CLEMSON -- Sunday evening Clemson head football coach Dabo Swinney addressed members of the media in his weekly teleconference, this time to take a closer look at his team's 31-16 win over Louisville after the coaching staff's Sunday film review.
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Swinney touched on a myriad of topics in the teleconference ahead of a week of preparation for Coastal Division member Miami (5-5, 3-3). The Tigers (9-1, 6-0) are a 19.5-point favorite over the Hurricanes.
The following is an abbreviated transcript of Sunday evening's teleconference.
OPENING STATEMENTS: "I'm proud of our team. Just what we needed ... a great response. Far from perfect but we played tough and physical. And you have to have that to win a game. We showed up in the right mindset. We won the division outright. That's our tenth and ninth outright. We've put ourselves in a position to have a really good finish. We need to build on what we did.
"Offensively we ran the ball well. Mafah and Shipley were great. We were at 71-percent completion. We scored touchdowns in the red zone. We had a great start to the game. Too many penalties, too many turnovers which is crazy what's happened in the last three games. We should have easily had two more third downs which would have put us on track for our quality control but we had poor situational awareness. We still have to improve in a lot of areas. We did a good job of picking up a lot of their pressures and covering guys up. I thought D.J. did well. He bounced back and graded a winner. That's how he has to play for us to have a chance to win.
"Defensively we played tough and physical but gave up too many charity plays. The two third down runs were disappointing. The last play there at the end of the game ... we did not play that well at all. Barrett Carter was phenomenal and Trotter was outstanding as well. It was probably Bryan Bresee's best game. We got two turnovers and stops on fourth downs. That's what allowed us to win the game. They got no points off of turnovers. We did a great job on third down and also got after the quarterback. I just didn't like how we finished at the end. We gave up 80 yards late that we didn't need to give up.
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"Injury-wise, we came through it pretty good. Venables pulled his hamstring pretty good. He’ll be out for awhile. I hate that for him because he had just gotten back and had a great week of practice. He’s a tough kid, but he’ll bounce back. Other than that, we’re in a good spot. Beaux, we’ll see where he’s at. I think we’re going to work him back in at practice."
Q: What's a best-case scenario for Tyler?
SWINNEY: “I don’t know. It’s hard to predict. I would say best case would be maybe South Carolina or the championship game. You never know. I know this, he’ll work his butt off to get back.”
Q: How did Mitchell Mayes grade in his first start yesterday?
SWINNEY: He did good. Overall a very good first start for Mitchell. I’m proud of him. We ran the ball very well. He had some minuses here or there but a good start for him and a good confidence builder. Trent Howard got in there and did well also."
Q: Given how well Barrett Carter just seemed to see everything, is there any merit to switching things back to where they were last year with Trenton at SAM and Barrett at WILL?
SWINNEY: “Yeah. That’s what we do as coaches … always valuate. It gives us a lot of flexibility with how we can use our personnel.”
Q: Can Trenton still rep some at SAM?
SWINNEY: “Yeah, Trenton can play anywhere. He’s a special player. That’s where Barrett will be long-term. Trenton, yeah, he played great last year and his knowledge has grown so much and he’s had two years on the edge, so we have more flexibility that we didn’t have going into that game.”
Q: Do you know Mario Cristobal?
SWINNEY: “I know him a little. When he was the head coach at FIU, he came up here and spent a day or so. That was the first time I met him. He was at Alabama and I’ve crossed paths with him on the recruiting trail. Once he came into the league I’ve been in meetings with him. I know a lot of people down there, starting with Dan Radakovich. We have a battle of the ADs this week. Maybe we should bring Graham and Dan out for the coin toss. Mario has put a great staff together. He’s a heck of a coach.”
Q: R.J. Mickens is a guy who isn’t talked about often, but seems to be coming and is usually productive in games.
SWINNEY: “He’s a very good player. He’s incredibly smart and insctinvie. He’s coachable, tough and physical. His father played a long time in the NFL. He’s grown up around ball. He just gets it. I’m really proud of him. He played multiple positions yesterday and you will continue to see that. He’s a very good and dependable player for us.”
Non-football-related & off topics forum
Q: It's still a few weeks away, but have you followed North Carolina some this year?
SWINNEY: "Yes, a little bit. We haven't had a lot of crossover tape to review with teams we have played that they have. I've been able to watch them a good bit. They've just gotten better as the year has gone. Offensively they have been explosive all year. Defensively they have gotten better. That's why they won their division. We have work to do before we get to them."
Q: Wade Woodaz looked fast and confident last night. Do you also have some flexibility and interchangeability there with him?
SWINNEY: "Not just this year, either. I'd say the next few years. He's a baller. He's very similar to Barrett and Isaiah. He's more like Barrett. Isaiah had a lot to learn when he got here. Barrett and Woodaz were ready when they got here. Woodaz played quarterback much of his career and then safety. The game comes easy to him. He's long, he's tough, he's smart and he can run. He's physical by nature. He can play anywhere. He could go play safety for us and go be excellent. That's why we played him this year. He was ready to play. Good to see him in there. He got him a sack. He's going to be a really good player for us."
Q: Your strategy on getting D.J. more involved in the run game this week?
SWINNEY: “We felt like with their style of play, it would be important to run D.J. We wanted to try to see if we could get him involved early in the run game and settle him in. That was a great touchdown run that he made. It was well setup and well blocked. We did a great job of finishing it. I’m proud of him. He’s at his best when he is involved in all aspects of the game. It was definitely a focus for us to get him going early.”
Q: With Xavier Thomas out, how do you feel about your depth at D-End now?
SWINNEY: “We only had X for three games and he was limited in those three games. We have guys who have played a lot of snaps. It’s not like they’re rookies. Myles has had a good year, Mascoll has done a lot of good things, KJ by far has had his best year. I wish we had Xavier but I don’t think we have anything to complain about.”
Q: With Bresee, do you feel like this is something he can build off of as he tries to get back to 100-percent?
SWINNEY: “I think he played his best game. That’s a good sign. He was very disappointed in how he played last week but he went back to work and had a good week of practice. Outside of a couple of plays, he played his best game. We’ll see if he can build off of that and finish up the season the way he is capable of.”
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