News - Sports - College

Saturday, Sep. 06, 2008

Tigers need to bounce back today to take heat off coach

CLEMSON -- Let the recovery begin. And make sure it starts fast, or Clemson coach Tommy Bowden could face more trouble than expected this season.

Bowden is no stranger to the hot seat or critics in his 10 seasons with the Tigers. Still, armed with a new seven-year contract and favored status in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Bowden figured to get a break this fall.

Then came Clemson's horrific 34-10 opening-week loss to Alabama. The team lost its national ranking and its profile as a group chasing a national title. A stumble against The Citadel (1-0), a Championship Subdivision opponent the Tigers have shutout in nine of their last 13 meetings, and Bowden's untouchable status might disappear, too.

"It starts with the head coach and somehow finding the answers" to the team's problems, Bowden said.

There were many areas to criticize after the Alabama loss. Bowden was taken to task for letting freshman Jamie Harper get the team's first carry to honor a recruiting pledge as star backs James Davis and C.J. Spiller stood on the sidelines; for his team's apparent lack of physical play on the offensive and defensive lines; and then for calling on Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban two days after the loss to seek advice.

Bowden counters that his call to Saban proves he'll do what it takes to rebuild the Tigers' psyches and show off the form fans expected this season.

"I have to point a finger at myself and try and get the problem solved from an attitude standpoint and find out why," Bowden said.

The Bulldogs haven't beaten a Bowl Subdivision team since 1992 with victories at Arkansas and Army. But the 10-3 win over the Razorbacks caused quite a stir.

Arkansas administrators got rid of coach Jack Crowe within days of the loss, eventually settling on Clemson national championship icon Danny Ford as his replacement once the season ended.

For those wondering, the 60-year-old Ford is on his farm in Pendleton, a few miles from Clemson's campus.

The Citadel coach Kevin Higgins has watched Clemson's Alabama loss. It doesn't make him feel better about the Bulldogs' prospects this week.

"We know how good they are," Higgins said. "The fact that Alabama beat them convincingly doesn't change anything from our perspective. This is still one of the top 10 teams in the country and we'll have our hands full."

That's only if the Tigers get their offense cranking again. Davis and Spiller combined for 20 yards rushing against Alabama, while Clemson netted zero yards on the ground.

Quarterback Cullen Harper, a senior picked this summer to win league player of the year honors, was continually harrassed by Alabama defenders and left the game with without throwing a touchdown pass.

Clemson's rebuilt offensive line -- it featured four new starters from last December -- was pushed around and ineffective. Starter Barry Richardson had surgery this week and is expected to miss up to six weeks.

The Tigers' defense struggled, too, allowing Alabama 239 yards on the ground. They will be without two defensive lineman: starter Ricky Sapp won't play because of a bruised knee and backup Jamie Cumbie will miss the season because of a broken wrist.

The defense's biggest task this time might be holding down Citadel receiver Andre Roberts, a junior who set the school record last season with 78 receptions. A week ago, Roberts accounted for three touchdowns in the Bulldogs' 54-7 win over Webber International. He had TD catches of 9 and 78 yards, plus a 64-yard punt return score.

Bowden and his assistants worked to keep the team's spirits high. They've reminded players about teams like Virginia Tech last season, which lost big at LSU yet still rebounded to win 11 games and the ACC title.

Bowden has liked the attitude and focus he's seen this week. No one's pointing fingers or giving up on the season.

"We still got a ton of games left to play. I think every team wishes they were going to go undefeated," Harper, the quarterback, said. "We've just got to respond well. We've just got to learn from our mistakes."