Albert’s discussed the current state of the program on Thursday morning!
Athletic Director Trev Alberts held a “Big Red Breakfast” in Omaha on Thursday morning to talk to the Husker faithful about the search for a head coach and the program’s current state heading into the final eight games of the 2022 season.
The A.D. told the pact crowd that there is no pre-ordained candidate for the vacant position. He continues to talk to candidates but is also talking to coaches and administrators at programs across the country to gain insight into the current methods and philosophies that are used to build modern college football programs.
Sam McKewon, the sports editor and columnist at the Omaha World-Herald, stated that Alberts said Nebraska would “need to be the premier development program in the Midwest” and that the “program lost its way in an absolute commitment to elite development.” Rumors continue to circulate about potential candidates the Huskers may consider hiring for the current vacancy.
Below is a list of names connected to the coaching search in one way, shape, or form. Scroll through it, and let us know what you think.
With eight shared or outright division titles in the last 11 years, Clemson has long been the cream of the ACC’s Atlantic crop. But NC State will try to take a step toward crashing the party when the teams renew their series Saturday. And there …
With eight shared or outright division titles in the last 11 years, Clemson has long been the cream of the ACC’s Atlantic crop. But NC State will try to take a step toward crashing the party when the teams renew their series Saturday.
And there could be more than just conference implications at stake.
The teams are meeting for the first time as top-10 opponents. In fact, while Clemson (4-0, 2-0 ACC) has gotten used to great expectations with six College Football Playoff appearances in the last seven years, this week was N.C. State’s first time to crack The Associated Press top 10 since 2002. It’s the first time the teams have ever met as top-10 opponents, making it the highest combined ranking matchup in series history.
The winner would not only jump in the driver’s seat in the race for the Atlantic Division title but also put itself squarely in the early CFP discussion. But asked this week if there could be an intimidation factor for a team that’s not used to playing in these types of games, NC State coach Dave Doeren quickly shot down that notion to local reporters.
“We’re not intimidated. We’re excited,” Doeren said, according to The Wolfpacker. “We’re looking forward to the opportunity. You’ve got two good teams playing for a lot, and whether you guys think we’re good or not, we’re excited to go down there and compete with a team we have a lot of respect for.”
While the Textile Bowl has been dominated by Clemson historically (59-29-1 record in 89 all-time meetings), Doeren’s program has closed the competitive gap as of late. NC State (4-0, 0-0) played the Tigers to one possession in 2016 and 2017. After the teams took a break from their series in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Wolfpack ended their eight-game losing streak to Clemson last season with a double-overtime win at Carter-Finley Stadium.
This year’s matchup shifts to Memorial Stadium, where it will take center stage in front of a national television audience Saturday night. The Tigers haven’t lost on their home turf since 2016. Their 36-game home winning streak is the longest in the sport.
But Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said he expects another tightly contested matchup with an NC State team that comes in with a scoring offense and scoring defense that both rank in the top 45 nationally.
“Phillips Rivers was the quarterback (at NC State) when I came in here in ‘03, and as far back as I can remember, they’ve always been tough,” Swinney said. “We’ve had a few games here or there that got out of hand if you will, but most of them have been hard-fought games. I’m sure this will be the same.”
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Ahead of Clemson’s top-10 tussle with N.C. State this week – one that figures to go a long way toward deciding the Atlantic Division race – Tigers coach Dabo Swinney said he’s always considered the annual meeting between the ACC foes a tough out for …
Ahead of Clemson’s top-10 tussle with N.C. State this week – one that figures to go a long way toward deciding the Atlantic Division race – Tigers coach Dabo Swinney said he’s always considered the annual meeting between the ACC foes a tough out for his team.
The scoreboard hasn’t necessarily indicated that, though N.C. State has become more competitive with the Tigers in recent years. With that has come a few extra layers of spice added to the Textile Bowl rivalry.
The drama could go up another level on Saturday with Mother Nature threatening to make its presence felt inside Memorial Stadium.
Clemson and N.C. State have recently been going at each other in more ways than one, particularly since Dave Doeren took over the Wolkpack’s program nine years ago. There was the incident during the 2015 meeting where one of Doeren’s former assistants shoved former Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson. There was Doeren’s “we knocked their tailback out of the game” comment on his coach’s show in 2016, a reference to Clemson running back Wayne Gallman being injured during that game.
