TigerNet Talk is an audio show(Podcast) about Clemson Sports hosted by El Swann®. This broadcast will be available every Tuesday morning during the football season. If you enjoy the show, please help support it by becoming a donor member. For information on donations, please visit http://tigernet.com/donate.do.

El Swann® will discuss whatever is going on with Clemson Sports and TigerNet. During the season he will talk about upcoming games, review the previous week's game, and answer your questions. He is also going to try and have some guests on as well. I hope you enjoy it and please let us know how you like it.

Please visit El Swann's web site at http://www.clemsonpodcasts.com for links to the Clemson Hotline radio show.

Please email all feedback, suggestions, topics, and notable posts to tnt@tigernet.com.

Subscribe to and/or download the TigerNet Talk Podcast Now:

Thursday October 15, 2009

TigerNet Talk #76: Clemson vs. Wake Forest - 10/15/09

El Swann takes a look at the upcoming game vs. Wake Forest.

Direct Download (right-click, save-as)
TigerNet Talk #76 (25 MB)

Thursday October 01, 2009

TigerNet Talk #75: Rush to Judgement - 10/01/09

Each week I try to come up with some level of prose that you all will feel is acceptable to read as Clemson Tiger fans. I am, by no means, a writer. I can barely punctuate a sentence correctly. The English scholars here could shred my writing to pieces at will. Even during the best of times for Clemson football, writing for TigerNet Talk is difficult for me. I am envious of those who write for a living, I couldn't do it, but I continue to try. I like to have some writing with each release of TigerNet Talk, if time permits. As many of you know, I am a now a father and the time I used to have, is now missing. Having a three month old at home, has limited my time to write. Some of you probably wish it would limit my time to talk as well. I am still hoping to find my missing time again one day, but most of you have informed me that it will never come back. So I hope you will forgive me if from time to time, I choose not to write an accompanying piece.

In the mean time, our Tigers face the most important game of the year. They must stay undefeated against our side of the conference, or face an uphill battle to the ACC Championship game again. As we all know, that hill has been insurmountable in recent years, and I see no reason that it would change if the Tigers drop one at College Park. Clemson's offense has relied too heavily on C.J. Spiller and Jacoby Ford thus far. You can bet Maryland will try to take those two away this weekend, hoping to bog down this Clemson offense. If they can do that, it leaves Kyle Parker and a slew of unproven, inexperienced wide receivers to make the difference on the road. In that scenario, I don't like our chances against, what has been, a porous Terrapin defense.

All that said, without taking anything away from our defensive coaching staff. Kevin Steele and company have been great to watch. I think Coach Steele has been much harder on himself and the players about giving up touchdowns, than the fans have been. Steele didn't sit through hours of bend and eventually break defense for the past ten years. I expect you did, and if so, you shouldn't dislike what you have seen from his D. They attack from the get go and are without a doubt one of the best in the conference.

It's the offensive staff and the under utilization of a consistent rushing attack that worries me this week. It seems that we have gotten away from the run too quickly this season. Coach Napier must get the most out of the weapons we have. Personally, I would like to see us run the wildcat formation more frequently. I am not an offensive guru and I would probably fail miserably, but I watch plenty of other teams get the ball to their play-makers in open space. Putting Spiller, Ford, and Ellington on the field at the same time would help create confusion for the defenses. We don't have an identity on offense, let's create one now.

In my opinion, it has to start with an effective ground attack so that Kyle Parker can get comfortable. I thought I read the stat sheet wrong after the TCU game. Zero carries for Andre Ellington? Zero? He's not C.J. Spiller, but that can't happen anymore. He has shown that he deserves to run the ball, and I would get both he and Spiller in the backfield together. If teams are going to key on Spiller, make them pay for it. We can't send Parker or Willy Korn out there and expect them to light it up without proving that we can, and will run the ball. The receivers are still learning and they will improve throughout the year, but I don't expect us to win our division if we continue to get away from the run.

***
Listen to TigerNet Talk and see if the Xbox 360 can stay undefeated this year: 4-0

Direct Download (right-click, save-as)
TigerNet Talk #75 (35 MB)

Thursday September 24, 2009

TigerNet Talk #74: Clemson vs. TCU - 9/24/09

El Swann reviews the Boston College game and takes a look at the upcoming game vs. TCU.

