Clemson putting it all on the line

Clemson's offensive line, a question mark entering the season, has shown real improvement over the past three games, according to this story. It's helped the running game come around, and allowed quarterback Charlie Whitehurst to rack up some impressive numbers.

AN 'A' IN CHEMISTRY: Defensive back Jamaal Fudge says the Tigers have kept their strong team chemistry even in the face of some early-season adversity. That's good to hear. I was afraid the finger-pointing would get out of hand after the Georgia debacle.

FILLING BIG SHOES: The Anderson Independent-Mail has a story about receivers coach Dabo Swinney, who has done a fine job replacing the departed, and beloved, Rick Stockstill.

NOTEBOOK TIME: The Greenville News; The Anderson Independent-Mail; The State.

(UPDATED at 1:21 p.m.)

Bad memories of Byrd Stadium motivate Tigers

Clemson returns to Maryland's Byrd Stadium this week, site of a loss in 2001 that led to some ugly encounters between the players and Maryland's fans.

My fiancee and I were at the game that day, and we must have gotten lucky. I've been reading many posts on Tigernet about how awful the Terps' fans are, but we had no problems on that day. Hopefully, we won't have any problems this year, either.

Meanwhile, here's a story about Clemson beginning preparations for this week's crucial ACC game, the first of a tough three-game stretch that includes contests against Virginia and N.C. State.

CU-MD NOTES: The SID's office has released the voluminous pregame notes for the Maryland game. Give them a look.

VIRGINIA GAME TIME SET: The Clemson-Virginia contest at Death Valley on Oct. 11 will be televised by JP Sports and kicks off at noon. My dad and I are going to that one. It's homecoming, too, so I guess we'll have to leave early.

PRAISE FOR PUGH, FUDGE: Clemson defensive coordinator John Lovett says defensive backs Travis Pugh and Jamaal Fudge have been playing very well this season.

NIXING NOTRE DAME: Anderson Independent-Mail columnist John Brasier says there's no way the ACC will accept Notre Dame as a "partial" 12th member.

STATS WATCH: Clemson quarterback Charlie Whitehurst has jumped from 15th to 10th in passing efficiency in Division I, and he didn't even take a snap this week. More on Clemson's statistical rankings can be found here.

Former Tigers meet in NFL contest

Today's Carolina Panthers-Atlanta Falcons game has some added interest for Clemson fans. Former Tigers Brentson Buckner of Carolina and Woodrow Dantzler of Atlanta will meet on the field.

LEAKE IMPROVES: The Charleston Post and Courier has a story on the steady improvement linebacker John Leake has made since the Georgia game.

ACC EXPANSION: The league presidents held a conference call Saturday to affirm their dedication to all conference members taking full participation in all sports, a challenge to media reports from the Charlotte Observer and elsewhere that Notre Dame would join as a 12th team and be phased in gradually to all sports. Meanwhile, the ACC expansion lawsuit is back in court.

AROUND THE LEAGUE: Virginia edged Wake Forest in a fine ballgame that saw the return of Cavs quarterback Matt Schaub. N.C. State's defense was once again unimpressive in holding off winless North Carolina. (Boy, I love those last three words.) The Wolfpack yielded 550 yards. Last week, Texas Tech racked up 681 yards of offense in a loss to N.C. State.

Georgia Tech got past Vanderbilt in overtime and Florida State routed Duke. And Maryland, Clemson's next opponent, defeated Eastern Michigan.

And how about the Gamecocks? They took Tennessee to overtime -- in Knoxville -- before losing.

Bowden seeks a running back

Clemson is off today, so there are very few stories out there about the team. But there are a couple. Both address coach Tommy Bowden's search for a running back, and both focus on running back Rafael Little of T.L. Hannah High School in Anderson. Read them here and here

AROUND THE LEAGUE: Fanblogs has a quick peek at today's ACC contests. Check it out.

Tigers wrap up a short practice week

After going full contact for a couple of days, Clemson's players will be taking it easy until Sunday afternoon, when preparations for the Oct. 4 Maryland game will begin in earnest. (More here and here.)

A WARNING TO MARYLAND: Former Clemson quarterback Willie Simmons, who transferred to The Citadel at the start of the season and got to see Maryland up close and personal in a 61-0 loss in College Park on Sept. 13, warns the Terps about trying to cover Clemson's speedy receivers one-on-one.

ACC EXPANSION: The Charlotte Observer is all over the possible courting of Notre Dame as the 12th member of the league. This story details how Notre Dame would join the ACC in stages. Meanwhile, the ACC denies that a deal has been reached. (More on that here.) And here's a Q&A with Big East Commissioner Mike Tranghese, whose league also is pursuing the Irish.

