Eye of the Tiger

2016 was the year of the Tiger-The Clemson Tiger that is. It was thirty five years in the making.  Guided by one of the most prolific quarterbacks in Clemson history, Deshaun Watson and the Clemson Tigers defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide 35-31 in the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship game. This was not a Cinderella season, something that no one saw coming. We all saw it 365 days earlier, when these two same teams battled for the same trophy, only with Clemson being on the losing end. You could see it in the eyes of #4. As he was walking off the field, watching Alabama celebrate, you could tell he was ready for round 2. He knew he would be back. So did Dabo. So did Clemson! And they did!

Now I ask myself, what does Dabo and company do for an encore? There are plenty of questions surrounding this team coming into the 2017 season, none more than who replaces Deshaun Watson. How do you replace the nation’s top quarterback the past two seasons? Also, how do you replace key play makers like Mike Williams, Wayne Gallman, and Artavis Scott? The answer lies in recruiting-and Dabo is dang good at it.

One way to secure the Quarterback position is to get the best available, and Dabo has secured both top spots for 2017 and 2018. Hunter Johnson, a kid from Brownsburg, Indiana chose Clemson over schools like Notre Dame, Miami, and Florida. That’s saying something when you steal a kid from Notre Dame’s backyard. And for 2018, Trevor Lawrence from Cartersville, GA. The 5 star signal caller is 6-6, 196 lbs  fits into the Deshaun Watson size and mold. Both of these cats come with a great resume in high school, but we all know the college game is an entirely different arena. They both also will have to beat out Junior Kelly Bryant, who is the leading candidate to replace Deshaun Watson.

At receiver, Dabo landed the #2 WR in the nation with Tee Higgins. Higgins was recruited by everyone. At 6-5, 190 lbs and you know he will just get bigger and stronger. At running back, from Jennings, LA, comes Travis Etienne who scouts consider as the total package at running back and is one of the most underrated backs in the 2017 class. These are just a few names of the large amount of talent coming to Death Valley and Dabo has no plans of slowing down brining in these types of players.

Clemson is no longer a one-trick poney that shows up once a generation to shock you. In their graveyard, you will see names of their victims: Oklahoma, LSU, Ohio St., and Alabama just to name a few. There was once a time when the Tigers were known to put on a good poker face, only to fold and break your heart sometime during the season, but no more. Dabo has changed that. He has single handedly changed the culture of the football program and everyone is noticing it. This new version of “Clemsoning” is winning and it looks like they’re just getting started.