Well look at who came through in a big way? After getting popped in the opener to Georgia losing 30-0, the odds were on head coach Tommy Bowden and his staff being shown the door before the season was over. The fate appeared to be sealed after a 45-17 loss to Wake Forest. but then a funny thing happened on the way out of Death Valley; Clemson got really, really good.
The knock on Bowden was that he had the talent, he just couldn't get all the good players to come together enough to beat anyone of substance. After what appeared to be another underachieving season, the entire program changed around with a nationally televised 26-10 win over Florida State that finally helped the team realize what everyone else knew; all they needed was the confidence to believe they could play with anyone.
Then came the blowout wins over Duke and South Carolina followed up by a dominating performance over Tennessee in the Peach Bowl. Now this is one of the hot teams in college football with a ton of returning playmakers and a franchise quarterback in Charlie Whitehurst to be the team's nationally recognized star.
Oh these are heady times in Clemson, but now the pressure is really on as the end of last year helped to jack up expectations once again. This is a good enough team to handle the hype, but Bowden and company have to prove that last year's great four-game winning streak to close things out wasn't just a momentum thing and that this is going to be a consistently good team.
The Schedule: Clemson might not be able to win the ACC title with road games at Florida State, Virginia and Miami, but there aren't too many games the Tigers won't be favored in. Getting Georgia Tech, Maryland and NC State at home will be a huge help for an upper-division finish, but the they can't afford a slip.
Best Offensive Player: Junior QB Charlie Whitehurst. There were few quarterbacks hotter than Whitehurst to close out the season becoming more accurate than ever and more of a leader. He's a lock to be the greatest passer in Clemson history by a ridiculously large margin.
Best Defensive Player: Junior CB Justin Miller. Dogged for not picking off as many passes as he did in his freshman year, Miller never got the proper respect for the good season he had in 2003. He's cocky, he's arrogant and he's brash, but he usually walks the walk. The coaching staff would like him to try and take his game to another level and always play up to his billing.
Key player to a successful season: Sophomore tackles Roman Fry and Marlon Dukes. Clemson is entrusting the health of the franchise, Whitehurst, to to unproven and untested tackles. Fry and Dukes have a little bit of experience, but they're the only potential problem with the offense.
The season will be a success if ... Clemson finishes in the top three of the new ACC. Winning the league isn't realistic with road games at Florida State, Virginia and Miami, but this Tiger team is more than good enough to finish third or even second.
Key game: October 7th at Virginia. Coming off the road test at Florida State, this will be a must win game for Clemson's ACC title hopes. If the Tigers can hold serve at home and win this game, they'll be in the hunt for an at-large BCS bid.
2003 Fun Stats:
- First quarter scoring: Clemson 87 - Opponents 38
- Total yards: Clemson 5,467 - Opponent 4,370
- Sacks: Clemson 35 - Opponents 25
The knock on Bowden was that he had the talent, he just couldn't get all the good players to come together enough to beat anyone of substance. After what appeared to be another underachieving season, the entire program changed around with a nationally televised 26-10 win over Florida State that finally helped the team realize what everyone else knew; all they needed was the confidence to believe they could play with anyone.
Then came the blowout wins over Duke and South Carolina followed up by a dominating performance over Tennessee in the Peach Bowl. Now this is one of the hot teams in college football with a ton of returning playmakers and a franchise quarterback in Charlie Whitehurst to be the team's nationally recognized star.
Oh these are heady times in Clemson, but now the pressure is really on as the end of last year helped to jack up expectations once again. This is a good enough team to handle the hype, but Bowden and company have to prove that last year's great four-game winning streak to close things out wasn't just a momentum thing and that this is going to be a consistently good team.
The Schedule: Clemson might not be able to win the ACC title with road games at Florida State, Virginia and Miami, but there aren't too many games the Tigers won't be favored in. Getting Georgia Tech, Maryland and NC State at home will be a huge help for an upper-division finish, but the they can't afford a slip.
Best Offensive Player: Junior QB Charlie Whitehurst. There were few quarterbacks hotter than Whitehurst to close out the season becoming more accurate than ever and more of a leader. He's a lock to be the greatest passer in Clemson history by a ridiculously large margin.
Best Defensive Player: Junior CB Justin Miller. Dogged for not picking off as many passes as he did in his freshman year, Miller never got the proper respect for the good season he had in 2003. He's cocky, he's arrogant and he's brash, but he usually walks the walk. The coaching staff would like him to try and take his game to another level and always play up to his billing.
Key player to a successful season: Sophomore tackles Roman Fry and Marlon Dukes. Clemson is entrusting the health of the franchise, Whitehurst, to to unproven and untested tackles. Fry and Dukes have a little bit of experience, but they're the only potential problem with the offense.
The season will be a success if ... Clemson finishes in the top three of the new ACC. Winning the league isn't realistic with road games at Florida State, Virginia and Miami, but this Tiger team is more than good enough to finish third or even second.
Key game: October 7th at Virginia. Coming off the road test at Florida State, this will be a must win game for Clemson's ACC title hopes. If the Tigers can hold serve at home and win this game, they'll be in the hunt for an at-large BCS bid.
2003 Fun Stats:
- First quarter scoring: Clemson 87 - Opponents 38
- Total yards: Clemson 5,467 - Opponent 4,370
- Sacks: Clemson 35 - Opponents 25