Direct Download (right-click, save-as)
TigerNet Talk #74 (29 MB)

Thursday September 17, 2009

TigerNet Talk #73: Pouncing Back - 9/16/09

After the first quarter at Georgia Tech, much of the national audience had already flipped over to the opening game of the NFL season. It appeared to most, Clemson was about to get crushed in their opening ACC game. Another prime time Tiger flop was only three quarters away. Trailing 24-0, with possibly the entire season riding on their reaction to the situation, Clemson struck back.

In a flash, literally, Clemson began one of the best comebacks in years. Clemson’s twenty-seven unanswered points gave them an opportunity to have the second greatest come from behind win in Clemson history. Even after the final gun, Clemson’s players, coaches, and fans saw something they could be proud of regardless of the outcome. Moral victories are worthless, but stepping up when many would have folded says a lot about this team. In a strange way, the loss at Georgia Tech made this team stronger. One would expect a fired up Clemson team to arrive in Death Valley on Saturday.

This weekend Clemson is set to battle the thorn in their side, Boston College. The Eagles have won three out of four against Clemson since joining the ACC. On top of that, recently, Tiger teams have allowed one loss to beat them multiple times, never being able to put the last loss in the rear view mirror. I think Coach Swinney is going to change that trend.

In the four games against Boston College, the Eagles have been the dominate team in the trenches on both sides of the ball. Their line dominance, in my opinion, is why they are the most difficult team for Clemson to match up with in the conference. Hopefully, the loss of defensive linemen, B.J. Raji and Ron Brace to the NFL, will be enough to even the line play this season.

The good news for Clemson fans is that the Eagles have more question marks at quarterback than any team in the league. If the Tigers can shut down the Eagles rushing attack between the tackles, it might make for a long day for quarterbacks, Justine Tuggle and Dave Shinskie. Boston College can’t allow this game to be decided by their arms alone. If the Eagles are forced to beat Clemson in the air, the Tiger’s ball hawking secondary should have plenty of opportunities to make game changing plays.

Direct Download (right-click, save-as)
TigerNet Talk #73 (29 MB)

Wednesday September 09, 2009

TigerNet Talk #72: Changing the Tide - 9/8/2009

When Clemson travels to Bobby Dodd Stadium for Thursday night’s game, the Tigers will be forced to reflect on their last visit to Atlanta, a 34-10 loss to Alabama. Clemson never recovered from an opening tilt that was supposed to prepare them for an ACC Championship run. The disappointment from last year still lingers in Death Valley. A championship season slipped away just after the coin toss in the first game of the year.

However, this time around the Tigers head to Atlanta with a win under their belts. Not only is this game a chance for redemption from last year, but it will also be Coach Swinney’s first revenge game. Georgia Tech handed Swinney and the Tigers a 21-17 loss last season in the week following Coach Bowden’s departure. Thursday night, Clemson can erase the bad memories of last season from the minds of Tiger fans everywhere. A victory in Atlanta would put Clemson is a good situation very early in the ACC season.

In the eyes of the national media, these two teams are clearly separated. Georgia Tech and Paul Johnson’s Triple Option offense come in ranked #15 and are looking for an ACC title run of their own. Clemson on the other hand, has limited expectations nationally, a stark contrast from last season. No one is talking about the Tigers, but that could change if the Clemson’s defense can control Tech’s vaunted rushing attack.

After looking at these two teams on paper, they seem quite similar. I don’t know that either team has a distinct advantage. Both teams feature high profile running backs that can change the game with one play. Under the lights on Thursday night, both Jonathan Dwyer and C.J. Spiller are sure to be electric. The defenses are aggressive and will look to put pressure on the quarterbacks in hopes of forcing mistakes.

The one area where I think Clemson can excel is special teams. It’s clear that Andre Powell has his unit focused and Paul Johnson claims he will ‘kick it and cover it’. If the explosive Tiger return tandem of C.J. Spiller and Jacoby Ford can get loose it might just be the difference Clemson needs to spring an upset.

Direct Download (right-click, save-as)
TigerNet Talk #72 (37 MB)