Tag: Cheez-It Bowl

Clemson Completes First Practice in Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. – After convening in Orlando on Thursday evening, the Clemson Tigers completed their first on-site practice in Florida on Friday in preparation for their upcoming game against the Iowa State Cyclones in the 2021 Cheez-It Bowl. “How …

ORLANDO, Fla. — After convening in Orlando on Thursday evening, the Clemson Tigers completed their first on-site practice in Florida on Friday in preparation for their upcoming game against the Iowa State Cyclones in the 2021 Cheez-It Bowl.

“How ‘bout this beautiful day we’ve got? Unbelievable,” Head Coach Dabo Swinney said. “It’s like 80-plus [degrees] down here and I’m just really thankful to have the opportunity to be down here in Florida and have a great practice facility.”

Clemson conducted a roughly 90-minute practice at a local high school. With five days remaining until kickoff, the team’s practice and meetings were structured similar to a typical in-season Monday.

“The biggest focus today was what we call our ‘Mental Monday’ — get our mind right,” Swinney said. “Obviously we’re not starting from scratch with our plan like we would on a normal Monday, but really just kind of picking up. They’ve had about four days of no football, so just getting them back focused and locked in on the task at hand.”

Clemson enters the Cheez-It Bowl at 9-3 and in search of its 10th win of the 2021 season. A win would give Clemson 11 consecutive 10-win seasons, placing the Tigers alongside Florida State (14 from 1987-2000) and Alabama (14 from 2008-21) as the only programs ever to reach double-digit wins in 11 straight seasons. 

The matchup with Iowa State will feature two of the nation’s top defenses. Entering bowl selection, Clemson ranked No. 9 in the nation in total defense, allowing only 308.4 yards per game. Iowa State was right behind Clemson at No. 10 with an average of 309.2 yards allowed per game. 

“There’s been a lot of energy, a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of excitement,” Swinney said of the team’s preparation for Iowa State. “We went seven straight days in Clemson and obviously had new pieces and things like that, and guys have really done a good job of leading and just practicing with purpose. That’s what it takes to be successful in the postseason.”

After a theme park visit on Friday afternoon and evening, Clemson will conduct a holiday brunch on Saturday morning including a “secret pals” gift swap. The team will return to meetings around noon in advance of its typical “Tuesday” practice on Saturday afternoon.

Tickets to the 2021 Cheez-It Bowl remain available; fans can visit ClemsonTigers.com/Bowl2021 for more information. Fans in need of last-minute gifts can also visit the Clemson Tigers Store to purchase official Clemson merchandise for bowl season and for the holiday season.

Good thing Clemson didn’t go to the Gator Bowl

There was disappointment in Clemson circles that the Tigers did not get invited to the Gator Bowl this season. After today’s news it appears Clemson is fortunate to be playing in the Cheez-It Bowl. Texas A&M has pulled out of the Gator Bowl due to …

There was disappointment in Clemson circles that the Tigers did not get invited to the Gator Bowl this season.  After today’s news it appears Clemson is fortunate to be playing in the Cheez-It Bowl.

Texas A&M has pulled out of the Gator Bowl due to issues with COVID-19, leaving the bowl and Wake Forest searching for a replacement.

 

Saturday’s Cheez-It Bowl Practice Photo Gallery

Clemson returned to the practice fields on a rainy Saturday as they continued preparations for the Cheez-It Bowl. Check out some pictures from the practice including a special guest in TCI’s Cheez-It Bowl Practice Photo Gallery.

Clemson returned to the practice fields on a rainy Saturday as they continued preparations for the Cheez-It Bowl.

Check out some pictures from the practice including a special guest in TCI’s Cheez-It Bowl Practice Photo Gallery.

Streeter talks for first time as Clemson’s offensive coordinator

Clemson offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter talked with the media for the first time after being named to his new role. Streeter talked about how he was confident he would one day be the OC at Clemson and discussed some of the opportunities he …

Clemson offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter talked with the media for the first time after being named to his new role.

