Friday February 15, 2008
Friday E-Mail Bag
Friday E-Mail Bag
Each Friday I publish your comments and answer your questions. To submit a comment or questions please e-mail me at mickeyplyler@hotmail.com.
Mickey,
Most fans would agree that the most enjoyable month for football games is October. With that thought in mind, I find it unusual that from the 2005 season through the upcoming 2008 season that of the 16 available game dates Clemson will have had only 5 home games. Only 3 of those games have been ACC games. Remember that the conference schedules the conference games, not the school. I wonder how this compares with the other ACC teams?
# of Seasons-4
# of Home Games-7
# of Available Dates-16
# of ACC Home Games-3
James
James,
Thanks for pointing this out. I had no idea this was the case but will look into more now in the future. I also need to0 see November home games because it seems to always come down to November each year. I will research the rest of the league in the future. Thanks again.
Mickey,
Now that the 2008 FB schedule is out, can you let us know your opinion of it plus your prediction for wins and losses?
Rick
Rick,
I am not sure yet on specific wins and losses but at this point it appears to me that Clemson may be more talented than every team on the schedule. I think the schedule sets up for a great run this season and would be surprised if Clemson is an underdog more than twice in 2008.
Hey Mickey,
Keep up the good fight, I appreciate reading your blogs.
It is very evident that UNC is a mid-tier ACC team without Lawson and it is even more evident that we are better than them without Lawson. I didn't get to watch the UVA game, but the fact that they barely beat the worst team in the ACC with an equitable number of FT attempts is startling. On our home court they needed a last second shot in OT to beat us and on their court they needed a big help from the officiating to give them a chance down the stretch. Had the calls been equitable we would have more than likely been up by 20-25 points half way through the 2nd half. The "melt down" that some people are claiming occurred would not have occurred under this scenario because the majority of our guys would not have been playing like they were one foul of away from being ejected. It's a shame, what's worse is that the UNC fans I've read posts from or talked with all think it was a "hard fought" or "gutsy" performance by their beloved Tar Heels. There was no melt down, only the accumulative affect of 4/5 starters being in foul trouble.
Cheers!
Ian
Ian,
I agree and can’t believe that intelligent basketball fans could not see that. Booker was relegated to become a soft player because of his fouls. By the way, Booker has fouled out of two games this season (both UNC games). The Tigers obviously had to play a different brand of play on both ends after the fouls piled up. Great points.
Mickey,
Tar Heel fans seem to forget that our starting PG was coming off knee surgery, our starting center was coming back from a high ankle sprain, and our starting PF was coming off hip, eye, and hand injuries who is playing with one hand. Maybe we should be complaining that 5 McDonald All-Americans did not pick Clemson in the recruiting process. UNC fans are TERRIFIED that Clemson is catching up, and catching up quickly. No UNC fan can say they want to play us again this season, not with a straight face.
Will
Will,
I think you make good points and Clemson is catching up but UNC is recruiting extremely well. I am not sure Clemson could ever sign the kinds of classes UNC does but the gap has been closed.
Mickey,
The only negative about living in the beautiful upstate of South Carolina is listening to the incessant whining of Clemson fans during football and basketball seasons. The great thing now is that I know it's coming, like clockwork, so I got up this morning knowing exactly what I was going to get on my way in to work on 104.9.
There is a reason Carolina has an excellent basketball program and Clemson has a mediocre one and its easy to see. Clemson and its fans choose to look externally at the reasons for defeat/failure rather than at themselves. They want to talk about the foul discrepancy, when the numbers show that the points per possession were obviously much smaller when fouls were called than when they weren't (in both games). Carolina fans were clamoring for us to start fouling at the 8 minute mark because, frankly, that was our best defense all night. Clemson wants to talk about Hansbrough lowering his shoulder. If its so obvious that's what he's going to do, stop it.
Maryland didn’t have any problem with it in Chapel Hill. They played physical and aggressive and had fewer fouls than Carolina. If this ACC bias is so universal that the whole conference "should be ashamed of itself", how did that happen? Or maybe there is a just a bias against Clemson? I actually think that's the next step for Clemson fans - the "everybody just hates us". I fully expect that to come after a few more losses.
You and the rest of the big talkers are doing the sports programs a disservice by promoting that attitude of victimization. If Clemson basketball wants to not be a victim, it should hit big free throws, execute at the end of the game and put team's away when up by 11 with 3 minutes to play. And if they can't do that, the last thing they should is blame anyone but themselves!
Sincerely,
53
53,
If you think UNC does not get the calls and has not gotten the calls through the years then it explains your signature on this e-mail matching your I.Q.
Mickey
How can Florida State and Alabama sign 31 or 32 players and are they all offered scholarships? Isn't there a limit?
Cufan
CUfan,
Any team can sign as many prospects as they like each February but every school is limited to bring in only 25 each fall. You can sign 50 if you like but each August you can only bring in 25 new players on scholarship. Remember also that you can only have 85 on scholarship at anytime also.
Mickey,
Some form of accountability needs to be addressed. In private matters, a law suit can be levied against a party for wrong doing. Something, of significance (involving money or embarrassment) needs to be done. Swofford
be forced into accountability. Whether something legal is appropriate or simply a public embarrassment, Swofford needs to be called out!
If the US Congress can waste taxpayers dollars on whether Roger Clemmons shot up steroids, then surely something can be done here.
Regards,
Michael
Michael,
You sound as frustrated as I am but also we must remember that nothing will really come of all of this. After watching the Clemens hearing the other day, I lost even more faith in how anything works in Washington.