There was Bradley Chubb stealing Kelly Bryant’s hand towels in 2017, the same game after which Doeren said he wanted Clemson’s use of a laptop on the sideline investigated by the ACC. A year later, Swinney admittedly trolled Doeren when Clemson used a play card showing a picture of a computer on its sideline. Doeren also wasn’t a fan of the Tigers calling on former linebacker James Skalski to kick an extra point late during Clemson’s blowout win in 2019.
All of those games were wins for the Tigers, but Doeren and his program got over the Clemson hump last season when the Wolfpack ended eight consecutive games’ worth of Textile Bowl futility with a double-overtime win at home. Now Clemson is trying to avoid its first losing streak in the series since the early 2000s.
But Saturday may be about braving the elements for both teams as much as it is withstanding each other.
With Hurricane Ian making its way up the East Coast, rain is expected to move into the Clemson area Friday night and continue Saturday. A 90% chain of heavy rain is being forecasted during the day Saturday with a 60% chance of precipitation that night, according to the National Weather Service. Clemson and N.C. State are scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m.
Earlier this week, Doeren, whose team will be making its first trip to Memorial Stadium since 2018, expressed some concern with his team traveling amid those projected conditions, though, as of Wednesday afternoon, the Wolfpack’s travel plans had not been altered. While dates and venues of some other games in the Southeast have been changed in response to the storm, including South Carolina’s home game against South Carolina State (moved from Saturday to Thursday), no changes have been made to the Clemson-N.C. State game at this point. A team spokesperson said Clemson is monitoring the weather situation.
Swinney and Doeren both said their teams will get in plenty of wet-ball drills during practice this week in preparation for the conditions they will likely be dealing with come Saturday night. The possibility of strong winds also exists, which could further impact game plans on each side.
“(Quarterback) D.J. (Uiagalelei) has got a good arm, but I don’t if it’s that good,” Swinney said. “I don’t know if anybody’s going to set any passing records if you get a situation like that. You’ve got to find a way to win the game regardless of what the elements are. If it’s run it 70 times or throw it 70 times, you just try to find a way each and every week.”
If the weather stays true to the forecasts, it wouldn’t be the first time Swinney and Doeren have watched one of their teams try to execute in the face of heavy precipitation.
In 2015, Clemson and Notre Dame played on the same field amid a torrential downpour brought on by Hurricane Joaquin, a game that saw the Fighting Irish cough up the ball four times as Clemson held on for a 24-22 win. A year later, it was Doeren’s team that hosted Notre Dame as sheets of rain from Hurricane Matthew pelted Carter-Finley Stadium. The Wolfpack did just enough to get out of the mud with a 10-3 victory.
“That was nuts,” Doeren recalled. “But we’ll be prepared if it is raining.”
It’s got all the makings of another Textile Bowl matchup that will have plenty of people talking for one reason or another.
“We’ll plan for the worst and hope for the best,” Doeren said.
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Following an abrupt end to their 2021-22 season with the Holiday Bowl being canceled due to UCLA’s COVID outbreak, NC State finished the season with a final record of 9-3. Throughout last season, the Wolfpack had some nice wins against Atlantic …
Following an abrupt end to their 2021-22 season with the Holiday Bowl being canceled due to UCLA’s COVID outbreak, NC State finished the season with a final record of 9-3.
Throughout last season, the Wolfpack had some nice wins against Atlantic Division opponents Clemson and Florida State, as well as suffered three big losses against Miami, Wake Forest, and Mississippi State that left them just shy of playing in the ACC Championship game.
Going into his 10th season as the Wolfpack’s head coach, Dave Doeren spoke at the ACC Football Kickoff in Charlotte about the Wolfpack’s expectations for the upcoming season, and how it will take making fewer mistakes on both ends of the ball to win the ACC Championship.
“It’s just another play… we lost two games last year that kept us out of that game (ACC Championship) to win it,” Doeren said Wednesday. “It’s one more play that you have to make. That’s it. Whether it’s a defensive play, offensive play, special teams play, we lost two one-possession games… If any of those plays change, we win that game.
