Clemson linebacker Ben Boulware spoke to the media about the task a hand for second-ranked Clemson as it gets set to play No. 3 Ohio State in the 46th Fiesta Bowl on Saturday as part of the College Football playoff semifinals.
“Just finish. That’s kind of the only thing we’ve been preaching all year. We just have to finish,” said Boulware when he was asked about what he learned from last year’s playoff experience. “We played well for 14 games but at the end of the day we didn’t finish and that has kind of been our motto all year in the film room and in practice and each game. Treating each game like it’s the national championship and hopefully when that time comes it will carry over.”
Q: When you see them on film you see three different guys that can really make plays in the running game, how does that change your approach?
BOULWARE: “Not really. You kind of go into it with the same mindset as Louisville, knowing that their quarterback is capable of running the ball just as good as he is throwing it. Two running backs with Samuel they definitely do a lot of different things, but it’s our job to stop them, we definitely have a good game plan in and ya’ll know they have a lot of talent on their side of the ball but so do we. We’re D1 football players too so it’s going to be a great matchup, but they definitely present a challenge for us and we’re here for it.”
Q: What is it that makes you guys so good when you have a month to prepare?
BOULWARE: “We don’t allow that extra time to let us get complacent or lackadaisical. We have our game plan in by Friday and with the extra time we just tweak some things but if we had to play some last Saturday or whenever that was I think we would have played at a high level. So we get our game plan in the same way we do leading up to any other game so we are able to tweak or make any minor adjustments but we are really just treating it like a normal game week.”
Q: Is that a playoff beard?
BOULWARE: “It’s a lifestyle beard. It means patience. You gotta go through a lot of ugly phases. You gotta be a man about it. You just gotta fight the razor. It’s a lifestyle beard. This has been here since January 12, and it’s December 27, so it has been a long time. I had the mustache… I don’t know why and I shaved the mustache after the National Championship and started a clean slate.”
Q: What is the legacy you’ve left with this program making it a championship contender every year?
BOULWARE: “Oh it’s definitely not me. It’s me, Deshaun (Watson), Jay (Guillermo), Karlos (Watkins), (Cordrea Tankersley), Jadar (Johnson), Coach (Dabo) Swinney, Coach (Brent) Venables. One man cannot take credit for all of this. I know everyone likes to point out Deshaun as the savior of this world and the savior of this program, but he couldn’t have done all of this without Jay Guillermo, Mike Williams or Wayne Gallman. It’s the same with me. I couldn’t go out and make the plays I do without (Tankersley), Karlos (Watkins), Jadar, Christian (Wilkins), (Dexter Lawrence), Kendall (Joseph) and without Coach V putting us all in the right positions to make plays. So I definitely don’t think there’s one man who can take credit for all of this, even Coach Swinney. If he had a team full of crappy players we’d suck. Luckily that’s not the way it is. It’s the whole aspect of the team. You can do it without the guy beside you.”
Q: How do you instill that in the younger players so they can continue on this pace?
BOULWARE: “I really just lead them, in any aspect. Just kind of teach them the game of football. The formations and whatnot, it is not High School football anymore. The aspect of comradery and going to work every day with your brothers, and grinding every day since January. So I don’t really think much needs to be said, just the work you put in speaks for itself. You learn to love the guy beside you, because of all the work you put in. It’s really just that, I think that’s what it teaches them. It’s not about you. The five-star recruits that come in here get humbled quickly. Thinking they’re going to come in here and be a Freshman All-American, and a lot of the time that’s not how it is. You gotta go to work, put in your time, and pay your dues. Exactly like I did. There’s a few that can do it like Dexter Lawrence who can come in here and be a freak like he is, the Sammy Watkins, that’s about it. So I really think just the grinding and just going to work, preparing every day. It teaches those young guys about the team.
Q: Were you able to enjoy what you accomplished last season? Or did that loss in the national championship game really stick with you?
BOULWARE: “It stuck with me for a while. After a while I came to appreciate what we had done. I know it’s so difficult to do it two years in a row, let alone one, but after the first month or so I was just completely pissed off about the game. Reflecting back on it now, and the past couple months, it definitely makes you appreciate it a lot more.”