Streeter talked about how he was confident he would one day be the OC at Clemson and discussed some of the opportunities he passed on to stay with the Tigers and await this opportunity.

Watch coach Streeter’s press conference following Saturday’s practice for the Cheez-It bowl.

Bad news for Iowa State

Looks like bad news for Iowa State as it gets ready to play Clemson in the Cheez-It Bowl on Dec. 29: Cyclones star running back Breece Hall announced Saturday that he is declaring for the 2022 NFL Draft. It’s expected that he will not play in the …

Looks like bad news for Iowa State as it gets ready to play Clemson in the Cheez-It Bowl on Dec. 29:

Cyclones star running back Breece Hall announced Saturday that he is declaring for the 2022 NFL Draft. It’s expected that he will not play in the Cheez-It Bowl but we haven’t yet seen official confirmation.

“After much praying and discussion with loved ones, I have decided to forgo my remaining eligibility and enter the 2022 NFL Draft,” Hall said in an Instagram post.

Hall finished 10th in Heisman Trophy voting this season, rushing for 1,472 yards and scoring 20 rushing touchdowns during his junior campaign.

The 2020 Big 12 Offensive Player of the year is No. 2 all-time at Iowa State in career rushing yards (3,941 from 2019-21) and has a program-record 50 career rushing touchdowns.

–Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

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Notebook: Observations from Clemson’s Friday bowl practice

Clemson opened up the first four periods of its Bowl Game practice to the media on Friday. The Tigers are just 12 days away from playing vs. Iowa State in the Cheez-It Bowl at Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Fla.) on Dec. 29. Here’s what The Clemson …

Clemson opened up the first four periods of its Bowl Game practice to the media on Friday. The Tigers are just 12 days away from playing vs. Iowa State in the Cheez-It Bowl at Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Fla.) on Dec. 29.

Here’s what The Clemson Insider observed during the portion of practice that was available to the media:

  • Starting safety Nolan Turner was in street clothes, sporting a boot on his left foot. He was off on the sidelines during the stretching portion, along with linebacker Baylon Spector, who will be held out of the Bowl Game later this month. Turner’s status for the game is currently unknown.
  • Clemson’s starting offense didn’t look too much different from how it finished the regular season. However, there are two exceptions. Marcus Tate has been reinserted as the team’s starting left guard, while E.J. Williams is back healthy at receiver.
  • While Swinney mentioned that WR Joseph Ngata was in a yellow (no-contact jersey) on Tuesday, it appears that he’s starting to progress. Ngata, who has been dealing with a foot injury, was in a green jersey, which means a player can participate in most drills, but they cannot participate in any live (tackling) drills.
  • Newly promoted co-defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Wes Goodwin looked comfortable in his new role and his position group seemed to be attentive and focused.
  • As promised, offensive analyst Thomas Austin was working with the tight ends during Friday’s practice. Swinney announced Tuesday that Austin would be coaching the tight end position through the Bowl Game as newly minted TEs coach Kyle Richardson underwent back surgery earlier this month.
  • Former Clemson offensive lineman Brandon Thomas, who was recently hired as a graduate assistant, was working with the offensive line on Friday.
  • Clemson currently only has three quarterbacks on its roster after Taisun Phommachanh entered the transfer portal earlier this month. Starting quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei was still sporting a big, bulky brace on his injured knee.
  • While veteran tight end Jaelyn Lay is set to move on from Clemson after the season, he is still currently with the team and practiced in full Friday.
  • After not playing in Clemson’s regular-season finale against South Carolina, Xavier Thomas was not limited in practice. He was a full participant as he prepares to play his last game as a Tiger.
  • Defesnive tackle Tré Williams was absent from the practice field Friday. Though, that shouldn’t come as a surprise as he underwent multiple season-ending surgeries last month.

Christmas is right around the corner.  Once again Clemson Variety & Frame is ready to make it a special holiday for your favorite Tiger.

