App picked as 28 pt dog to Clemson

[sixtoes9134]

My tickets are bought and I am going down there with the mindset that we are going to give Clemson as much of a scare as Georgia Southern gave to 11-3 and Coastal division winner Georgia Tech last year.

[Gonzo]

Jort Nation will be heading to Tiger Town for the Apps.

[JonW]

10 of us will be down there, turning this one into my bachelor trip! Hoping to come away with a win, but a close loss and not too bad of a hangover will work as well.

[AppState89]

I remember what happened last time we placed a top 20 team that lost that many players on defense.

[AtlAppMan]

Here is yet another informed writer on the topic.

http://www.postandcourier.com/article/2 ... 5-schedule

I really like how he categorizes us into the same bucket as Wofford. "Start with the two lower-conference opponents — Wofford and Appalachian State". While technically correct, he certainly doesn't differentiate any between the significant gap of one being now a mid-level FCS and the other FBS.

The other point that was interesting, "who should be out of it by halftime". This is where I believe App will very much surprise the Clemson world. I believe several factors will dispel this by game's end:
1) I believe our strength & conditioning program will deliver in a huge way with linemen capable of matching up head to head with the best Clemson has to offer and our stamina will show late in the game.
2) I believe our game plan will include frequent rotations across our line and skill players from the first snap, i.e. see how we did it late in the season against ArkSt and ULL, which will keep our team much fresher late in the game. We will not be playing only 30 players for the entire game. This will be a significant aspect of our game plan.

If we can keep it close and reasonably contain their offense then I think we actually can gain an advantage late in the game due to these factors.

I know we are not a UGA but see what happened in the UGA-Clemson game last year as the game got into late 3r and 4th qtrs. http://www.ajc.com/news/sports/college/ ... out/nhCmG/

[Rekdiver]

Clemson is picked to win the Atlantic Division......we have to have our best game and they have to have their worst game. Out depth is not there yet. Our speed does not match Clemson. We need to temper our expectations with realism. A safe and cool trip to all those who go.

[appdaze]

I'm pulling for either a win or losing by 10 or less. Michigan was a great game but this is not Michigan. The spread is everywhere now. Clemson recruits speedsters that will keep up with all our guys.
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/s ... lachianst/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Appa ... m#Michigan
We Also had a a few rare players on that 07 team that had the skills to be on any DI team in the nation with some taking it to the next level. We will never surprise anyone again.

[proasu89]

Well I would have ranked us ahead of Wake Forest but other than that Clemson has a pretty stout schedule. I don't see them having a chance to "rest" their starters mid way through the 4th quarter. If we can pound the rock against their inexperienced defense, thus keeping their offense "resting" on the sidelines then we have a better than average shot of walking out of Death Valley with a win. It is a trap game by all definitions. I think that the Vegas line will be between 21 and 28. The closer to 21 the better the wagering action.

The one down side to a win in Death Valley is that it could send the Tiger's season into a free fall and thus diminish our SOS for a New Year's Day bowl. (I know I am getting ahead of myself).

Did you really just say that there was a downside?

[JTApps1]

Clemson is picked to win the Atlantic Division......we have to have our best game and they have to have their worst game. Out depth is not there yet. Our speed does not match Clemson. We need to temper our expectations with realism. A safe and cool trip to all those who go.

They do have a lot of speed at WR but hey lost 3 OL and have a ? with Watson's health. Their run game was also pretty average last year. We have to make sure they don't hit big passes over the top. Not easy but they aren't invincible.

[AtlAppMan]

Clemson is picked to win the Atlantic Division......we have to have our best game and they have to have their worst game. Out depth is not there yet. Our speed does not match Clemson. We need to temper our expectations with realism. A safe and cool trip to all those who go.

No one said we would not have to play one of our better games, however, I do not believe Clemson has to play their worst game for us to win. I believe you will see that we have developed more depth and stamina than you are giving the team credit. I hope the coaches do not preach to the players, "temper your expectations guys" because we are playing Clemson and you don't have the depth and speed to compete with those guys. Based on your comments we have not made any significant progress in recent years.

[Rekdiver]

I didnt say for the coaches and players to temper their expectations.......just unrealistic expectations of some fans that:
1. Clemson is falling apart because they lost a few starters
2. That we have built sufficient depth to pull a Michiganesque surprise
3. We've made progress sure but against the P5 we've yet to prove we can compete.

