MIAMI GARDENS, Fla, — On Tuesday the Capital One Orange Bowl held media day in which reporters had access to all Clemson and Oklahoma players and coaches for an hour per team.
For Clemson, this was the first time the media had access to the freshmen who have not played in a game. The setup of the interviews also created a fun atmosphere for the Clemson players to be themselves while enjoying the company of their fellow teammates.
Here is what we heard:
Although Oklahoma has done some trash talking, Clemson is just brushing off the comments. Linebacker Ben Boulware says that Clemson is only focused on what it can control.
“There’s a bunch of smack talk going around from their side. They can do that if that’s what they want to do, but you’ve still got to play the game,” Boulware said. “You can’t talk your way to a win. You’ve got to play the game. You can talk all you want to, but that’s obviously how they’re trying to win the game. You’ve got to play the game. You’ve got to line up and beat the man in front of you, so we’ll see on game day.”
Boulware also said that he had a brief but fun exchange with Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield.
“I saw Mayfield, and last year in the bowl game, we had like a little dance off, and I was just like, we’re going to be dancing this year. I’m looking forward to seeing you, and the ponytailed lineman, I was like, I’m looking forward to you dancing this year. They’re good dancers. I was just trying to be funny. We talked for maybe 30 seconds. That’s all it was,” Boulware said.
Oklahoma isn’t the only source of trash talk, defensive end Shaq Lawson said that defensive coordinator Brent Venables has done his fair share of talking as the scout team quarterback. Lawson even ended up tackling him in practice, but it was all in good fun.
“He’s been talking trash to us. He’s very competitive when he does that scout team quarterback. One day I had I didn’t intend to hit him, but I actually did hit him hard, and he got up and shook it off like he went hard, and he didn’t have no pads on, so it was crazy,” Lawson said. “Everybody started laughing because we know how Coach V is. Nothing fazes him, so everybody just started laughing. We seen when I hit him and everything, and he just got back up and went to the next play, and it was fine.”
Offensive lineman Eric Mac Lain has no doubt that Venables took the hit well.
“I’m sure he loved every bit of it. He probably gave Shaq a big hug after hitting him,” Mac Lain said.
It is no secret that Clemson players have great relationships with their coaches, especially with head coach Dabo Swinney. Quarterback Deshaun Watson loves playing for Swinney because he values the importance of enjoying the journey.
“It’s a guy that you can always just let loose and be around. It’s not just about football, it’s about life and just having fun and celebrating the wins. That’s what it’s all about. This game, especially at this level, if you’re not having fun, it’s going to be hard to be successful, so that’s what he wants to bring to this culture and this program is have fun with it, lighten up the mood, and not make it too serious,” Watson said.
Running Back Wayne Gallman also appreciates that aspect of Swinney, and he is enjoying every moment of the Orange Bowl.
“It Feels like I’m out with my family at a beach resort. You’ve really got to take in times like this because you really don’t get times like this. That’s the fun part about it is having this experience with all my friends, my teammates. I’m glad we got a chance to do it,” Gallman said.