When Dabo Swinney was a player, every week was a physical challenge.
“You would go three downs and punt. You would kind of see who would eventually give up field position and get the field goal. You would win 10-7 or 13-10 or whatever,” he said. “But this style of play is not every week now, which I think is what makes college football kind of fun.”
But the No. 2 Tigers will see it today when they host Boston College at 7:30 p.m., at Memorial Stadium. The Eagles are one of the more physical football teams in the ACC and it is a mentality they bring with them every year.
It is not uncommon for most of the Clemson team to be in the training room with some kind of physical aliment the following morning.
“It is very similar to last week (at Louisville). Last week, was a very physical game because they are committed running team, and everything is built off of that,” Swinney said. “The difference is these backs are 250 (pounds). That is the biggest difference. They are 250 and they are mostly two tight ends and some three tight end sets. They are a little different formational, so it is a physical game.”
The backs Swinney is referring to are Boston College running backs AJ Dillon and David Bailey. The two have combined for 1,478 yards, the most by a duo in college football. Dillon is second nationally in rushing yards (968) and rushing yards per game (138.3).
Last week, in crushing NC State, Dillon rushed for 223 yards and scored 3 touchdowns, while Bailey ran for 181 yards and scored 2 times. As a team, the Eagles ran for 429 yards against a NC State defense that was allowing just 66.7 yards per game on the ground coming in.
“They embarrassed NC State,” Swinney said. “There ain’t nobody that wants to be a part of something like that and that is what happens when you don’t have the right mindset physically to match up. That is a long day.
“We all know NC State. They are always a tough opponent for us. They were giving up 67 yards a game and those guys just absolutely smashed them, so it is easy for our guys to have their attention based on what they have seen on tape.”
It is also interesting because if there is a weakness on Clemson’s defense right now, which currently ranks third nationally, it is its run defense. The Tigers are still growing there and occasionally have given up some yards, especially up the middle.
Clemson is allowing 111.9 rushing yards per game coming into today’s game.
“This is a team that is very, very capable. I think our guys have a natural respect for Boston College,” Swinney said. “The guys that are in this program every single year know BC is one of the toughest teams we play and is one of the best coached teams we play.
“They are a handful and we will have our hands full.”
And this will be an opportunity for Swinney to see how his team handles playing against the style of football BC is going to bring into Death Valley.
“I am really as excited about this (game) as I am any of them all year long because I want to see our guys match up and see how our guys accept the challenge because they are going to come in and challenge us. So, I want to see how we match up physically and really it’s the mentality that I am looking for.”
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