Clemson Mailbag: What Flaws Do You See With This Clemson Football Team?

Welcome to the Clemson mailbag, where the Clemson On SI beat writers answer your questions about all things Clemson. Questions can be about any sport or facet of the athletic department.

Below are this week’s questions:

Dianne McKenzie via X: I hate it so much when fans boo our own team. What do the players say about that?

Drew Cagle: The players have been pretty candid when asked about the fans booing the team. They understand when they’re not executing at the level fans expect, and it comes with the territory of playing at a high-achieving program like Clemson.

Tait Reynolds said that Dabo Swinney has talked with the team about the fans knowing what championship-level football looks like, and holding the team to that standard. Last week, Will Heldt talked about blocking out the noise and being “inside-out” in their approach.

Swinney’s message during the lightning delay was a great example of that. The team rallied, despite an uneven showing up to that point, and played inspired football.

Ed Helinski via X: What flaws do you currently see with this Clemson football team? And to what extent are they fixable?

Cagle: The main area that Clemson has struggled in this season has been at the line of scrimmage. Frankly, LSU is a tough Week 1 matchup for any team that needs to figure out its trench play, but Clemson struggled mightily even given that context.

Both units improved drastically after last week’s lightning delay against North Carolina. The offense pushed back the UNC front, kickstarting a 4-play touchdown drive where Gideon Davidson ran for 54 yards on 3 carries. On the other side, the interior stuffed UNC’s goal-to-go runs and forced a field goal to restart play.

Clemson is working in several inexperienced or younger players on both lines of scrimmage. If they can shore that area up, it’ll make Reynolds’ life much easier.

Jelly0jam via X: If Dabo wants to REALLY embrace the new portal system, what can he do during this season to make an impact, or is it too late?

Griffin Barfield: I believe that it won’t be what he can do during this season that makes an impact; I think it relies a little bit more on the players to do so.

I think the gut-punch loss he suffered in LSU is enough. The Tigers had the top transfer class in the entire country and throttled Clemson, with the game being over in one half. I don’t think the college landscape is going to change that much in an offseason, but the inferiority that the program felt in Baton Rouge should be telling about the group Swinney built in the months off the field.

This transfer class will have to prove that, too, even if it’s the same names from last season. If we get another career year out of Will Heldt, Elliot Washington II continues his hot streak and the safeties lock down the secondary, I think that will translate into the offense during this season, which only had one marquee name.

However, I think what he can do during this season to make an impact, if anything, is prove that Clemson can still win the important games that transfer pieces look for in a team.

John Suly via X: Tom Allen is really mixing things up to find the right schemes. Getting creative with DEs and nickel, etc., to try to improve the front attack. Where will he settle, or will he settle?

Griffin Barfield: I think we are at a point where, when we are looking at this season, I think Clemson is looking towards its future pieces for a push in seasons to come. The Tigers will have a lot of these pieces next season, save for players who leave for the portal.

That’s why I think you’re seeing a lot of these different looks: so Allen understands his personnel in the players he intends on keeping through the next few years.

Is the ACC out of the cards this season? Obviously not, Clemson won its only game in conference play this season (as of 6:00 p.m. on Friday), but Swinney has a foundation in mind that will set his program up for multiple seasons.

We’ve also played only three games, so I think that’s another idea to keep in mind. I think the switch in schemes could die down by the end of the season.

Enjoy our content? Make ClemsonOnSI a preferred source to see more stories from us on Google by clicking here.

Add us as a preferred source on Google