“There’s a lot of mistakes that happen on both sides. In the end, it’s going to come down to one player making sometimes a routine play that changes the outcome of the game. For us, it’s just doing that repetitively. You have to do it in every game you play at the conference.”
Specifically, on the defensive side of the ball, Doeren would like to see the defense get more aggressive and create more turnovers this fall.
“To me, it’s about creating more fumbles on defense,” he said. “If we can continue to do what we’ve been doing, stopping people on third down, intercepting the football, the takeaways. When you get more sacks, you usually get more fumbles, and create more short fields for our offense.”
A big positive heading into the 2022 season for the Wolfpack is the number of returning players, including Devin Leary at starting quarterback. Leary finished the 2021 season throwing for 3,433 yards, posting the third-best completion percentage in school history at .657, and being named a finalist for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award.
Heading into his redshirt junior season at NC State, Leary knows what it takes to get his team to the next level, starting with him.
“This being my third year in the system, you know, I’ve got to take that next step of getting us out of bad plays,” he said. “I think that all starts with focusing more on defensive ID and bringing along younger guys too… teaching them and making sure they understand what they need to do.”
Even with Leary returning, many teams on NC State’s schedule also have their returning quarterbacks for this season. Returning starting quarterbacks is a common theme in the Atlantic Division of the ACC as all seven teams have their starting quarterbacks returning for the 2022 season.
“When you play ACC football every week, you’ve got to show up,” Doeren said. “It’s a very well-coached league. It’s a tough league. The kids play hard. Every time you go out there, you have to earn a victory.”
The Wolfpack is set to face off at East Carolina in the two teams’ season-opener on Sept. 3 at 12 p.m.
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ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit was recently a guest on the Gramlich and Mac Lain podcast with Kelly Gramlich and Eric Mac Lain. Asked which team he thinks will ultimately have the best defense in the ACC this season, Herbstreit said …
ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit was recently a guest on the Gramlich and Mac Lain podcast with Kelly Gramlich and Eric Mac Lain.
Asked which team he thinks will ultimately have the best defense in the ACC this season, Herbstreit said he believes it will be Clemson despite the fact that its former longtime defensive coordinator, Brent Venables, is now at Oklahoma as the Sooners’ head coach.
Herbstreit pointed to the Tigers’ defensive line — which is loaded with talent and features stars such as defensive ends Xavier Thomas, K.J. Henry and Myles Murphy, and defensive tackles Bryan Bresee and Tyler Davis, to name some — as a big reason why he thinks Clemson will boast the ACC’s best defensive unit.
“It’s going to be weird to see Clemson this year without Coach V on the sidelines going crazy, being held back,” Herbstreit said. “I just think their defensive line is going to be arguably the best in the country, and I really like to start there when it comes to trying to forecast who’s going to have a great defense.”
Herbstreit also mentioned the performance of Clemson’s defense in the 2021 Cheez-It Bowl vs. Iowa State, when the Tigers held the Cyclones to 270 total yards, 14 total first downs and two field goals over the first three quarters of an eventual 20-13 victory.
“I saw enough in their bowl game, the Cheez-It Bowl against Iowa State, because Coach V by then was gone, to say you know what, they’re still going to be sophisticated, they’re still going to be active, they’re still going to be moving, tough defense to figure out,” Herbstreit said.
“So, I think NC State with Coach (Dave) Doeren, they always play physical and kind of an attitude about them, and I think that division has a chance to be really exciting this year. But I’ll go towards Clemson. I think they’re going to have the top defense, even though they’ve got a lot of new faces, especially at linebacker and in the back end.”
At linebacker, Clemson is tasked with replacing James Skalski and Baylon Spector, while the Tigers are also trying to replace a pair of all-ACC corners in Andrew Booth and Mario Goodrich, as well as Nolan Turner at safety.
Last season, the Tigers’ defense ranked first in the ACC and second nationally behind only national champion Georgia in scoring defense (14.8 points per game allowed). Clemson also ranked first in the ACC and eighth in the country in total defense last season, allowing only 305.5 total yards per game.
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This ESPN writer/analyst is down on Clemson heading into the 2022 season. On The ESPN College Football Podcast this week, while discussing NC State head coach Dave Doeren’s new contract extension through the 2026 season, ESPN’s Heather Dinich …
This ESPN writer/analyst is down on Clemson heading into the 2022 season.
