Originally Posted by
trkykilr
I don’t like when Dabo says this stuff. It sounds petty. However, this is who Dabo is at his core. He believes, and maybe rightly so, that if Clemson plays their best, it will be good enough to win. Years of results suggest that he is right. He desires to control every facet of the football program, and as much as I roll my eyes at him sometimes, it is hard to argue with the results.
Look around at college football over the last 10 years, and try to build an argument against Dabo, if you’re honest with yourself. Clemson is the second largest school in the middle of nowhere in a small state. Outside of being close to Atlanta, Clemson has zero, ZERO inherent advantages to be a top shelf college football program. Clemson has an upper middle class tradition, and a big stadium. That is all they have. Dabo sells different, because he is different. He’s wired differently. You can hate him if you want, but he grew up fairly poor with an absent/alcoholic father, and has earned his way to a $100 million contract. He’s worth double that. If you want to hate him because you are a rival fan, I get that. But, he is the epitome of the American dream. No question that Saban is the best ever, but the Bama job is coveted. You have to have the wrong guy to lose at Bama. You have to have one in 1000 to win big at Clemson.
UGA beat Clemson Saturday night. UGA is really good, and has a very talented roster. Clemson is also good and has a really talented roster. Clemson had first and goal from the 5 and did squat with it. It was their chance. UGA never got inside the Clemson 15 on offense. It was a great game, and for it to be some referendum on the fall from glory of the Clemson football program is just false.
I don’t think Clemson wins the rest of their games. I think they are a top 8 team that can develop into a really good team, but I don’t think they are one currently. I think Dabo’s belief in consistency is going to hurt with Elliott this year. Clemson is too talented on offense to play that game so close to the vest, and while I appreciate Elliott’s two National Championships (one of which hung 44 on “the greatest team ever” with the parking brake on in the 4th quarter), I think our offense needs a fresh set of eyes.
I have enjoyed Clemson’s great run. Hell, I enjoyed the 8-4’s. I love Clemson and Clemson University, as it has been a big part of my life. College football has lost some shine for me. I don’t like that Kendrick was such a bad human that Dabo was left no choice but to dismiss him (before being charged with a felony) and he starts against Clemson in his next game. But that is the business of college football. I don’t like the price of poker to be elite. I hate seeing lifelong fans and graduates being priced out of their parking spots and seats. Clemson has been a small family that has become big business. It is what it is. I’ll watch, and probably take my kids up there once, but I’ll mostly have them in the woods and around fires.
Congrats to UGA. I thought they would win, and they did.
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