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Clemson draws Big 12 opponent in bowl game

Clemson’s first non-College Football Playoff experience in seven years will be a new one of sorts. The Tigers will face Iowa State in the Cheez-It Bowl, it was announced Sunday. The game will be played Dec. 29 at 5:45 p.m. at Camping World Stadium …

Clemson’s first non-College Football Playoff experience in seven years will be a new one of sorts.

The Tigers will face Iowa State in the Cheez-It Bowl, it was announced Sunday. The game will be played Dec. 29 at 5:45 p.m. at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.

It will be the first-ever matchup with Iowa State for the Tigers, who were ranked 19th in the final CFP rankings released Sunday after finishing the regular season at 9-3. Clemson finished tied for second in the ACC’s Atlantic Division and did not play in the ACC championship game for the first time since 2014, which is also the last time the Tigers were not a part of the CFP.

That season, Clemson routed Oklahoma in the Russell Athletic Bowl, which is the same bowl the Tigers will play in this season even though that’s not what it was called at the time. Initially created as the Blockbuster Bowl in 1990, the Cheez-It Bowl has had several different title sponsors over the years, including the Russell Athletic Bowl and Champs Sports Bowl. Cheez-It signed a multi-year agreement in 2020 to become the game’s latest title sponsor.

Clemson has played in some variation of the bowl three times, going 2-1 in those games.

This year’s game will come a little more than a month after the Tigers made easy work of South Carolina in their regular-season for their fifth straight win. They’ll try for their 11th straight double-digit win season against an Iowa State team that went 7-5 in the regular season, including a 5-4 mark in Big 12 play. The Cyclones have lost three of their last five games but handled TCU in a 48-14 win their last time out.

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Where Texas lands in updated bowl projections after Week 9

Is Texas in danger of missing a bowl game? Take a look at where several networks project them to land.

If you would have told me two months ago that Texas would be in danger of missing a bowl game, I would have thought you were joking. Continue reading “Where Texas lands in updated bowl projections after Week 9”

Texas projected to face Notre Dame in latest Athlon Sports bowl predictions

In the latest bowl projections, UT is predicted to play Notre Dame in the Cheez-It Bowl. Not many matchups would draw a bigger crowd in CFB.

Texas’ matchup against Notre Dame in 2016 will always hold a special place in many people’s hearts. Tyrone Swoopes crossing the goalline in double overtime seemed to be the re-birth of the program.

Although quite the opposite happened, seeing two major football powerhouses like Texas and Notre Dame clash was a fun sight to see. No. 4 and No. 5 on all-time wins respectively, not many matchups would draw a bigger crowd.

In Athlon Sports’ latest bowl projections, the Longhorns are predicted to play the Irish in the Cheez-It Bowl. The ACC and Big 12 have tie-ins to the Orlando-based postseason matchup. Oklahoma State and Miami featured in 2020.

Playing on Dec. 29, both teams would consider this a step down from their previous seasons.

Texas has made the Alamo Bowl the past two years, the best non NY6/playoff game a Big 12 team can play in. Getting back to San Antonio is the goal at the minimum.

For Notre Dame, a trip to Orlando after another College Football Playoff appearance would be a step back. The talent is to compete with most programs in the country. Brian Kelly will want to take a step forward, not backward.

Notre Dame leads the all-time series 9-3, dating back to a 1913 matchup in Austin. Texas has one win both at home and in South Bend, plus the 1970 Cotton Bowl that won a national championship under Darrel Royal.

If the matchup becomes true, and Texas pulls out a victory, Joe Tessitore’s famous use of ‘Texas is back folks!” will start to have some meaning again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4fXeywF0d0

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Oklahoma State 37, Miami 34: Cheez-It Bowl 10 Things To Know

Oklahoma State 37, Miami 34. The 10 ten things you need to know about the Oklahoma State win over Miami in the Cheez-It Bowl.

Oklahoma State 37, Miami 34. The 10 ten things you need to know about the Oklahoma State win over Miami in the Cheez-It Bowl.