Dinich also expressed her lack of confidence in Clemson going into next season amid all the turnover that has taken place on Dabo Swinney’s staff this offseason.
“The ACC’s Atlantic Division just blows me away right now, because we’re not talking about Clemson – we’re talking about NC State and Dave Doeren,” Dinich said. “And if there’s one team in the country that I don’t have confidence right now in, it’s Clemson because of all of the changes that they made and their staff changes and everything that’s going on with them. Is NC State really the team to beat right now?”
Clemson’s staff, of course, has undergone substantial change since the 2021 regular season ended, with Swinney having to replace both former defensive coordinator Brent Venables and former offensive coordinator Tony Elliott after they became the next head coaches at Oklahoma and Virginia, respectively.
Along with Venables and Elliott, the Tigers also lost former defensive tackles coach Todd Bates, who joined Venables’ staff at Oklahoma as the associate head coach and co-defensive coordinator/run defense.
Additionally, Robbie Caldwell retired as Clemson’s offensive line coach and has been replaced by Thomas Austin, with Caldwell transitioning into an off-field role with the program as a director of high school relations.
Wes Goodwin was promoted from senior defensive assistant to defensive coordinator/linebackers coach and added the role of co-defensive coordinator for safeties coach Mickey Conn, while offensively, Clemson promoted Brandon Streeter to offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach.
Nick Eason, meanwhile, was hired from Auburn to replace Bates as the Tigers’ new defensive tackles coach.
Clemson (10-3, 6-2 ACC) finished third in the Atlantic Division in 2021 and saw its streak of six straight ACC titles and six consecutive College Football Playoff appearances come to an end, but still managed to win 10 games for an 11th straight season following a 2-2 start.
NC State (9-3, 6-2) finished second in the Atlantic behind Wake Forest (11-3, 7-1), which fell to Pittsburgh, 45-21, in the ACC Championship Game.
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Clemson Ring of Honor Member Levon Kirkland and myself go over some of the top games for this coming weekend in college football. We also discuss which Power 5 Conference has been the best in non-conference game and which is the worst thus far in …
Clemson Ring of Honor Member Levon Kirkland and myself go over some of the top games for this coming weekend in college football.
We also discuss which Power 5 Conference has been the best in non-conference game and which is the worst thus far in 2021.
There is plenty of bad blood between Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney and NC State head coach Dave Doren, Levon and myself try to explain why that is the case, plus much more in today’s pod.
In 1981, Clemson’s and NC State’s athletic departments agreed to call their annual battle on the gridiron, the Textile Bowl. They called it the Textile Bowl due to Clemson and NC State having two of the largest university-level textile schools in …
In 1981, Clemson’s and NC State’s athletic departments agreed to call their annual battle on the gridiron, the Textile Bowl. They called it the Textile Bowl due to Clemson and NC State having two of the largest university-level textile schools in the world, and from the textile industry’s historic importance in the economic development of South Carolina and North Carolina.
But these days, the rivalry is known more for the antics that have been brought about by the school’s two head football coaches. The bad blood between Clemson’s Dabo Swinney and NC State’s Dave Doeren is so bad, neither will speak to the other in an elevator ride, as witnessed by North Carolina sports reporter Bridget Condon this past July at the ACC Football Kickoff in Charlotte.
Just rode the elevator with Dave Doeren and Dabo Swinney. None of us spoke. It was adventurous.
How did this all begin? When did the two coaches start tolling one another? When did the bad blood start?
The heart of the story can be traced back to 2015, when former NC State running backs coach Des Kitchings shoved former Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson in the back after Watson ran into him while running out of bounds in the Tigers’ 56-41 victory in Raleigh.
Fast forward to 2016, Clemson running back Wayne Gallman was knocked out of the Tigers’ 24-17 overtime win early with a concussion following a hit by NC State’s Dravious Wright. However, during Doeren’s Coach’s Show the next day, it was learned knocking Gallman out of the game was part of the game plan. Or at least that’s the way it came across.
When asked on the show if the Wolfpack did the things they needed to do to win the game, Doeren said, “Yeah we did, you know, I mean we knocked their tailback out of the game. We had two goal line stands, four takeaways, didn’t give up explosive plays.”
