Swinney on Klubnik, defense Uiagalelei, Florida State, tampering
CLEMSON -- Clemson head football coach Dabo Swinney addressed members of the media Sunday evening during his weekly teleconference, this time following his coaching staff's Sunday film review of Saturday night's 40-14 win over Stanford in Death Valley.
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The following is an abbreviated transcript of Sunday's teleconference.
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OPENING STATEMENTS: "Another good win for us. I'm proud of our team. It was just what I thought the tape would show ... a tough, physical, gritty, game. Stanford played really hard and did some things on both sides of the ball that created some challenges and conflict for us. We saw some things that'll help us improve. We're a quarter of the way into the season now. A lot of good stuff.
"Defensively, to me, it's all about the second half. We really shut them down in the second half. I'm very disappointed in how we played in the first half but give them some credit for that, too. Red zone defense was awesome the whole game. We've got three games now where we have generated turnovers. We had huge stops on fourth and one. We got their quarterback on the ground four times. We had five three-and-outs. Just too many big plays that aren't competitive plays where we have to do some things fundamentally better. I love how we responded to the challenge of the game.
"After I watched the tape, we played a little better than I thought on the field. Of the last three games, the worst of them from a precision standpoint. 17 yards a completion speaks to the explosiveness that we have had. A lot of guys are making big plays. They're third in the nation in rush defense, so for us to rush for five yards a carry, I was pleased especially with some adjustments over the course of the game. But we left a lot out there, still. Just overall not as crisp and precise as we've been. But again, 40 points three games in a row.
"Another great win at home. It's time to go on the road and try to create some momentum on the road."
Q: Was that Barrett Carter's best game this season?
SWINNEY: "He has played well all season. He was everywhere in that second half. I think he had a career high three and a half tackles for loss. I think he's just getting better and better. Definitely a great game for him."
Q: You praised T.J. Moore last night. What did the film tell you from last night?
SWINNEY: "He looked like a freshman. He had a missed opportunity. He has to use all the tools that he is equipped with. As he got into the game, he kind of reverted back to just some stuff that he could get away with in high school. I just want him to take another step from a technical, fundamental standpoint. It was good to get it on tape. He made a big third down play and drew a couple of PIs. Still, a lot of room for improvement."
Q: Cade's touchdown run came against man coverage. As this keeps up, how much do you think defenses may be dissuaded from man coverage?
SWINNEY: "It's just something he did not do last year and it's one of several obvious signs where you have seen his improvement from last year. And he improved over the last five games last year. He's seeing the field well. He got outside of the pocket to extend, he extended it to throw it, but there was great recognition of the coverage he had and just took off. Any time you have a guy who can really run in the open field, it challenges the defense even more. I'm happy for him and proud of him. That's been a huge, huge, improvement for him. And it's something that we need. He was almost seven yards a carry and with another big play, a touchdown. It's always been there but it's becoming more natural to him now."
Q: Cade completed 48-percent of his passes yesterday. How would you assess his accuracy?
SWINNEY: "It was good. We had four, maybe five drops. He had the one high overthrow and that was kind of a tempo play and he kind of let it speed him up. He just floated it too high. And then on another one he was fortunate on ... their guy tipped it. And he had a high throw to Wesco down in the red zone. Other than that, he was really good. He made some big-time throws. A great throw to T.J. on the third down. Not perfect but he is playing at a high level. To me his biggest mistake was not getting a first down on that third down (slide). That's something I know he was really frustrated with."
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Q: You feel like Antonio Williams and Khalil Barnes are going to be fine?
SWINNEY: "Yes. We announced them as day-to-day."
Q: You talked about some of the struggles with the team late in the week. Was there a point where you felt this game might not get played?
SWINNEY: "It never came up to me. Maybe it did to the administration. No one ever brought any of that to me. My job is to get the team ready. If there was any of that going on, I didn't know anything about it."
Q: You said some of their biggest success rushing the ball came on the option stuff. Can you evaluate the pure point of attack presence at defensive end?
SWINNEY: "Not good enough. It's not just good enough. Sometimes your ends are spilling things to second level players. We have not boxed the ball in like we've needed to consistently. We did not contain the football well in the first half. The one big run which was just straight swop zone, we had two defensive linemen in the same gap. And that's what happens when you're not gap sound. When we all do our job and everyone is playing their gap, man, good stuff happens. We've got some young players, too, who are becoming good players and they're playing their way through the fire. But we've got to be better when it comes to leveraging the ball. When people run around you, it doesn't matter what kind of pursuit you have."
Q: Capehart's snap count last night?
SWINNEY: "Probably 30-40 snaps. We're rolling four guys in there for the most part, primarily. All of them are doing a good job. Payton is playing well. Tre started the game. He probably played more snaps. I'm really proud of him. Cape did some good things. He was out and didn't get cleared to practice until Wednesday. I'm really proud of Stephiylan Green. I'm seeing a lot of positives from him."
Q: Is Khalil where you thought he would be in his first year as a starter?
SWINNEY: "Yes. He's playing great. He had some nice tackles and is grading at a high level for us. He graded 93-percent last night. He had one missed tackle. He had eight tackles. He and Mickens played really, really well. I'm excited about where he's at and what he's doing."
Q: How would you describe your current relationship with DJ Uiagalelei and what's it going to be like to face him Saturday night in Tallahassee?
SWINNEY: "You can't have a current relationship otherwise you'd have tampering. You can't communicate with players at other places, but the way our relationship ended here was great. I love that kid. I enjoyed him. He was 22-6 here as a starter. We didn't win them all. Two of those losses were on the road in double overtime. We had one pick-six, a one-play loss against Georgia and another one here at home. He's four plays away from being 26-2 with us here.
"I'll always be thankful for that young man. He's one of the best young kids I've ever worked with. There was never a day I didn't enjoy being around him. It'll be good to see him. He's a Clemson graduate and gave everything he had when he was here with us."
Q: Any initial takeaways on him on tape at Florida State?
SWINNEY: "They've just had a lot of missed opportunities. I'm sure Mike would tell you the same thing. They've had some tough games, a couple of close losses and some missed opportunities. We all know what he is capable of doing. Not just him because Florida State has a talented roster. It doesn't take long to see it when you turn the tape on. I'm just focused on us and trying to put a plan together as we try to build some momentum this season."
Q: What's the line with tampering? You can talk with a player on the field after a game but you can't text him?
SWINNEY: "We've been told from our compliance people - even with guys who are now at other places - it's something you shouldn't do. Kids can come and go and you don't want to ever get accused of tampering. It's unforunate ... that's the way the rule is.
"There's certainly been tampering after the game (from others). I've had several come up to me, parents, where players have been approached post-game. That's just the ways of the world right now ... not a lot of barriers. Now, you can still say hey to a player after the game. But I don't say, 'Hey if you're not happy, come play with us.'
"I don't get involved with that stuff, though. I think that's pretty obvious."
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