The Gamecocks went Southern and the Louisville secondary becomes collectors
College football camps got started all across the country last week, and coaches and players are meeting with the media regularly.
Here are two of my favorite sound bites from the week involving two key 2017 opponents for the Clemson football team.
When the South Carolina Gamecocks got thumped 56-7 in Death Valley, one of the catalyst to their demise was their inability to slow down the Tigers offense. The defense gave up 622 total yards and 8 touchdowns. They finished the season 6-7 overall and 3-5 in the SEC.
Head coach Will Muschamp seems very optimistic about his defense, likes the speed of his players and is happy about the return of linebacker Skai Moore
. But he still has some concerns about his team’s ability to be physical and tackle. He voiced those concerns with
the media after practice last week
and made a satirical reference to the old telephone company, Southern Bell.
“There’s no question I think that we will be faster defensively this year which we need to be. That doesn’t always translate to physicality. We had a little bit of a Southern Bell defense last year. Reach out and touch someone. We need to continue to be more physical in our organization.” Muschamp said, “Certainly, I don’t know that speed always translates to physicality.”
Southern Bell ended in 2006 and that year the Gamecocks finished 8-5 overall and also 3-5 in the SEC.
The Louisville secondary feels like they are the best in college football and starting safety Chucky Williams and preseason Jim Thorpe Watch candidate, cornerback Jaire Alexander charismatically told the media.
“I asked him earlier today. I said Chuck who better than you. Chuck said, “Nobody.” I said Trumaine(Washington) who better than you, nobody. Nobody is better than us and that’s how we feel and that’s what we are going to carry the whole year.”
They have even given themselves a title that puts fear in a lot of people especially around April. No not the IRS, but what the secondary would call a synonym, “The Tax Boys.”
“That’s what we call ourselves. The Tax boys.” Alexander agrees with a reporter who asked if they plan to make people pay.
“Like the IRS, baby. We coming for all that money that is in the air.”
I guess it’s good for them that they play in a state without a “tax free weekend.”
Last year, Deshaun Watson passed for 301 yards with five touchdowns against the Louisville secondary, but he was also picked off three times and Alexander had two of them.
Will the Clemson passing offense have a taxing time at Papas Johns Stadium on Sept 16 without Watson?
Or will they be able to invade the state of Kentucky and evade “The Tax Boys”?
A win will give the Tigers a 4-0 lead in the evolving rivalry between the two ACC-Atlantic foes?