As expected, Swinney was not happy when he heard what Doeren said. He subsequently called Doeren and asked that he explain himself.
In 2017, the game had a little bit of everything from NC State’s Bradley Chubb stealing Kelly Bryant’s hand towels to Doeren accusing Swinney and Clemson of cheating after a laptop was seen on the Clemson sideline following the Tigers’ 38-31 victory. In his postgame press conference, Doeren demanded the ACC investigate the situation.
The game had a little bit of everything from NC State’s Bradley Chubb stealing Kelly Bryant’s hand towels to Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren accusing Dabo Swinney and Clemson of cheating after a laptop was seen on the Clemson sideline.
Then Clemson Sports Information Director Tim Bourret immediately addressed the situation and explained the computer was being used by a member of Clemson’s social media team and was not used by anyone in the Clemson Football Program.
The following Tuesday, Swinney joked they were in need of towels, and they were trying to order them for delivery, playing off the Chubb-Bryant incidents.
“I want to launch an investigation, too,” Swinney said jokingly. “What do they do with those towels? Is it a towel wall of fame?”
However, Swinney was still not pleased with the allegations of cheating, and he was not joking when he said, “It is kind of a challenge to our integrity.”
He went on to say, “I think the investigation needs to be managing his side, not worrying about ours,” as he referred to Kitchings shoving Watson in the back during the 2015 game.
During the fourth quarter of the Tigers’ 41-7 victory in 2018, Swinney admitted to intentionally trolling Doeren when his offensive coaches but up a cartoon picture of a laptop on their play cards.
“That was the ultimate troll, wasn’t it?" – Dabo Swinney on Clemson using a laptop play card against NC State 😂 pic.twitter.com/W7C7j74xxA
“That was a couple of our offensive coaches. I think it was (Tyler) Grisham and Jeff (Scott),” Swinney said. “They came to me earlier in the week and asked me what I thought about it. I said, ‘I will tell you what. You go ahead and make them up, but you are going to have to earn it. If the game goes like we want it to go then we will pull them out and I will let you use them in the fourth quarter.’ So, we had a lot of fun. It was a little subtle.”
In 2019, the fun continued. After Clemson scored its final touchdown in a 55-10 victory in Raleigh, Swinney allowed linebacker James Skalski to kick the PAT. Doeren was not pleased. He thought Swinney was trolling him again, so the postgame handshake was reported as being a little “frosty” by a Clemson reporter.
What is going to happen in this latest addition of the Troll Bowl on Saturday? Who knows, but there will probably be something.
Football season has finally arrived. Time to represent your Tigers and show your stripes!
After the 2017 game between Clemson and NC State in Raleigh, N.C., NC State head coach Dave Doeren accused Dabo Swinney and Clemson of cheating after a laptop was seen on the Clemson sideline following the Tigers’ 38-31 victory. In his postgame …
After the 2017 game between Clemson and NC State in Raleigh, N.C., NC State head coach Dave Doeren accused Dabo Swinney and Clemson of cheating after a laptop was seen on the Clemson sideline following the Tigers’ 38-31 victory. In his postgame press conference, Doeren demanded the ACC investigate the situation.
Then Clemson Sports Information Director Tim Bourret immediately addressed the situation and explained the computer was being used by a member of Clemson’s social media team and was not used by anyone in the Clemson Football Program.
A year later, during the fourth quarter of the Tigers’ 41-7 victory at Death Valley in 2018, Swinney admitted to intentionally trolling Doeren when his offensive coaches put up a cartoon picture of a laptop on their play cards.
“That was the ultimate troll, wasn’t it? Isn’t that what y’all call that? That was a troll. Isn’t that what you call it? I was hoping y’all might notice that,” Swinney said after the 2018 game.
“Yeah, that was the coaches, I think they wanted to have a little fun with that. I said well hey, if you earn it, put it up there. So, I don’t think you saw it till the fourth quarter. So, that was kind of a troll, as you say.”
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NC State head coach Dave Doeren gave his take on his team’s matchup with ninth-ranked Clemson at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, N.C. You can watch Doeren’s Clemson week press conference below: Clemson Variety & Frame is …
NC State head coach Dave Doeren gave his take on his team’s matchup with ninth-ranked Clemson at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, N.C.
You can watch Doeren’s Clemson week press conference below:
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