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Oklahoma State 37, Miami 34: Cheez-It Bowl

10. Miami made way too many mistakes to pull off the big comeback. There were way too many dropped passes – and they all seemed to come on big chances deep – two turnovers, no takeaways, and too many problems on third downs converting just four of 14 tries. The Canes got close, but couldn’t get that one big break to take over.

9. The knee injury suffered by Miami QB D’Eriq King took the air completely out of the game. It turned into a fun game, and the Hurricanes did a great job of fighting back, but to lose the star of the program – who already announced that he’s coming back next year – was a gut-punch. He completed 10-of-13 passes for 113 yards and a score, and ran for 18 yards, before getting knocked out.

8. Give a ton of credit to Miami for the mental toughness to fight back. After the embarrassing 62-26 loss to North Carolina, the last thing the Canes needed was to fall behind 21-0. Check that – the last thing they needed was to lose King to an injury. The defense stepped up its play, N’Kosi Perry stepped in and was fine – he completed 19-of-34 passes for 228 yards and two scores – but the team dug too deep a hole.

7. Spencer Sanders showed up strong. The Oklahoma State quarterback was sharp from the word go, was able to make the third down plays happen, and he was red hot with good decision after good decision to get the team up big. There might have been a lull, and it might have taken more of a fight than it needed to be, but he ended up completing 27-of-40 for 305 yards and four scores, and he led the team with 45 rushing yards. This is the type of performance to make him one of the Big 12’s bigger stars going into 2021.

6. Well hello, Brennan Presley. The Oklahoma State freshman receiver caught one pass for seven yards against Oklahoma, and he ran for a touchdown against Kansas State. That was it for his regular season, and then … boom. Six catches, 118 yards, three touchdowns. Miami spent so much time worrying about Tylan Wallace – who caught six passes for 73 yards – and the lightning-quick Presley went off.

And then Presley became really vital after Wallace didn’t play after halftime. It was supposedly the plan from the start that he was just going to play for a half, but that was … weird.

5. It’s hard to get a whole lot of love and respect as a college tight end in the state of Florida when Kyle Pitts is lighting it up for the Gators, but Brevin Jordan is a big-time talent who showed why he’s suck a next-level weapon. He caught 30 passes for 480 yards and five scores in the regular season, and he helped make the O go after it sputtered early and finished with seven catches for 80 yards and two scores.

4. It was amazing how the body language changed on a snap. Miami didn’t show up for the first 15 minutes, nothing went right, and then came the King injury. It was it the defense needed a bit to get warmed up, and it was also like Oklahoma State punched itself out.

Everything worked so well early, and then there was a shot to go up 28 and put it well out of reach. The drive stalled, the Cowboys went for a field goal, there was a penalty that pushed it back, and Brady Pohl missed. The game changed on that.

3. It was a rough game for the officials. They missed a two-point conversion for Miami that would’ve made it tied at 21 – Brevin Jordan looked like he got in, but he was called short of the goal line. The officials also missed what appeared to be what should’ve been a pass interference call on an early throw to Jordan, there were too many other penalties called – 16 in all for 154 yards – and the officials were way too noticeable.

2. This was a good moment for Miami head coach Manny Diaz. He was getting roasted on social media after the awful start, and he was already getting hammered on after the 14-0 Independence Bowl loss to Louisiana Tech last year, but give him and the coaching staff credit. Everything went wrong, and yet his team had a shot at the win in the final minutes. It was a loss – the tenth bowl loss in the last 11 tries for the program – but this is the type of game to build off of.

1. It wasn’t easy, but Oklahoma State closed out with the win. It wasn’t the year many thought it could be – the Cowboys were supposed to be good enough at least play for the Big 12 Championship, if not win it – but going 8-3 with a bowl win over Miami is a good season, especially this year. This makes it four bowl wins in the last five for Gundy and a 10-5 record with 15 straight bowl appearances.

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