CLEMSON -- Monday evening Clemson head football coach Dabo Swinney again addressed members of the media during his weekly teleconference following his staff's Sunday film review of the Tigers' 48-31 win over Virginia on Saturday.
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Due to the open date week, there will be no Tuesday news conference.
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The following is an abbreviated transcript of Monday evening's teleconference.
OPENING STATEMENTS: "Good evening everybody. Hard-fought game and I'm proud of our guys ... the type of September and October that we wanted to have. We're still just 6-1 and there is so much we can do better and we have to if we want to finish like we need to.
"This week is another opportunity for us to improve our team, get healthy and mentally improve. We want to get ready for a really tough Louisville team. Louisville is a very good team. We got a chance to study them some last week. They can sore. Their quarterback is a pro and they can really challenge you defensively.
"Injury-wise we are in pretty good shape. We'll do everything we can during the open date. We have a lot of guys who need to recover. Hopefully we'll get a couple of guys back.
"As for the Virginia game, offensively we were very efficient and a lot of explosives but plenty, plenty that we need to do better on offense ... dumb penalties and we turned the ball over.
"Defensively, they scored a couple of touchdowns in two minutes, so I was really disappointed with some of our guys not playing like they needed to play down the stretch. We will coach them hard this week."
"All in all a lot of good things."
Q: How much fun is it to be in the position you're in to control your own destiny again heading into November?
SWINNEY: "Last year we had a good November and it allowed us to finish our season on a high note. This year all of our goals are still there. It's exciting but it's hard to get to this point. We haven't been perfect anywhere but I am proud of their resolve and their willingness to reset every week and find ways to win. It's truly about this next game and trying to have a great November. If we do, we'll have more opportunities. It is exciting to still be in this situation."
Q: You said you were impressed with the run defense on Saturday. Big picture-wise, what has gone into shoring that up?
SWINNEY: "Getting Peter Woods back didn't hurt things. He and Woodaz were MVPs of the game. It was probably Peter's best game since the Georgia game. We're tackling better, too. Still plenty for us to do better especially with the passing game and some busts. We have good players. Payton Page, Capehart, Tre, TJ ... we have a lot of guys who are doing a nice job in the run game, so we have gotten better there, but still more that we can do."
Q: You have talked about the challenges you had this time last year but you have gone 11-1 since. Is there any satisfaction with that as you look back when you said buy stock in Clemson?
SWINNEY: "Not really. I'm not out to prove anything. It's just what I believe. That goes back to the Notre Dame game because that was a tough game, a tough week but I could see the growth coming. I could see a lot of good things in a lot of areas that not everybody sees. We finished well and we've carried it over to this year. I think we've got a chance to be really good for the next couple of years looking at the way our roster is built. Look at my 16 years and we have been pretty consistent, especially the last 13 years. Maybe we need to buy some more (stock)."
Q: This will be your second open date week. Does your off-week plan change some this week?
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SWINNEY: "We will tweak a couple of things. We will do some community service with some kids tomorrow and that's always fun. We'll get four good work days starting tonight. We'll be on the field in just a little bit. We will do more focus with our younger guys who need some competitive work. All of the higher rep guys, we'll give more fundametnal and separate work to get ready for Louisville. We want to take advantage of this time to have our guys ready for November. We have a lot of guys beat up we need to get healthy."
Q: At what point last week did you realize Vic Burley wasn't going to be able to go?
SWINNEY: "I think we knew Tuesday that he was probably going to be out. He's definitely a guy that should be back for sure."
Q: You said you were frustrated with penalties after the game Saturday. Looking back at the tape, can you elaborate on what you saw on Sunday in your review.
SWINNEY: "Dumb penalties. We had 12 men (on the field) and that was on us as coaches. We had the fourth and one and just lined up off-sides. We hit a guy in the back twice. We had a big procedural penalty. We have to be better and we have been but that was a game out of character for us.
"We have addressed that in detail. Sometimes you will have some natural penalties ... a PI or a holding call, but when you have procedural stuff and after-the-whistlle stuff, those are procedural penalties. And we can't have that."
Q: Cade said after the game he was disappointed in his accuracy. What did you see on the tape Sunday?
SWINNEY: "He just missed some plays. He still had a great day. He was 23-of-35, 308 yards and three touchdowns. He just missed too many layups. That's what he was talking about. He had Briningstool wide open for a touchdown in the end zone. In a tighter game, we need to make those plays. We had a couple of plays outside that we didn't make for him. He had a really good day, but he's got a high standard. We had 539 yards but we should have had 600+ had we just made some routine plays."
Q: What's your assessment of red zone defense?
SWINNEY: "Inconsistent, especially with our backup guys. It was really good last week and I think we were one of three this week. One was on Strozier at the end of the game and that should have been an easy play. We're not where we need to be from a discipline and execution standpoint. We have to be better."
Q: Your assessment on where Kylon Griffin is?
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SWINNEY: "He's getting better. He has made some plays for us. He played solid the other night and graded a winner. He did his job. It was a good outing for him."
Q: Curious about your assessment of Caden Story after his switch to defensive end?
SWINNEY: "We're playing him at end and defensive tackle. He got about 13 snaps at defensive tackle the other day. He's making some progress. He's got some maturing to do to reach his potential."
Q: Have you reached out to Deshaun after this latest setback?
SWINNEY: "Absolutely reached out to him and tried to encourage him and lift him up. I'm praying for him. Look man ... he's still young and has a lot of football in front of him. Aaron Rodgers is still playing at 40. It's a big setback for Deshaun but you just have to keep going. You can't let it keep you down. You have to bounce back and I know he will."
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