Mario doesn't smile like that, ear to ear, walking off the field at Death Valley.
Some of it was the bye week coming. Some of it was the emphatic finish with a pick six to put the game at 41-13, but I think most of it was who made the plays. This wasn't a game about the stars. It was Dylan Day, Ryan Mack and Booker Pickett Jr. It was a nine-play drive where we never threw the ball.
"I think everything you saw in Mario's reaction was realizing, I'm doing this the right way," Ahmmon said. "We know he has, but it's that confirmation."
"He doesn't do too much hesitation," Ahmmon said. "He reminds me of Poyser, where there's not too much chopping your feet. It's, I'm going to run through your inside leg and we're going to bring you down on the first try."
Mack is the one nobody had on the bingo card, Ahmmon didn't know he was going to play at all.
Clemson went right at him early and he answered with a pass breakup. He gave one up to Bryant Wesco Jr. later, but that's a backup on an island against one of their starters, and he held his own. Pickett also got real snaps early.
Then there's Kellen Wiley Jr. He came in late, but it wasn't garbage time. The starters were still on the field. He made a tackle in space on the quarterback, then beat the guard with a spin move and forced a throw that JJ Dunnigan took to the house.
"That pick six, the way we finished the game, that doesn't happen if Wiley doesn't speed up the quarterback," Ahmmon said. "You can go five weeks and not play, and your number's called in week eight, and you go into the playoffs as a starter or a big contributor. That's just how this thing goes."
Same story up front. Ben Congdon made his first start as a true freshman, at left guard, on the road, against a front that threw stunts, mug looks and simulated pressures at him all night. Ahmmon's review: "He handled it great."
And Matthew McCoy got hurt, came back, got beat, and kept fighting.
"To see the pain he was in, to go out and come right back and still respond and keep battling like that, you can't coach that," Ahmmon said. "That's elite evaluation of the type of football player you want."
"He could not stay off the quarterback," he said. "He was on him all night."
I ran into Cooper Barkate's parents before the game and told them it felt like a Cooper game. All the attention was on Malachi Toney against Ashton Hampton. People forgot Barkate put 127 yards on Clemson a year ago at Duke.
First drive, 61 yards, gone. They call it deceptive speed. Whatever you call it, he was pulling away from everybody.
"I remember seeing that video in the offseason of people talking about he's slow," Ahmmon said. "Brother, turn on the tape. When them pads come on, it's like his Spider-Man suit. He just turns into a whole other player."
His sideline catch in tight coverage might have been more impressive than the touchdown because of when we needed it. Same with Toney's grab on third down, with Darian Mensah getting smoked as he let it go. Those are the plays that decide playoff games.
Elija Lofton is the one I've been waiting on. When people showed me clips last year of him missing blocks, that's how I knew he was really hurt. He was too heavy, he wasn't moving right, and he wasn't physical. That's not Lofton. Now he's healthy, and what you're seeing is a 245-pound running back who can also put people in the dirt. He ran over a defensive back on a screen, sent a corner airborne on the sideline and was the lead blocker when Toney got loose in the open field.
"Once he gets a catch or two and feels engaged in the offense, he's an animal," Ahmmon said. "He was open all night long. They could not guard him."
Somebody in the chat called him Jamal Adams like it was an insult. I'd take Jamal Adams in college on my football team.
He does need to tackle better. He knows it and I'm sure it's being drilled into him. But he led the team in tackles and had a sack, and Ahmmon made a point I think people are missing. Thornton is a run defender.
Early in the game, when Clemson was still trying to run, he was coming downhill and finishing. Then we held them to 1.8 yards a carry, they threw it 44 times, and all of a sudden he's living in space. On top of that, the injuries have him playing nickel, free safety and strong safety.
"I can't watch a guy have seven tackles and a sack and then say he's the worst player on the defense," Ahmmon said. "Come on. Let's be real."
The fix is small. Thornton pauses for a beat when he closes on a ball carrier and then dives. If he runs his feet through contact the way Poyser and Day do, he's fine.
"This is part of the initiation process to being a true Cane, you've got to go through the slander."
Here's what I can tell you. I saw Lightfoot walk out of the tunnel right by us. From what I understand, unless something has changed or something goes wrong, I don't see this being a long-range injury. We never fully know with these things. But I think the bye is coming at a good time for him.
It's coming at a good time for a lot of guys: Armondo Blount, Ahmad Moten Sr., who has been working through some things, and Xavier Lucas could potentially be back for Florida State. Mario mentioned that, and it matches what I've been hearing since he got hurt. Ja'Boree Antoine is probably a little later, but he's in that range. OJ Frederique is going to be longer-term, unfortunately.
Lightfoot has five sacks and Wilson has three and a half. I wouldn't compare them to Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor, because those two were so thick and powerful. The better comparison is David Bailey and Romello Height at Texas Tech last year, slender guys who get after the passer. Teams already know it so you see moving pockets and short throws. Nobody is just dropping back against these two.
If Lucas returns, Ahmmon sees the secondary sorting itself out. Ethan O'Connor has earned the right to start outside. Lucas takes the other side. Bryce Fitzgerald, who has been learning on the job at corner, goes back to nickel. Dunnigan, Poyser and Thornton rotate at safety, with Mack and Damari Brown in the mix at corner depth. That lets Corey Hetherman put guys back in the spots that fit them.
We went into Death Valley with a banged-up roster and won by 28. Now we get two weeks to heal before Florida State comes to our place. The team that shows up for that one should look a lot more like the one we expected in August.
Some of it was the bye week coming. Some of it was the emphatic finish with a pick six to put the game at 41-13, but I think most of it was who made the plays. This wasn't a game about the stars. It was Dylan Day, Ryan Mack and Booker Pickett Jr. It was a nine-play drive where we never threw the ball.
