Clemson Football: Why the second bye week came at the perfect time

The 2019 Clemson football season featured two bye weeks and the second one came at the perfect time for a peaking Tiger team.

Every now and then, we see a season in College Football where teams get two byes and that is certainly a benefit for Clemson football in 2019.

The Tigers had their first open date back at the beginning of October following an ugly 21-20 win over North Carolina. That bye week allowed Clemson football the opportunity to correct certain problems and come out laser-focused over the next part of the season.

After all, the Tigers posted huge victories following that close tilt with the Tarheels:

• Florida State (45-14)
• Louisville (45-10)
• Boston College (59-7)
• Wofford (59-14)
• NC State (55-10)
• Wake Forest (52-3)

It’s clear that the first open date came at the perfect time for the Tigers and it’s also true that the second bye week of the 2019 Clemson football season has been perfectly placed.

The Tigers have now played six-straight games. Though all six matchups have been blowouts, there’s a certain amount of wear-and-tear that comes with playing games week-in and week-out in the world of College Football. The defense begins to wear out a bit. The offensive line becomes a little stiffer. The skill position players are more susceptible to injury.

We saw that this past week against Wake Forest, when Trevor Lawrence, Amari Rodgers and Justyn Ross all suffered injuries. While none were major, the second bye week allows the Tigers a chance to heal up and recover.

Those three players will have an opportunity to get back to 100 percent and rehab those minor dings. Many of the linemen and defensive players- who are constantly in physical contact, even some in practice- have an opportunity to heal up those minor strains, bruises and stiffness that comes with the grind of a season.

It’s not just the healing that comes along with being 100 percent for the South Carolina game and the ACC Championship, it’s the fact that the Clemson football coaching staff now has two weeks to get the Tigers ready for the Gamecocks.

I can’t remember the last time we saw an offense have any kind of major success against Brent Venables when Venables had multiple weeks to prepare. Perhaps the only opponent that has would be Alabama at times over those first few matchups. Jeff Scott and Tony Elliott have two weeks to prepare the offense for a deplete South Carolina defense. I like the Tigers’ chances.

Not only does Clemson get a chance to prepare for two weeks- which favors this coaching staff- Dabo Swinney has two weeks to get his team focused on the task at hand, and it shouldn’t be all that difficult. This Clemson football team is going to be itching to get out on the field.

The Tigers are going to be ready to dominate their in-state rival and having the bye week right before the game absolutely gives Clemson another advantage, especially with all the off-the-field distractions happening in South Carolina right now.