that they have lied. If you want to hear specifics then e-mail me. The AARC did not place Clemsxon at a comeptitve disadvantage but the people who ran it did. Many in the administratuion talk out of both sides of their mouths. They say One Clemson and want you to believe that but that is not the case. They want your money and now that their lies are coming out they are worried.

It is obvious that UNC, Virginia Tech, Notre Dame, USC, Georgia and many others trust their coaches. It is obvious that they do not have the adversarial relationships with their coaches.

You say you want to buy what I am selling but quite frankly you and almost everyone else wants to buy what the people in powr at Clemson are selling more. I don't blame them. I wanted to believe them too. I have written thousands of words on the subject and name one that was not true. I can give you multiple instances of things they said that was not true.

In summary, even though yopu don't want to hear it, the AARC would have worked but several powerful people at Clemson caused the problems. Some powerful people at Clemson told some big lies to Clemson people. The difference in telling the truth and telling lies is not semantics.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=1550>Mickey Plyler</a> on June 01, 2007 at 06:44 PM EDT #

Not only did we have more talent than Maryland and the coots, but both of those games were in the Valley, with 80,000 Clemson fans pulling for their Tigers.

It still makes me sick the way we lost the Maryland and Georgia Tech games the last 2 years. Lost each by one point after scoring TDs, but then having to kick field goals instead due to 10 men on the field! Absolutely no excuse for that.

Does Wake Forest have a WEZ? Do they have a stadium that seats 85,000, 80,000 which would be their rabid fans? How many does Groves hold, about 30,000? Yet they won the ACC last year. It's time to stop with the excuses about facilities, etc. and just win some games. Grobe said after they won the conference that he really thought this coming year would be their year, so look out for the Deacs again this year.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=35191>gotigers72</a> on June 02, 2007 at 06:14 AM EDT #

The boneheaded personnel management in SEVERAL games last year (particularly USC) was not caused by the West Endzone. And the WTF gameplan for Kentucky was not put in place by our administration.

This excuse train ran out of gas a LONG time ago. It's time for our coaches to man up and actually ADMIT MISTAKES and FIX THEM. If they can do that, maybe, just maybe, they can actually get our team to play to its potential, taking full advantage of our talent (which IS superior to almost EVERY other ACC team).

Excuses are for losers. It's not the WEZ. It's not the administration. And for each person that tells me not having these things hurts our program, I will show him a Wake Forest team whose COACHING significantly overcomes their significant lack of talent.

Coaching is everything.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=2185>Topher</a> on June 02, 2007 at 11:19 AM EDT #

The boneheaded personnel management in SEVERAL games last year (particularly USC) was not caused by the West Endzone. And the WTF gameplan for Kentucky was not put in place by our administration.

Coaching is everything.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=2185>Topher</a> on June 02, 2007 at 11:24 AM EDT #

Its just as obvious that the programs of It is obvious that UNC, Virginia Tech, Notre Dame, USC, Georgia and many others have better coaching staffs.

Maybe we should just fired Barker, TDP and Bowden along with his staff and start over. We obviously have bad bad management at all levels.

At least we can agree on that.

Posted by <a href=http://tigernet.com/view/profile.do?id=60052>Justwannaread</a> on June 04, 2007 at 12:32 AM EDT #

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