North Carolina head coach Mack Brown does not get the criticism the Clemson football team has received following its one-point victory over his team back on Sept. 28.
The Tigers needed a stop of a two-point conversion with 1:17 to play seal the victory over the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill. Since then, Clemson has fallen from No. 1 to No. 3 in the Associated Press poll and that includes a 31-point victory over the Seminoles this past Saturday.
“It is amazing, looking at Dabo (Swinney) and at Texas, where we were winning a lot like he is, and when you get there, fans and media are not fair,” Brown said after being asked who he thought were the best teams in the country on Monday. “The expectation for Clemson is that they blow everybody out. You go back to a couple of years ago, they barely beat Syracuse and they (lost) to Pittsburgh and they go on to win the national championship. And we thought, ‘They hung in there and what a comeback.’ Now we think, ‘Man, they stink!’
“They don’t stink. They got the best players in the country and still probably the best team in the country. So, the fact that we played them good, everybody is mad at them instead of being excited for us. It is weird how people look at it. The key is to win. You are not going to blow everybody out every week.”
Brown says he still has Clemson at the top and he thinks the criticism Trevor Lawrence is getting is uncalled for as well.
Lawrence threw three touchdown passes and ran for another one, all in the first half against Florida State, and yet analyst like ESPN’s Joey Galloway and Jesse Palmer seem more focused on an interception he threw when the Tigers were up 28-0 at the time.
“All those people criticizing him, would darn sure take him. I can tell you that,” Brown said confidently. “And if he went out right now, he would be the No. 1 draft pick. So, we can say what we want, but that old boy is really good. I stood out there and watched him in pregame at 6-6 and 230 or whatever he is running 4.4 or 4.5. He has never lost a game in his life and we are criticizing him. Oh my gosh!”
Clemson won its 21st straight game over Florida State this past Saturday and has won 17 straight games against ACC foes. The Tigers will try to make it 22 straight on Saturday when they travel to Louisville for a noon kick at Cardinals Stadium.
Naturally, Mack spent the weekend watching football. His thoughts, particularly on Clemson: pic.twitter.com/2X1Q13UJPA
— Barnt (@barntwn) October 14, 2019
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