(UPDATED at 6:47 p.m.)

Speculation about Bowden's future runs rampant

There was a remarkable moment at Tommy Bowden's weekly press conference on Tuesday. Responding to something like the 249th question about his job future in a half-hour, Bowden reacted emotionally. (You can see a video clip of it here.) That prompted a statement of support from athletic director Terry Don Phillips.

We all know Bowden has been under pressure to win for the past two seasons, but weren't a lot of those doubts put to rest two weeks ago after he scored one of the biggest victories in school history? I hate to blame the media, because I'm not one of those people who measures column inches to compare which team gets more coverage. But I listened to the entire press conference, and the tone was unrelenting.

Please, media and fans; give the man a break. We've got a solid chance for a nine-win season with the second-youngest team in the ACC. We've got 18 starters returning next season in an expanded league that will truly be among the nation's best.

Let's see what happens.

Here's the media coverage of Tuesday's incident: The State (here, here, here and here); The Anderson Independent-Mail (here and here); The Greenville News (here); the Associated Press (here).

Meanwhile, Gregg Doyel, everyone's favorite sports columnist, urges Clemson to hang on to Bowden. He writes this while still managing to denigrate Clemson's past football accomplishments (i.e. the Tigers' success from the late 1970s through the 1980s doesn't count because Charlie Pell and Danny Ford were "cheaters.") By that standard, one could revoke any clams to greatness of a great many sports programs that have gotten into trouble with the NCAA. And here's Caulton Tudor, who I believe writes for the Raleigh News and Observer, saying essentially the same thing.

ROTATING RUNNERS: The State examines Clemson's rotating running backs.

FIRED UP: Clemson's players are ready to play the Gamecocks. Well, that's good to know.

HAT TRICK: USC's Syvelle Newton explains why a hat-switching trick he pulled when he announced which college he would attend was really a tribute to former Clemson assistant Rick Stockstill.

BANGED-UP RECEIVERS: The Tigers will lack depth at the receiver position this week. Airese Currie and Kelvin Grant are doubtful.

TIGERDEN IS BACK: After a few technical difficulties, Jim Brown of the Tiger Den is up and running again. Check out his commentary on the Wake Forest loss and the Florida State win.

CU-USC MEMORIES: I'm a little late catching up with this, but the official Clemson site is posting video highlights of great Clemson performances in USC's Williams-Brice Stadium. Here's Part I, Part II and Part III.