"I think everything you saw in Mario's reaction was realizing, I'm doing this the right way," Ahmmon said. "We know he has, but it's that confirmation."
The backups looked like they belonged
Day started at safety and I think he earned more snaps going forward. He had a very sound tackle for loss, and that's who he has been his whole career, mostly on special teams. He doesn't just get guys down, he strikes them. He has speed, he has length, and every time he's gotten a chance he's shown it."He doesn't do too much hesitation," Ahmmon said. "He reminds me of Poyser, where there's not too much chopping your feet. It's, I'm going to run through your inside leg and we're going to bring you down on the first try."
Mack is the one nobody had on the bingo card, Ahmmon didn't know he was going to play at all.
Clemson went right at him early and he answered with a pass breakup. He gave one up to Bryant Wesco Jr. later, but that's a backup on an island against one of their starters, and he held his own. Pickett also got real snaps early.
Then there's Kellen Wiley Jr. He came in late, but it wasn't garbage time. The starters were still on the field. He made a tackle in space on the quarterback, then beat the guard with a spin move and forced a throw that JJ Dunnigan took to the house.
"That pick six, the way we finished the game, that doesn't happen if Wiley doesn't speed up the quarterback," Ahmmon said. "You can go five weeks and not play, and your number's called in week eight, and you go into the playoffs as a starter or a big contributor. That's just how this thing goes."
Same story up front. Ben Congdon made his first start as a true freshman, at left guard, on the road, against a front that threw stunts, mug looks and simulated pressures at him all night. Ahmmon's review: "He handled it great."
And Matthew McCoy got hurt, came back, got beat, and kept fighting.
"To see the pain he was in, to go out and come right back and still respond and keep battling like that, you can't coach that," Ahmmon said. "That's elite evaluation of the type of football player you want."
Wilson, Barkate and Lofton
A week ago people were calling Damon Wilson II a lemon. Ahmmon had fun with that."He could not stay off the quarterback," he said. "He was on him all night."
I ran into Cooper Barkate's parents before the game and told them it felt like a Cooper game. All the attention was on Malachi Toney against Ashton Hampton. People forgot Barkate put 127 yards on Clemson a year ago at Duke.
First drive, 61 yards, gone. They call it deceptive speed. Whatever you call it, he was pulling away from everybody.
"I remember seeing that video in the offseason of people talking about he's slow," Ahmmon said. "Brother, turn on the tape. When them pads come on, it's like his Spider-Man suit. He just turns into a whole other player."
His sideline catch in tight coverage might have been more impressive than the touchdown because of when we needed it. Same with Toney's grab on third down, with Darian Mensah getting smoked as he let it go. Those are the plays that decide playoff games.
Elija Lofton is the one I've been waiting on. When people showed me clips last year of him missing blocks, that's how I knew he was really hurt. He was too heavy, he wasn't moving right, and he wasn't physical. That's not Lofton. Now he's healthy, and what you're seeing is a 245-pound running back who can also put people in the dirt. He ran over a defensive back on a screen, sent a corner airborne on the sideline and was the lead blocker when Toney got loose in the open field.
"Once he gets a catch or two and feels engaged in the offense, he's an animal," Ahmmon said. "He was open all night long. They could not guard him."
Thornton is not a liability
I got a lot of texts about Omar Thornton. People want his role reduced because of the missed tackles.Somebody in the chat called him Jamal Adams like it was an insult. I'd take Jamal Adams in college on my football team.
He does need to tackle better. He knows it and I'm sure it's being drilled into him. But he led the team in tackles and had a sack, and Ahmmon made a point I think people are missing. Thornton is a run defender.
Early in the game, when Clemson was still trying to run, he was coming downhill and finishing. Then we held them to 1.8 yards a carry, they threw it 44 times, and all of a sudden he's living in space. On top of that, the injuries have him playing nickel, free safety and strong safety.
"I can't watch a guy have seven tackles and a sack and then say he's the worst player on the defense," Ahmmon said. "Come on. Let's be real."
The fix is small. Thornton pauses for a beat when he closes on a ball carrier and then dives. If he runs his feet through contact the way Poyser and Day do, he's fine.
"This is part of the initiation process to being a true Cane, you've got to go through the slander."
Lightfoot and the injury picture
Mario didn't give an update when he went on with Joe Rose this morning. He said they'll look at all these guys.Here's what I can tell you. I saw Lightfoot walk out of the tunnel right by us. From what I understand, unless something has changed or something goes wrong, I don't see this being a long-range injury. We never fully know with these things. But I think the bye is coming at a good time for him.
It's coming at a good time for a lot of guys: Armondo Blount, Ahmad Moten Sr., who has been working through some things, and Xavier Lucas could potentially be back for Florida State. Mario mentioned that, and it matches what I've been hearing since he got hurt. Ja'Boree Antoine is probably a little later, but he's in that range. OJ Frederique is going to be longer-term, unfortunately.
Lightfoot has five sacks and Wilson has three and a half. I wouldn't compare them to Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor, because those two were so thick and powerful. The better comparison is David Bailey and Romello Height at Texas Tech last year, slender guys who get after the passer. Teams already know it so you see moving pockets and short throws. Nobody is just dropping back against these two.
If Lucas returns, Ahmmon sees the secondary sorting itself out. Ethan O'Connor has earned the right to start outside. Lucas takes the other side. Bryce Fitzgerald, who has been learning on the job at corner, goes back to nickel. Dunnigan, Poyser and Thornton rotate at safety, with Mack and Damari Brown in the mix at corner depth. That lets Corey Hetherman put guys back in the spots that fit them.
We went into Death Valley with a banged-up roster and won by 28. Now we get two weeks to heal before Florida State comes to our place. The team that shows up for that one should look a lot more like the one we expected in August.
