The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, December 02, 1994, Page 9, Image 9
Tables have
? LARRY
WILLIAMS
Out of Bounds
33-7! Its been almost two weeks, but
for most of us. the thrill is still very much
alive. The excitement of beating the hated
Clemson Tigers on their home turf will
surely last its full guaranteed 365 days
until the next clash in Columbia.
In a word, amazing. In another, unreal.
In yet another, it was oh so sweet. I
couldn't think of a better word for the feeling
I had strolling the turf of Death Valley
hours after the game.
When was the last time that a Carolina
team took it to the Tigers this bad
in their own backyard? Never. When was
the last time Clemson fans began packing
for home in the third quarter? Never.
And finally, when will a Clemson team
with the game plan that they had beat a
Brad Scott coached Carolina team? NEVER!
All season long, Carolina's coaching
staff stated that, if the Gamecocks could
put together two halves of good football,
they would be a "darn good football team."
Well, as the Clemson Tigers will tell you,
Carolina put together two halves of good
football.
Carolina not only beat the orange out
of the Tigers, but they beat the zebra out
of the officials, too. The refs, surprisingly
an SEC crew, seemed to do all they could
do to beat the Gamecocks, negating two
long, outstanding runs by super senior Toby
Cates.
In my opinion, the biggest mistake
anyone could have made was making Clemson
31/2 to 5 point favorites for the game.
I simply failed to see the logic. It was the
same logic that made Clemson 10-point
favorites in the contest two years ago when
the Gamecocks won by 11. The oddsmakers
reasoning was probably Clemson's three
game unbeaten streak.
First off, Clemson's victory at North
Carolina was quite impressive; however,
their second and third triumphs against
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The Gamecock defense shown he
most of the 1994 season. With
Carolina earned a trip to the Carqu<
Wake Forest and Georgia Tech were anything
but. The final score of the Wake
game was 24-8. The only surprise was the
Tigers putting more than 13 points on the
scoreboard. In the Georgia Tedi game, the
Tigers had to overcome a 7-0 deficit to defeat
the "powerhouse" Yellow Jackets.
This is not to say Carolina's season
looked overly impressive either. Aside from
coming back in three games only to come
up short, the Gamecocks hadn't defeated
a team with a winning record all year;
however, here is where the difference lies.
The schedule. Throughout the season,
while Clemson was playing the likes of
Jnirman, Wake rorest and Georgia lech,
Carolina was playing Mississippi State,
Tennessee and Florida. If you think thafs
just an insignificant factor, think again.
While Clemson was having one of those
rough battles with Tech, USC was in
Gainesville, Fla., getting schooled by one
of the best teachers in the business, the
Florida Gators. Certainly it makes a difference
who you play! In anything competitive,
in order to get better, you have
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The Gamecock
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van hope The Gamecock
re against Florida set the tone for
a new commitment to teamwork
est Bowl.
to compete against better competition.
On our way to Tigertown, one of my
friends and I bafeicaUy dissected the game
coming up the next day. I felt, and I'm sure
that many USC fans will agree with me,
Carolina could win easily if they played a
good game. Not a great game, but a good
game.
We also agreed that if Clemson tried
to ran the football up the middle at Carolina's
front seven, it would be over by the
half. So basically, it all boiled down to
whether Clemson could throw the ball effectively
and take advantage of USC's
weak secondary.
The answer was a resounding No!
Clemson didn't throw effectively. It wasn't
because of Carolina's secondary, it was a
result of a poor, poor game plan by Tommy
West.
After the game, Carolina defensive coordinator
Wally Burnham said, "They
didn't run anything we hadn't seen." If I
was a Clemson fan, that alone would make
me think twice about jumping on the Tommy
West bandwagon.
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Friday, December 2, 1994
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Clemson threw the ball 20 times (most
in the final quarter when the blowout
wasn't in doubt). Clemson completed the
five passes. Folks, this just isn't a team
that so many said had nothing to lose. On
the first drive of the day, the Tigers were
faced with a 3rd and 10. What do they do?
