Cautious Optimism

Cautious Optimism. That's the name of the game for me this week heading into the annual season finale against the Gamecocks. Its been five years. A long, grueling, frustrating, annoying, head-scratching five years since we've beat our neighbors from Columbia. I've sat through every game until the final whistle with pride and class. Half of my family are Carolina fans, half of my friends are Carolina fans. I'm beyond tired of hearing it...I'm EXHAUSTED of hearing it. Saturday at high noon the Tigers have the opportunity to finally put an end to the streak and get back on the winning side of this rivalry. With any rivalry game you never know what can happen. (see Florida-Georgia earlier this year) That rings even more true this year in my opinion. Its been a season of highs and lows for both Clemson and South Carolina. While the Gamecocks have struggled more down the stretch and enter the game at 6-5, you know they are going to bring their "A" game Saturday. I wouldn't be surprised if they waited until this weekend to play their best game of the season. For Clemson, they are coming off their second shutout of the season and bring the nations #1 defense into the showdown against the Gamecocks. All eyes will be on the Clemson offense though.

Will freshman sensation Deshuan Watson be healthy enough to play and be effective? Or will the Tigers be forced to star senior Cole Stoudt who has struggled this year after losing his starting position and has battled through an injury this season himself. The offense is a night and day difference depending on who is under center. And while we are not sure what to expect from Clemson offensively, we all know how bad the South Carolina defense has been this season. But again, you never know what can happen in a rivalry game. Watson is listed as day-to-day and in all likelihood we will not know who the is starter until Thursday/Friday or even until kickoff on Saturday. I hope its not until the latter. I refuse to believe Spurrier when he says they are preparing the same way no matter who ends up being the starter for the Tigers. Come on, Steve. Come. On. Clemson isn't the only one that has their eyes on a key player on offense hoping he'll be able to play Saturday. Both RB Mike Davis (shoulder sprain/sick) and WR Pharoh Cooper (rib sprain) are expected to be ready but aren't at 100% yet and should be something to keep an eye on during the week to monitor their progress. If either of them were to be sidelined that is a huge break for the Tigers.

All these injuries aside, I'm cautiously optimistic about the game. While I do think its become more of a mental thing for the Tigers against South Carolina there are reasons to believe its the Tigers year to turn it around. For the first time in a while I think the Tigers are actually the better team this year. (especially if a healthy Watson is playing) They have played lights out on defense and should be able to win the battle at the line of scrimmage...something they haven't been able to do the past few years thanks to the likes of Clowney and Quarles. Both of those guys are gone as well as Winningest QB in school history, Conner Shaw. Further, Clemson gets the Gamecocks back at home. Of course, Dylan Thompson is no stranger to Death Valley. In fact, back in 2012 when both Shaw and Lattimore were injured, many thought Clemson was a lock for a win against the Thompson-led Gamecocks. They came to town and left with a 27-17 victory. Nevertheless, playing at home will be a huge advantage. This all comes down to which teams show up. Will it be the South Carolina that opened the season against Texas A&M and blew fourth quarter leads to Missouri, Kentucky, & Tennessee? Or the team that knocked off Georgia early in the season and nearly pulled the upset on the road at Auburn back in late October? How bout Clemson? Will it be the team we saw in Atlanta two weeks ago? Or the team that shutout NC State at home, and held on a goal-line stand to beat Louisville? Who knows. Either way there are some areas of the game where the Tigers will have to rise up and make a statement if they are going to avoid Spurrier's Gamecocks making it an unthinkable six in a row. That being said.....

Keys to Victory for Clemson: 

1. Running Game

If the Tigers are going to be successful they have to establish some balance and not be one dimensional. That means the new found running game needs to be stronger than ever before. With Wayne Gallman and now Tyshon Dye both healthy and in the mix, Clemson must be productive running the football. If Watson is cleared to play than he also must be able to pick up first downs with his feet and get down or out of bounds safely. If the running game picks up that will force South Carolina to start keying in their linebackers and secondary on stopping the run and keep them honest....and that's when you start airing it out and nickle and dime your way down the field and maybe come up with a big play or two from Williams, Scott or Hopper down the field.
2. Turnovers 
This one is a no-brainer but you have to win the turnover battle. The Tigers have committed a total of 15 turnovers in the past five meetings against SC compared to just 3 for the Gamecocks. South Carolina forced 6 turnovers last year in Columbia while committing none of their own. Make no mistake that turnovers will again play a significant role Saturday. Bottom line. I don't have to say anything else about this one. Lets move on.
3. Time of Possession
I think TOP will also be something to watch. If South Carolina can have long, clock eating drives that result in points....watch out. Especially if the Clemson offense is struggling and starts having numerous three-and-outs. It will be of the utmost importance for the offense to be productive. The big play hasn't been there much this year so I suspect that for the most part when it Clemson scores it will be at least on 6-8 play drives. We all saw what happened in Athens when the offense stalled and didn't give the defense  enough time to get a sip of water before they had to be back on the field. Give them time to rest and they will get you the ball back sooner. Help them out, and they'll help you out.
4. Defense 

Lastly, Clemson needs to continue to do what it has done all season. Continue to get pressure and be disruptive in the backfield and line of scrimmage and get off the field on 3rd down. Prove to the Gamecocks that the #1 ranking is legit and make them earn every yard. While Thompson is no Conner Shaw, Spurrier knows what has worked against the Tigers and will find their weak spot and try to exploit it. Getting quick stops and putting the ball back in the hands of the offense as many times as possible will be huge. I expect the Tigers to be quite a fired up group on defense Saturday and ready to play some grown man football against the Gamecocks in what promises to be a physical game. Having a rowdy home crowd behind them will help as well. The key is for everyone to do their job and to avoid giving up the big play. If they can eliminate that, I like their chances defensively of keeping the Gamecocks in check and limiting the points.

Finally, I'm optimistic for one final reason. The last time Clemson beat South Carolina was way back in 2008, on November 29th, in Death Valley, and it was 12 pm kickoff. This year Clemson will square off against the Gamecocks at home...on November 29th....at 12pm. Take it for what its worth. Who knows...maybe'll we'll see a little "cock-a-doodle-doo" again Saturday, too.