Obviously, not happy about this loss. This is a game we should've won, and our mistakes did us in. Right now, I'm more frustrated than anything else. Some thoughts on tonight and for the weeks ahead.
- We have a solid defense. Kevin Steele did a great job tonight, and our defense has really taken a step forward compared to last year. We had our mistakes and some missed tackles here and there, but all around, this was a solid defensive performance. Our DL looked good, and our secondary did what it needed to. For the first time in a while, at no point did our defense put us in a position to lose this game. In fact, they put us in a position to win it multiple times.
- Football is a game of luck in some ways, especially on TO's. A&M got every bounce tonight, and we didn't get any. That won't always be the case, and we need to generate TO's. You can't win a game like this without them.
- Our WR room has major problems. This will need to be an area of focus for our next few classes. Wayyyyyyy too many drops tonight. Brashard should've had that last catch to convert, and he missed some other ones today. Losing Restrepo was a huge loss for this team and game, and we need him back ASAP. Until then, someone needs to step up.
- OL played the best it has in a very long time. We got the run going, and TVD didn't go down once tonight.
- We underutilized our TE's. Mallory didn't look bad today, and Arroyo had a nice catch early in the 2nd.
- We have a solid RB group. If Chaney and Citizen were in the rotation, this would be one of the top RB groups in the country. However, Parish made a massive mistake by dropping that pass early in the game. Had he got it, we would've been 1st and goal inside the ten.
- TVD wasn't what we needed him to be to win this game. He was better in the second half, but it's evident that he's not on the same page as his WRs, and doesn't trust them. He needs to be better and learn from this experience.
- Hot take here - for some - but I didn't have an issue with what Gattis schemed up most of the night. We didn't have an issue moving the ball, but our RZ offense has to improve. The play calling inside the 20 is on him, but our personnel severely limits us. Either way, he needs to do better. The opportunities were there, and our guys did not execute. Multiple dropped passes and blown plays that would've gone for big yardage or even a TD.
- On this point, dont y'all remember how we constantly went 3 and out with Lashlee? The 21-second drives? The same running plays and bad OL over and over again? He was a good OC here, and TVD did well in his system but let's not rewrite history. How Gattis ends up is TBD, but we didn't lose because of his play calling. We lost because we did not execute.
- Mario would've been hailed as a clock management genius had we won. His clock management wasn't the reason we lost tonight. It was all about execution, and our guys needed to follow through.
- Going back to our Orange Bowl loss in 2017, we've lost these types of games by a combined score of 177-91 since then. I'm not a moral victories guy - and today's game is nothing but an L we could've avoided - but for the first time in a long time, we were actually in this type of game for 4Qs. That's an improvement.
- On this, our boys didn't panic tonight. In years past, we would've had 100 yds of penalties, be dancing on the sidelines, and be down 28+.
- We absolutely blew this game. Tyrique's muffed punt was a dagger we couldn't recover from. In the future, with better personnel, we will. We don't have that team yet, though.
We get a tune-up game next week, and after that, a bye before our conference schedule starts. Getting over the UNC hump will set the tone for conference play. Am I happy with what we did tonight? Absolutely not. We blew what should've been a nice win. However, you'd have to be blind not to see some major strides from last year. Defense is miles better, we actually had a competent game plan, and we didn't get outcoached. For us to get better, we have to execute. No way around it. Our boys lost today. For once, it's not entirely because of coaching.
Overall, I believe this is a team that'll go 9-3/10-2. Nobody other than Clemson has a defense like the one we played tonight, and I still have faith in TVD to figure things out. Also, remember that this isn't going to be a short process. Imho, we're (at best) 2-3 years away from making a real push. Until then, our boys must keep their heads down, buy into the process, and start building for the future. Getting to the ACC Championship is the goal for the immediate future. Long-term, I'm not worried. For once, I could see the progress and not be left hopeless by a loss like this.