Run up the middle. Does this guy remind
us of a man by the last name of Woods?
When West came to Clemson, fans expected
another Danny Ford. Danny Ford's
football teams were known for their intimidating
defense and shove it down your
throat offense. When Ford's teams were
overmatched or in a whole, however, you
could always count on some sort of trick
play from Danny.
I recall the 1988 Clemson-FSU game
in Death Valley. With Clemson down 137
and momentum clearly swinging to the
Seminoles, Clemson needed a spark. A
minute later, Clemson's Ricardo Hooper
was on the receiving end of a 65-yard flea
flicker touchdown pass hum a reseive wide
receiver. It took the infamous Puntiuoskie
play of Lee Roy Butler to beat the Tigers
that day.
On Nov. 19,1994, not one trick play,
reverse or anything of the like was called
by Clemson. Why not? All week, West
spoke of those plays being in the playbook
by game time. Instead, it was USC head
coach Brad Scott who had a trick or two
up his sleeve.
The kickoff throw-and-run from Brandon
Bennett to Reggie Richardson was
the single most amazing play in Gamecock-Tiger
history. Period. The element of
sui-prise is one of the most important aspects
in college football. Scott and Bow
den proved that over the years at FSU,
where their bowl record over the past 11
veais was 10-0-1. With Carolina's 0-8 recotd
in bowls, we can't help but get excited.
Speaking of getting excited, try to envision
the state of our football program in
five years. Beating Clemson should come
with regularity, and who knows what will
happen when we take that next step into
the SEC elite. When this happens, the forever-sought-after
thing called a winning
tradition will finally make its way to so
many long-suffering Gamecock fans. *
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USC's Flowers named to
CFA 'Good Works Team'
Staff Reports
For the third consecutive year, "I !' ? being around kids
the College Football Association has and Showing them What it
announced the "Good WorksTeam," means to ?e a p^ye
recognizing the superior efforts of
college football players off the field. rde model.
The team consists of 11 players who usc.s James F,owers on communrty !
have devoted themselves to exemplary
community service. service
Each week this season, the CFA
announced a selection of one mem- Ga., is involved in Team Gameber
of thaJ994 "Good Works Team." cocks, Athletes Who Care," a joint
Nominations were submitted by effort between the athletics departCFA
member institutions. Nomi- nient and Richland Memorial Hosnees
are actively involved and com- pital s Center for Cancer Treatment
mitted to working with a charitable ^ Research. He leads stories, plays
organization, service group games and shares his exor
community project. il|SBBKP^,r periences with children
This week, the CFA an- - and adult cancer patients,
nouncedNebraskacrutside * p Inaddition, ,
linebacker Donta Jones | nHMl| Flowers frequently visits
and South Carolina de- " elementaiy schools deliv
fensive end James Flow- | muuvduutmi ?hw*jiers
as members of the 1994 es on importance of
"Good Waits Team." These an education and staying
selections complete the drug-free. This past July,.
1994 squad. The rest of the WUh WKtk he, delivered the keynote
team includes Florida FLOWERS address to a local high
strong safety Lawrence school at their General
Wright, Texas outside linebacker Equivalency Diploma graduation
Robert Reed, Florida State corner- ceremony,
back Corey Fuller, West Virginia Flowers says of his community
defensive back David Mayfield, Penn involvement, "I have spent most of
State offensive tackle Wayne Holmes, my time around the kids at the RichDuke
safety Zaid Abdul-Aleem, Col- land Memorial Cancer Treatment ;
orado State defensive back Ray Jack- Center, and that truly was an eye
son, SMU quarterback Ramon Flani- opening experience. I like being
gan and Kentucky wide receiver around kids and showing them what
Leon Smith. it meansto be a positive role modFlowers,
a junior from Macon, e^"
I
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