Time for the latest edition of Ask TCI.  Each week we will take questions on the message board The Rock.  We will take questions up until midnight on Tuesday.

Each weekend we will run our Ask TCI feature with answers to some of the questions asked by the Clemson Insiders.  Make sure to get your questions in next week.

Will the staff go after Josh Outlaw now that he has decommitted from Florida?

The Tigers will certainly give Outlaw another look, but the two top offensive lineman the staff is hard after right now are Droogsma and Crowder.  As we have told you the last couple of weeks the Tigers are now clearly out front with Droogsma after the Noles backed off.  Clemson also recently made Crowder’s cut and are very much in the mix there.

Will we see any trick plays against Auburn?

Now you know that on TCI we don’t ever release information that could hurt the team so we certainly wouldn’t release that answer.  If we told you we would have to kill you.

How do we see the season playing out wins and losses?

My expectations are always high for the Tigers and they certainly are again this year.  Clemson should win ten plus regular season games in 2012.  The Tigers will take care of business in all their home games this year, just like last year.  Auburn and Florida State are the toughest road games.  Wake Forest is always a scary road trip for the Tigers and this year won’t be any different.  We don’t see the Tigers losing more than two on the road.

The TCI staff should be making plans for another long stay in Miami!

How many more recruits will Clemson take in the 2012 class?

Clemson is sitting at 17 commitments for 2013.  As you know they also have a couple of players going the prep school route.  Look for the Tigers to add two to four more commitments to the 2013 class.

Clemson is done at running back, quarterback (they aren’t taking one), tight end.  They would still add Crowder and Droogsma on the offensive line.  They would still take North as an oversign at receiver.  On the defensive line they would always take Adams commitment of course.  Other than that they are done on the defensive line.  They are done at linebacker.  They would take another commitment, possibly two in the secondary.

How is Jerome Maybank’s move to offensive line coming along?

Well Maybank will certainly see more time 0n the offensive line eventually than he would have at defensive tackle. At defensive tackle he had already been passed by the two freshmen that just arrived on campus.

Maybank was highly recruited for the offensive line by some schools coming out of high school.  Don’t expect Maybank to be a contributor for another year or two.  Right now he is buried on the depth chart on the offensive line as well.

Do you think we will see any of the pistol formation this season? 

You will see a lot of the pistol formation this season.  That is one of the main formations they run every day in practice.  A lot of the players have commented on what the pistol formation will offer the team this season.  Andre Ellington is excited about how the pistol will help his running game.

Are the players “coached” for interviews? Is there a PR or media person that works with the team as to how to give an interview? I noticed when a lot of the D players were asked about Steele’s vs Venables’ schemes none of the players ever said BV’s is much easier or anything like that, they just said different. Does Dabo pick players to make available for interviews or do you just grab them? Who is/was your favorite player to get to interview?

The players are not coached for interviews.  They are given a class when they are freshman and for some in later years as well.  Remember one new rule implemented last season is the media can not talk with any player until they have played in their first Clemson game.  The media is able to request certain players for interviews through the Sports Information Department.  You are not allowed to just grab players for interviews.  The SID group brings the players to the media for the interviews.

Rennie Moore was one of the best interviews last season.  Tajh is a very good interview.  Sammy does good interviews.  Dalton is one of the best for interviews this year.  And perhaps the media’s favorite this year is Lateek Townsend.

With the secondary appearing to be our only position of concern for next season, losing both safeties, how have Robert Smith, Jerrodd Williams and Ronald Geohagan been doing this fall?

Safety will certainly be one of the key areas of need for the 2014 recruiting class.

Smith has made good progress at safety and should see significant playing time this year.  Coach Venables and coach Harbison have been real pleased with his progress since last season.

Geohaghan is headed towards a red-shirt this season.  He is a talented prospect and will be a good one for the Tigers down the road.  Tankersley is heading to prep school but will be on campus in January if things go well.  He could be one of the major contributors at safety next year.

Kearse will also be an outstanding safety for the Tigers if he is on campus next summer.