Monday, Aug. 31, 2009

Morris: At long last, a title for Tigers

Give Tommy Bowden credit for putting Clemson in position to challenge for an ACC championship every one of his 9½ seasons as coach. The missing ingredient nearly every year seemed to be a coach who could elevate his team to the championship level.

In Dabo Swinney, Clemson has that coach.

Who knows why Clemson teams seemed to get increasingly more complacent during the Bowden era. Maybe the Tigers got fat and happy by saving Bowden's job with sensational finishes at the end of what seemed like every season. Maybe Clemson's style of play became a reflection of their coach, passive and non-combative.

Whatever the reason, the beginning of the end for Bowden came in the 2008 season-opener in Atlanta. Clemson entered as the ninth-ranked team in the country and a favorite to defeat No. 24 Alabama.

From the outset it was apparent Clemson was playing out of its league. Alabama knocked Clemson on its collective behind from the first play to the last. The Crimson Tide gave the Tigers a lesson in hard-nosed, brute-force football.

All the college football world —- at least those watching on national TV —- got to see why Clemson never was going to be a championship team under Bowden. Finesse football might have continued to produce seven-, eight- and nine-win seasons for a long time under Bowden.

But for Clemson to be a championship program, it needed a personality change, and that began at the top. Bowden was out after a 3-3 start, and Swinney was brought in to at least temporarily inject enthusiasm into a team and fan base that seemed to have lost its collective edge.

Clemson closed the regular season with a 4-2 record under Swinney before losing a close decision to Nebraska in the Gator Bowl. Athletics director Terry Don Phillips saw enough in Swinney to make the fast-talking bundle of unbridled gusto the permanent coach.

Swinney's sprint down the hill at Death Valley, his leaps into the arms of assistant coach Brad Scott, and his demand that players run on and off the field were all window dressing a season ago.

Now, it is time for Swinney to inject some meanness into the Clemson program. That will occur first where it needs to occur most — on defense. Perhaps not coincidentally, Swinney brought in an assistant coach from Alabama to be his defensive coordinator.

Kevin Steele is that guy, and the promise from him and from Swinney is that Clemson's defense will play angry, with passion and with more aggressiveness. That means playing more man-to-man coverage in the secondary, and blitzing with reckless abandon on occasion.

It is not a question of talent for Steele's unit. Ends Ricky Sapp and Da'Quan Bowers, nose guard Jarvis Jenkins, strong safety DeAndre McDaniel and cornerbacks Chris Chancellor and Crezdon Butler could all be among the best in the ACC.

Defense alone makes Clemson a contender to win the Atlantic Division.

On offense, Swinney is likely to solve one of the great mysteries of the Bowden era: how to get the football into the hands of C.J. Spiller at least 20 times a game. For his three-year career, the talented and explosive Spiller has averaged 10 carries and two receptions a game.

Barring injury, Spiller will be the workhorse in Clemson's offense. He might get spelled on occasion, but there is no sharing of carries this season and no excuse for Spiller not getting the chance to crack 100 yards rushing every game.

The more Spiller carries the ball and Clemson establishes a solid running game, the less pressure will fall on the shoulders and arm of freshman quarterback Kyle Parker. With an experienced offensive line, Parker should be able to effectively direct a Clemson offense that will be much more run-oriented under Swinney.

Clemson is talented enough to defeat Middle Tennessee, Boston College, Maryland, Wake Forest, Miami, Coastal Carolina and Virginia. The only likely loss is at Georgia Tech, with toss-up games against TCU, Florida State, N.C. State and South Carolina.

Let's say Clemson wins one of the toss-up games, leaving the Tigers with an 8-4 regular-season record and an Atlantic Division championship. Then Clemson will find its match in the ACC title game, losing to BCS-bound Virginia Tech.

Clemson will head to the Chick-fil-A Bowl for the third time in the past seven seasons. No matter the outcome against Arkansas in Atlanta, the Tigers will have proven they are a championship-caliber club.

Listen to Morris Tuesdays from 4-5 p.m. on ESPN Radio 93.1 FM

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