Mickey -
After Sunday night's pathetic referee display, the only way that this will ever stop is that the fans do something substantial to get the ACC's attention. BC posters were pointing out Duke & UNC's foul discrepancy as well. Either an independent body should investigate the foul calls or Clemson fans must stage a mass walkout of one of the final home games in protest. Terry Don Phillips, Oliver Purnell, & the players have too much class to point out the obvious, but if we don't make a stand, you will get this year in and year out. I would hate to hurt the players with the walkout, but something must be done to show the ACC that we know they are crooked and that they keep UNC & Duke at the top to make money for the league.
It's time for a change.
Mark
Mark,
I hate what happened but a walkout is not the right idea. I say the best medicine would be a good ACC tournament run and a nice run in the NCAA tournament. This team is playing extremely well right now and we need to continue the momentum.
Hello Mickey,
The ACC should certainly be ashamed of itself. The disparity in fouls called in the Clemson-UNC game was far beyond anything one would expect from a team that was up by 14 with only five minutes to play. However, I have a better idea than simply not going to Durham or Chapel Hill. To me the real shame is saying or doing nothing. Oliver MUST say something even if he is rebuked by the ACC. The Clemson University Athletic Department should say something. I would even hire a retired official to go over the entire game to identify bad (not simply questionable) calls. This person would be paid in advance for their final opinion, so long as they are not an UNC or Duke fan. Frankly, I admire Oliver Purnell's demeanor most of the time, but being nice to the officials has not helped him. It is time to say and do something.
Kirk
Kirk,
It would be hard to do what Purnell does. He is so much more calm than most of us could ever imagine. Maybe a good technical foul or two might get a “Rick Barnes-like” reaction from the officials. It seems to work for Coach K.
Mickey,
OP is a great coach and knows how to develop game plans that win ballgames. He knows that his team will be at an unfair advantage when they travel to both UNC and Duke. The "home court advantage" factor is a fact supported by history. Common sense would dictate that CU was going to step up and play a physical game, nurture a lead, show domination, and take the crowd out of the game- which they DID. OP expected some solid fouls out of his players and he got them. However, what happened last night demonstrated one thing- when OP prepares his team with a solid game plan which I am SURE took into account the "home court advantage factor", the referees stepped up their game, too. OP now knows that a 15 point lead and aggressive play by his players is still not enough. He has to have a bench full of equally talented, prepared, competitive players to replace his starters when they foul out! Of course just when he accomplishes that feat, the refs will again step up their game. Prediction: Years down the road, CU still will not win with a 25 point lead, "cause all starters will have "fouled out", the bench will have "fouled out" and Shaka will be playing all 5 positions in quadruple OT!!
GEEEEZZZ!
Sheri
Sherri,
I will ask Shaka what kind of condition he is in just in case we need him to suit up in our trip to Chapel Hill.
Mickey,
This morning is the first time I've woken up literally angry after a game. I'm not angry about the fouls and free throws...although you would think I should be. No. I'm angry about that little cheater Hansbrough. I've never disliked an individual more than I did last night and this morning.
I've only listened to your show for the last 20 minutes, so I don't know if you've discussed this or mentioned it. I want to know what you think about Hansbrough hooking Booker and pulling him back into himself to "create" the foul that put him out of the game. I saw in it in real time as Hansbrough basically yanked Booker into himself (pretty much fouling Booker) and then I KNEW, just KNEW that a whistle was coming. Those guys that call in and say that "you lost, suck it up..blah, blah, blah" are just plain stupid or blind. UNC took one of our best players out by FOULING Booker and getting the call AGAINST Clemson. This is ridiculous.
HOW does a player clearly foul, CLEARLY FOUL, a player and get the call against him. If Booker hadn't had that FAKE foul called against him, we would have had one of our best players in the game. That ONE play is stuck in my head. I wouldn't be surprised if that play was planned, I'm sure it was, but am I the only one that saw this idiotic call????
Your right about the officiating, and anyone that disagrees is just plain blind and stupid. PERIOD
Rant
Rant,
Thanks for the e-mail. I know you guys are upset and rightfully so. Now we just need to get behind the team again and pull out a top four seed for the ACC tournament first round bye.
864-834-6060
The Brad Hughes All-State Insurance Agency
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Things will never change. The ACC has to protect their big name teams Dook and UNC. They need them to have as high a seed as possible in the NCAA tourney so they can advance and make the league more money. The payouts for the NCAA are based on how many games a team plays in.
Posted by drock4484 on February 15, 2008 at 12:07 PM EST #
On the subject of oversigning...
The players that enroll early in January count against the prior year's limit of 25 scholarships. Therefore, if Clemson had only signed 21 players in 2007 it would have been able to count 4 of the early enrollees in 2008 against the 25 scholarship cap in 2007, and then sign 25 more in Febraury, for a class total of 29. However, you still need to keep your total number under 85 somehow. Hope that made sense.
Posted by Jesse016 on February 15, 2008 at 12:16 PM EST #
Mickey, thanks for putting "53" in its place !!!
Posted by dhamm on February 15, 2008 at 01:07 PM EST #
thanks for the clarification and explanations
and how can one player from UNC go to the foul line almost twice what our entire team went to the foul line - come on - give me a break
Posted by cufan on February 15, 2008 at 02:48 PM EST #
Mickey, have you talked to OP since the UNC game? Please ask him how he has handled it because if the fans are/were steamed about getting shafted, you know he and the players had to be as well. Looks like they took out their frustration on GT :) Anywho, just would like to know his thoughts (I know he is not allowed to talk ill of officials). Thanks.
Posted by Dr Claw on February 15, 2008 at 05:54 PM EST #
Great thing you've got here. Read it every week
Posted by Tyger4Lyf on February 15, 2008 at 09:23 PM EST #