AROUND THE LEAGUE: Here's a quick preview of this weekend's upcoming ACC games. The big news is that Virginia quarterback Matt Schaub, a Heisman candidate who hasn't played since a shoulder injury suffered in the Cavs' first game, could return for Saturday's contest against Wake Forest.

(UPDATED at 4:40 p.m.)

NCAA nixes ACC title game in 2004

The NCAA won't allow the ACC to hold a title game with just 11 teams, so the race may be on to add a 12th team. Here's the story. I'll post more on Friday.

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It's an off-week for the Tigers, so there's not a whole lot of news about the football team. But there are some stories about the recent ACC expansion that are worth noting.

If the ACC ever splits into divisions, Clemson coach Tommy Bowden says he'd like to see Miami and Florida State separated. Meanwhile, ACC bigwigs will meet next week to figure out how to deal with expansion. And here are a couple of other stories on the dim prospects for a league championship game with an 11-team ACC.

Also, via Fanblogs, here's a story from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about the ACC pursuing Notre Dame as a possible 12th team.

SPEED KILLS: Clemson's speed caught Georgia Tech by surprise in last Saturday's 39-3 victory.

�They looked a lot quicker in person than they did on the film,� Tech coach Chan Gailey said Wednesday. �And I was impressed with their defensive ends and their linebackers especially. I thought that those guys really played fast and well.�

Let's hope we catch some more teams off guard.

MISSING GRANT: Receiver Kelvin Grant says he hopes to get back into the swing of things after missing the Georgia Tech game because of personal reasons.

HAPPY FANS: The Greenville News looks at the happy mood on Clemson's campus in the wake of the Tech game.

Taking time to prepare for a crucial stretch

Clemson coach Tommy Bowden says he's glad to have the extra time to prepare for Maryland on Oct. 4, the beginning of an important three-game stretch that sees the Tigers play the Terps, Virginia and N.C. State. Bowden also says he's pleased by the improved play on the offensive line.

Meanwhile, the mood in Clemson is one of excitement tempered with a dose of realism:

"People are excited," defensive end J.J. Howard says. "There are a lot of smiles, but in the backs of people's minds, they know what we know."

And that's this -- despite strong starts the past two seasons, Clemson struggled during the meat of its schedule and needed to win its final games both years to make the postseason.

The Tigers were 4-1 in 2001 yet lost four of their next five contests. A 3-1 start of a year ago fell apart with losses against Florida State, Virginia and North Carolina State.

So very true. Hopefully the team won't get overconfident, like Georgia Tech did.

NO ACC TITLE GAME? According to the Anderson Independent-Mail, the NCAA has informally rejected a football championship game for the expanded 11-team conference. All the more reason to add a 12th team, and all the more reason to make it West Virginia. Yeah, I know. It's probably not the most attractive TV market, and the Tar Heel wine-and-cheese crowd would be suitably horrified. But it's a near-perfect geographical fit, and imagine the atmosphere for big football games.

A.D. LIKES THE EFFORT: Clemson athletic director Terry Don Phillips says he was pleased with the players' intensity in last Saturday's 39-3 victory against Georgia Tech. He's been critical of the players' effort in other games.

Overconfidence kills, Bowden warns

Just look at Georgia Tech, Clemson coach Tommy Bowden warned members of the Greenville Touchdown Club on Monday. (More here.)

MEANWHILE IN GREENWOOD: Clemson athletic director Terry Don Phillips spoke to that town's Touchdown Club. Check it out.

MARYLAND GAME TIME SET: It's official; Clemson and Maryland will kick off at 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 4 in College Park. The game will be shown on ABC.

(UPDATED at 4:15 p.m.)

Tigers bask in landmark victory

Clemson coach Tommy Bowden was deservedly giddy Sunday following the Tigers' 39-3 victory against Georgia Tech. Clemson has won three straight games after a season-opening 30-0 loss to Georgia that appeared to have drained the life out of the program. The Tigers are off this week before playing at Maryland on Oct. 4.

THE DEFENSE RULES: The State continues the giddiness theme, with Bowden saying that this was his team's best defensive showing in a couple of years.

LOOKING AHEAD: The Greenville News writes about Clemson's game against Maryland in two weeks. The official ACC Web site indicates that the Oct. 4 game against the Terps in College Park will kick off at 3:30 p.m. and be televised by ABC.

LEAKE HONORED: Clemson linebacker John Leake was named the ACC's defensive lineman of the week for his 14-tackle performance against Georgia Tech.

STATS WATCH: Here are Clemson's updated NCAA statistical rankings. Quarterback Charlie Whitehurst is now 15th in the nation in pass efficiency, and other Tigers are in the top 50 in the nation in other categories. And here's a selection of notes from the SID's office that highlight Clemson's statistical rankings.