After what happened last year with all the expectations that came crashing down, I have spent a lot of this offseason contemplating what could be the top potential positional deficiencies that we may not be seeing right now. Last year it was O-Line but also the QB play and the inability of the D-Line to get any sacks. So what could it be this year and how could it be improved before the start of the season.
1. Back-up Tackles--This is the most obvious and has been discussed at length that our starting O-Line cant get injured. I think we now have a serviceable line, meaning it wont outright loose us any games but its going to be up and down with few dominant performances when healthy. When you go from the starters to the back-ups we go from serviceable to awful. Grant and Lambert have had disappointing careers and with Jay out with surgery the coaches are stretching for anything. Brandon Thomas as a true freshman is getting a look and now the coaches are exploring David Smith as a potential back-up as well. I scratch my head bc we havent been recruiting too poorly on the O-Line lately--Dalton Freeman is giving some depth but David Smith, Wilson Norris(remember when he was 'coming on' and had that tenacious mean streak??), Page, Medlin(medical), along with others havent yet panned out. Basically one more injury and we are toast--the depth isnt there and that will hurt when some of these guys need a breather and are worn down.
2. WR--This is another obvious position so I wont go into great detail but Jacoby Ford has a hammy that he has re-aggravated, meaning its a recurring injury and one that could easily be tweaked again--doesnt inspire a ton of confidence for a receiver whose hallmark is incredible speed. Behind him is a cast of potential--Dye, Jones, Clear, Brown, etc. are all unproven. I still groan when I think of the dropped passes to Ashe last year, while McNeal should be headed for a redshirt. Early indications are positive but still unproven.
3. FS--Digging a little deeper is this safety spot that we all thought Gilchrist would man but Sadat Chambers is still the man to beat. That inspires zero confidence in me, Sadat has always been a tools guy who cant mentally put it all together. Marcus is a phenom and is being trained to man all the back-up positions and play in nickel packages--not a bad deal since he will see a lot of time on the field and provide needed depth but we are left with Chambers and a bunch of youth for the FS spot.
4. Kickers--None of the kickers on the squad have seen significant playing time and none have had any measure of consistency to their games. Kickers are head cases so even if you have an excellent Jad Dean one yr it doesnt necessarily translate automatically. It would be a shame if this becomes the Tigers achilles heel but punting seems to be going well but I'm afraid the fg's and extra points might be an adventure again.
5. Offensive Coaches--From the games we saw last year this is an area of concern for me. Its not so much scheme(anything will be better than Spence) but the experience to know how to make in-game adjustments. We havent seen this in a long time at Clemson. Spence was one of the most stubborn OC's I have ever seen and once opposing ACC defenses figured it out, he seemed to never have the counterpunch we needed. I like that we are upping the tempo and seem to understand that Spiller should see the ball as much as is possible but I have a level of trust in the Defensive staff to know how to adjust the gameplan that the Offensive coaches may be lacking. Also I'm worried about our end game coaching, clock management, and time-out use. I always thought Bowden was a fool in those situations and the Nebraska game wasnt much better. That comes with experience so we are going to take some lumps down the road.
I dont think the QB play will be a huge problem with two guys that the coaching staff can go to. Boyd seems like he could even play and be successful. D-Line and Linebackers should be better with the blitz packages as well as the coaching of Steele and Brooks. ST's coverage and blocking improved last year and the TE will be used more by Napier. One last cause for concern is the CB's. I know they are supposed to be the best in the ACC but it will be interesting to see how they adjust to the man and increased blitzing. Hopefully that will help utilize their talents more fully, we have some good back-ups there as well with Maxwell and Gilchrist.
At any rate we wont know until the season starts, just passing the time before gameday!!
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