A sign of things to come... 2008

Jan 2, 2016, 9:35 AM

For the past few years, after being very active on this forum and another, I've turned to more of a lurker and less of a poster. The reasons for that are many but the basis is as simple as taking an extended break from the never-ending hate and immaturity that's run rampant on this board since the end of the Bowden era.

The last few years of that era, I felt, as many on here, that it was time for Tommy Bowden to move on but I debated daily here on the hatred and venom thrown his way being the wrong way to handle things. Many times on this board, it was a everyday battle between the 20somethings that insulted everything they disliked and the older generations that knew we had to make a change but continued to support the Clemson Tigers head coach simply because he was the Clemson Tigers head coach. That's part and parcel of supporting our athletic program.

When Dabo took over as interim and then named HC, many on here were adamant it was the wrong direction and again resorted to insults and degrading comments about our HC, staff and athletic director leading to a billboard movement in 2010. After the OB in 2011, this board was unreadable and I started giving up fighting the losing battle against the onslaught of hatred here.

The very first game for Dabo Swinney was a loss to GT. But one thing happened that led me to believe that we not only had the right coach on the Tiger sideline but we were getting ready to head in the right direction.

I was sitting about 10 rows up behind the Tiger bench when Zimmerman, after a punt, decided to walk off the field. Upon reaching the sideline, Dabo made him sprint back out to his spot and back. I new then that a culture change was about to take place and I was pulling hard for Dabo to be named the HC after that season.

That was NOT the consensus here.

Behind the keyboards, I don't remember ever seeing such hatred displayed for those in the Clemson Family. And it lasted for a few years. Even leading up to the ACC championship game in 2011 it was a constant battle.

This post isn't meant to be an "I told you so" post then again, maybe it is. But there is a lesson to be learned.

There's still way too much hatred on here, most times directed at those outside Clemson but way too much nonetheless. Its like the "Hater Era" spawned a whole new generation of those willing to spew insults at anyone from the safety of their keyboards.

I fully expect some hatred in response to this one but let me remind you of this one thing.

Those of us a bit older and patient preached for time to see how things work out when Dabo Swinney was named the HC.

Regardless of what happens vs Bama, it seems to have worked out just a bit.

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I would give this post 1,000 TUs if I could. I started actively following this site in early 2015 after the previous site where I was a regular went to crap.

I was fighting the same battle over at the other site at the time. It seemed like there were 10 haters for every supporter.

Within a month of being named the interim I knew, or at least felt very confident, that Dabo was going to be the best coach we've ever had. I based that, in part, on how he handled the first few games, but mainly from sources that had nothing to do with football. I read about his past and listened to a few of his speeches at non football related events. This is a man that does not accept failure, regardless of what his job is. If it's real estate, he's going to be the best agent in the company, and he was.

If he had not had the opportunity to go to college and ended up flipping burgers at a McDonald's when he was 19, I guarantee you he would own several McDonald's franchises today. That's the type of personality, drive, and determination he has.

The only time I was the least bit concerned was after the Orange Bowl blowout, and that was short lived. I thought that would be the make or break moment. If he kept Steele, I thought he would follow the same path as Bowden, good but not great. If he saw the problem and took the necessary steps to fix it immediately, then we had our man.

There is not another coach at any level, or in any sport, that I would rather have leading our team. He's a great leader, a great man, and an incredible coach.

A sign of things to come... 2008

Thank you

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You have to understand that most people on here

I'm sure we're going to see a lot more of these posts here.

Re: A sign of things to come... 2008

Is is OK to hate ESPiN?

Those dang post Bowden Era

Re: A sign of things to come... 2008

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