There’s an inner battle with prognosticators. How will the Clemson vs Auburn game play out?
You’ve seen it over and over on TV, in the movies, cartoons, and comic strips. It’s the age-old inner battle with an angel on one shoulder, telling you to do the right thing, and the devil on the other shoulder whispering the complete opposite.
The inner struggle, good versus evil. You can either go with your gut or choose the other route, which you know is wrong. That, in a way, is where I’m at, as kickoff approaches between our Clemson Tigers and the Tigers of Auburn.
There are national pundits saying that the Clemson defense isn’t going to be that good. There is not a lot of belief in a system that has put a ton of players in the NFL over the last couple of seasons. Honestly, you really don’t know what you’ve got until you get out there, against another team and the pads start popping. Has Clemson recruited well enough to keep the same level of talent, the same level of urgency, the same level of elite play, the same level of defensive
nastiness, that we’ve witnessed over the last few seasons under the direction of defensive coordinator Brent Venables?
The angel on my right shoulder is saying, “Chill out, we’ve got this”. There is also a devil on my left shoulder saying “You might want to be concerned. It’s going to be hard to maintain that level of success”. So the confusion sets in.
There are two types of feelings that I’ve gathered from talking to different people about the upcoming game. The first type is the overly confident. There are Clemson fans that believe with their whole heart that Clemson will blow Auburn off of the field.
I’ve polled friends and colleagues and I’ve heard scores that range from 31-10 to 56-7. These fans are ALL IN and it didn’t matter if Clemson played the Pittsburg Steelers, in their mind and heart there is no reason the Tigers shouldn’t win by two touchdowns.
Then there are the cautiously optimistic fans. These fans are still ALL IN, however they haven’t completely discounted Auburn. These fans site things like, “It’s the first game of the year” or “Auburn’s a tough place to play, especially at night” and “Auburn isn’t totally without talent”.
These fans, while most believe that Clemson will win the game, they stand on the side of caution and have dropped score predictions on me in the range of – 31-28, 28-24, 41-35 and the like. These fans, while they think Clemson can win, and can score some points. They are suspecting some drop off, in game one, on the road, from a defense that is only returning four starters from last season.
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So, what to do? Where do I stand? Honestly, five days from kickoff. I’m just not sure. The angel is telling me Clemson will blow them out.
The devil is saying, “Not so fast my friend” (Sorry Corso). But, what I do know is this. I think Clemson’s offense is so talented and experienced, that they can score with, and keep pace with anybody. I also know that offense wins games and defense wins championships. I am also aware that the best player, the face of not only Clemson football, but college football as a whole is wearing an Orange helmet with a white PAW on either side.
The angel tells me that Deshaun Watson, who put up record numbers against maybe the best front seven in the history of college football, can handle anything thrown at him. The devil… well, after that last sales pitch. He’s getting pretty quiet.
must read: College Football: Power Five Conference, Playoff Predictions
Check back all this week as Rubbing the Rock will be breaking down, and predicting the Clemson vs. Auburn match-up as kickoff draws near. What do you think? What are your shoulders telling you? Leave your thoughts in the comment section below.