Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009

Column: Tuneup down, now let the real tests begin for Clemson

CLEMSON -- The game played out exactly as expected.

The Tigers never broke a sweat, and Coastal Carolina never mounted a serious challenge. That's just what is supposed to happen when a team that's co-leading an ACC division plays a team that has a losing record in the Big South this season.

Clemson will gladly accept its third consecutive victory, however, even if the 49-3 rout of the FCS Chanticleers served as little more than a tuneup for a far more important conference contest against Florida State on Saturday.

What do we know about the resurgent Tigers that we didn't know a week ago? Not much.

The Chants' continuing offensive struggles, poor punting and multiple turnovers left Clemson with good field position all day, and the Tigers did what they needed to do to take advantage.

The succession of touchdowns made the Clemson fans happy, and Dabo Swinney got to clear his bench. Meanwhile, Coastal, which is in only its seventh season of playing college football, liked getting the opportunity to play one of the state's two big boys for the first time.

But past that, the game offered little on the old excitement meter. The best part of the day came when the rain stopped and the sun finally broke through the clouds in the third quarter, coincidentally the same moment when backup quarterback Willy Korn entered the game and led a quick touchdown drive.

Don't expect Korn to be on the field when the Seminoles come to Death Valley next week, not unless Kyle Parker struggles or gets hurt. Florida State has won consecutive conference games against North Carolina and N.C. State to reassert itself in the Atlantic Division race, and it's a good bet to cross midfield more than a few times, a feat Coastal was not able to manage until the fourth quarter on the way to its lone score.

So here's the tote sheet. Easy win, check. No key injuries, check. Everybody plays, check. But here's the question: Are the Tigers better prepared for the Seminoles?

Coach Dabo Swinney, who liked what he saw from his players, believes so.

"They did what they had to do and did what good teams do," he said.

He was more than happy to get a scheduling break between last week's big win over a ranked Miami team and next week's big game. That his starters didn't have to go full-bore for four quarters means they'll be rested and ready for the Seminoles.

Swinney believes FSU will bring as good of an offense and quarterback as his team has seen all season.

"They have great players and a great staff that will be ready for the game," he said. "Our players know them well, and we lost to them last year, so this game next week will be big for both programs. We just need to get back to work, and hopefully we will play our best game next week."

Parker, who exited in the third quarter after helping his team build a 28-0 lead, understands the Tigers will need to be much sharper than they were against the Chanticleers, who struggled to match up with Clemson's faster, stronger personnel. He's quite certain a greater focus and stronger execution is going to be necessary.

"I wouldn't say it was too easy," Parker said. "We'll have to be better than today."

The Clemson players are well-aware they haven't executed down the stretch in previous seasons, which has left them shy of the ACC championship game. They hope this warmup has them ready for a conference run against the final triumvirate of FSU, N.C. State and Virginia.

"That's what we're working on - finishing the job," safety DeAndre McDaniel said.

Swinney will not be able to hold his fire next week. The outcome was determined so early Saturday that Heisman hopeful C.J. Spiller got a mere five carries, one a 6-yard touchdown run.

But Swinney wanted no part of padding Spiller's stats against an outmanned Coastal. He wants his best all-purpose player ready to go for the games that count the most.

"We're about the team," he said.

Next week he'll get to find out what his team is all about.