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James Madison Football Coach Mike Houston is 28-2 in his first two season looking for a return trip to FCS Championship Game this season After losing to North Daktota State by one point in Frisco, TX. last January, Mike Houston and the Dukes are ready for a tough opening game when they travel to Raleigh, NC. to take on the Wolfpack of NC State. The Wolfpack is Coached by Dave Doeren, who lead them to a 6-2 conference record in 2017 culminating in a big win against Arizona State in the Sun Bowl last December.
The Wolfpack is lead by Ryan Finley, who is one of the favorites to win the 2018 Heisman this season. Finley and the Wolfpack are hoping to knock off Clemson and Flordia State in order to make their first trip to Bank of America this December for 2018 ACC Championship and, just maybe, a trip to their first ever Orange Bowl. The Dukes, who are lead by Former Yellow Jacket Running Back Marcus Marshall who transferred to Shenandoah Valley in 2017 after spending two season in Atlanta with Georgia Tech. This will be a tough game for the Dukes, but last season they beat East Carolina in their first game of the season. However, playing a team like Wolfpack will see if Coach Houston’s recruits will lead the Dukes to win their 2nd consecutive wins over Power 5 teams. - Chris Heidel
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Christian Wilkins is back for his senior season and ready to lead the Tigers back to the College Football Playoffs.Charlotte, NC- The 2018 ACC Media Day Coastal Division was filled with one consistent consensus among the national media and that question was can anyone stop Clemson? Kelly Bryant returns at quarterback which gives the Tiger’s a steady playmaker and good decision maker under center. Offensively Clemson averaged just over 33 points per game thanks in large part to his 24 touchdowns. He also completed 65.8% of his passes. Bryant has a stellar running game behind him in Travis Etienne who averaged over seven yards per carry on 107 carries. His explosiveness and patience behind his offensive line were instrumental in allowing him to amass 766 yards while scoring 13 touchdowns. Not to be outdone his backfield teammate Tavien Feaster had the same amount of carries as Etienne and averaged over six yards per carry and scored seven touchdowns. Now entering his junior season Feaster may not have the breakaway speed of Etienne, but he’s a consistent north south runner who can pick up tough yards between the tackles and who will most certainly challenge Etienne for carries. Clemson has experience and depth behind Kelly which will make for a long year for opposing defenses.
The offense should be just as good as last year but perhaps more importantly the defense is completely stacked with experience, playmakers and a defensive line that could potentially have four first round draft picks in the NFL Draft next year. The defensive line has two first team preseason Sporting News All American’s on what will be the most feared defensive line in the country. Defensive tackle Christian Wilkins is back and hungry now entering his senior season. He has accounted for 8.5 sacks and 22 tackles for loss the past two seasons. Not to be outdone his defensive line teammate CleIin Ferrell had an outstanding year last year tallying 9.5 sacks. He has also compiled 30.5 tackles for loss the past two seasons. He is simply unstoppable coming off the edge in an obvious passing situation. These two, coupled with the mountainous 340-pound Dexter Lawrence in the middle and it’s no wonder why the Clemson defense only allowed five, count them FIVE rushing touchdowns last year. Austin Bryant and his 8.5 sacks round out what can be considered the most terrifying defense line college football has seen in quite some time. Defensive coordinator Brent Venables, who just became the highest paid assistant coach at a public school in history just signed a 5-year $11.6-million-dollar contract. Ferrell offered these thoughts pertaining to his defensive coordinator, “It just intensifies your passion to another level when your coach has the same passion for the game that you do. He wants to see you succeed. Coach Venables understands it’s about the little things and he holds us accountable at all times. He’s consistent and never takes a day off.” The Tigers were second in scoring defense and fourth in yards allowed defensively in 2017, statistics that are impressive but that can certainly be improved upon. Year in and year out the Clemson Tigers under head coach Dabo Swinney have been a perennial powerhouse in the country and the class of the ACC Conference. When asked about what it takes to make a good program into a great program coach Swinney offered these thoughts, “It’s culture driven. We reinstall the program every year and the core values as well as the philosophy we believe in. We develop young people and leadership. The goal is to develop a consistent winner.” One thing is for certain coach Swinney has definitely done that! After winning the ACC Championship last year the Tigers lost in the college football playoff to Alabama 24-6. I see Clemson going undefeated this year. I just can’t pick anyone to beat them! N.C. State and Florida State can challenge but this team is battle tested, and they have great leadership and a great coach. Expect to see Clemson back in the college football playoff. - Euan McCreath |
Euan McCreath Archives
November 2018
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