(UPDATED at 7:07 p.m.)

Many Rivers to cross in N.C. State game

Clemson's defense must figure out a way to shut down Heisman candidate quarterback Phillip Rivers of N.C. State Thursday night. Well, we faced a Heisman candidate last week in Matt Schaub and managed to come away with a win. Rivers is a good bit better, but I think we can do it, though this game may be a high-scoring one decided by who has possession of the ball last.

MEMORIES LINGER: Clemson's humiliating loss to N.C. State last season is serving as motivation this year, according to this AP story.

CU/NCSU MEMORIES: For a look at memories that are more pleasant, check out the video highlights of the 2001 Clemson-N.C. State game, a 45-37 victory in Raleigh in 2001. My dad and I were there, and it was truly one I'll never forget.

ISN'T THAT SPECIAL: Clemson's special-teams play, a real sore point last season, has improved in some areas, such as kick coverage. But outside of Jad Dean's kickoffs, we still seem to be struggling in the kicking game.

VAUGHN MAY RETURN: Defensive end Khaleed Vaughn, who underwent arthroscopic surgery on his knee last week, could return to the lineup for Thursday's game. That would be a big boost after losing defensive end J.J. Howard for the season to a knee injury.

QUARTERBACK OF THE FUTURE: That's what the Durham Herald-Sun calls Clemson signal-caller Charlie Whitehurst. I think they just may be right.

CLEMSON/USC SIMILARITIES: Columnist Ron Morris of The State says the Tigers and Gamecocks are having similar seasons, and not just because they have identical 4-2 records.

UNIFORMLY INTERESTING: Tigernet has a story on how coach Tommy Bowden has become involved in Clemson's interesting and ever-shifting uniform combinations. Check it out. And Kevin Donahue of the excellent Fanblogs has done a nice breakdown on Clemson's performance under Bowden in various uniform combinations. Give it a look.

ACC EXPANSION: The State is reporting that Boston College will likely end up in Clemson's division. And the Anderson Independent-Mail says the addition of BC won't affect Clemson's scheduling for next season.

Here's what the divisions should look like:

Division A: Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Maryland, N.C. State, Wake Forest
Division B: Duke, Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina, Virginia, Virginia Tech

The next question is: What are they going to call the divisions? Red and Blue? Norris and Smythe? Abbott and Costello? Seriously. You can't call them North/South or East/West; the teams are all over the map.