[sixtoes9134]

Be curious to see how Wofford fares the week before.

If Wofford keeps it interesting, which they have a history of doing, that will be telling. If they get blown out 60-3, that would have me concerned.

[EastHallApp]

Be curious to see how Wofford fares the week before.

If Wofford keeps it interesting, which they have a history of doing, that will be telling. If they get blown out 60-3, that would have me concerned.

I might think the opposite - if Wofford keeps it close, that will likely get Clemson's attention and have them wanting to look better the next week.

[sixtoes9134]

Both true.

[AtlAppMan]

I think we are going to see a heavy dose of run game, i.e. ULL game, at Clemson.

See Sat's comments.

http://www.journalnow.com/sports/asu/ap ... a295d.html

"I think a formula for winning, for-like-maybe-ever, in football is if you can run the football and play good defense," he said. "You can go look, NFL or college, that's a great formula for winning. Some of the team in the league have done that.

"There’s something about running the football and keeping the other team off the field, then playing defense."

That pretty much lays out the game plan we should expect to see on Sept. 12. We just need to execute very well.

[sixtoes9134]

I think we ran the ball decent against Michigan last year considering it was Upshaw's first ever game and we had no Marcus Cox.

[APPdiesel]

Clemson is going to be VERY tough this year. There's a reason that even AFTER losing better than half their starters they're still picked to win the Atlantic Division. Clemson is turning that corner from being a rebuild to a reload program.

28 is a little generous. I'd be willing to say Clemson up by 14 at half, maybe +21 final.

O/U App scores 20 (two TD's, two FG's). Any more guesses?

[ASUMountaineer]

I think we are going to see a heavy dose of run game, i.e. ULL game, at Clemson.

See Sat's comments.

http://www.journalnow.com/sports/asu/ap ... a295d.html

"I think a formula for winning, for-like-maybe-ever, in football is if you can run the football and play good defense," he said. "You can go look, NFL or college, that's a great formula for winning. Some of the team in the league have done that.

"There’s something about running the football and keeping the other team off the field, then playing defense."

That pretty much lays out the game plan we should expect to see on Sept. 12. We just need to execute very well.

Are you sure that was Satt and not Ron Rivera?!?

[EastHallApp]

I think we are going to see a heavy dose of run game, i.e. ULL game, at Clemson.

See Sat's comments.

http://www.journalnow.com/sports/asu/ap ... a295d.html

"I think a formula for winning, for-like-maybe-ever, in football is if you can run the football and play good defense," he said. "You can go look, NFL or college, that's a great formula for winning. Some of the team in the league have done that.

"There’s something about running the football and keeping the other team off the field, then playing defense."

That pretty much lays out the game plan we should expect to see on Sept. 12. We just need to execute very well.

Yeah, I think your last sentence is the key. The link between rushing attempts and winning is one of those things where I think commentators get cause and effect mixed up a little. If you run successfully and get a lead, then you're going to run more - because it's working, and because you want to burn clock.

I'm sure we'll try to establish the run every game this year. The good news is that I think Taylor Lamb will be good enough to win games with his arm when we need him to. And I don't think we'll be able to just gash Clemson with the running game with much consistency.

[JTApps1]

I think we are going to see a heavy dose of run game, i.e. ULL game, at Clemson.

See Sat's comments.

http://www.journalnow.com/sports/asu/ap ... a295d.html

"I think a formula for winning, for-like-maybe-ever, in football is if you can run the football and play good defense," he said. "You can go look, NFL or college, that's a great formula for winning. Some of the team in the league have done that.

"There’s something about running the football and keeping the other team off the field, then playing defense."

That pretty much lays out the game plan we should expect to see on Sept. 12. We just need to execute very well.

Yeah, I think your last sentence is the key. The link between rushing attempts and winning is one of those things where I think commentators get cause and effect mixed up a little. If you run successfully and get a lead, then you're going to run more - because it's working, and because you want to burn clock.

I'm sure we'll try to establish the run every game this year. The good news is that I think Taylor Lamb will be good enough to win games with his arm when we need him to. And I don't think we'll be able to just gash Clemson with the running game with much consistency.

From what I have heard Taylor has taken his game to a different level during the off season. His understanding of defenses is comparable to a senior not a sophomore.