With just two games left to play in the regular season before No. 1 Clemson heads to Charlotte for the 2015 ACC Championship, one can feel the sense of urgency in the air as head coach Dabo Swinney addressed the media in his weekly press conference on Tuesday.
Here is what we heard:
“You can smell it. It is exciting because you work all year long and now you are right here. These guys have done a great job of just trying to do their best each and every day, each and every week. But where we are right now, just eighteen days away, man we have to maximize each day. We have to have a great day today,” Swinney said. “We have to have the best Tuesday that we can possibly have. We have to be one hundred percent dialed in.”
Swinney is urging his players to refocus and give it their all in every remaining day so that the Tigers can finish as strong as possible.
“The finish line, we can see it. But we want to sprint through it. We cannot waste a step. Each day is a step. There are eighteen days left. We cannot waste a meeting, we cannot waste a practice and we have to have a sense of urgency to the nth degree. That’s what I want to see every single day because again, I want to see us sprinting through the finish line,” Swinney said.
On Tuesday, Swinney was asked if being the number one team in the nation comes with a lot of pressure. The answer was no, and he laughed at the idea that the game of football could put him under pressure.
“Do I feel pressure about a football game? No. Turn the TV on,” Swinney said regarding the problems that are going on in the world today. “Through this game, you really have the opportunity to bring joy to the lives of people who have pressure in their lives,” he continued. “There is no pressure about being the number one football team in the nation. It is a whole lot of fun.”
Defensive coordinator Brent Venables is sending a clear message to his defense, which have progressively allowed more rushing yards since they played NC State.
“I asked the guys yesterday if maybe these last few weeks, when we haven’t looked really good, maybe that’s who we are. And maybe the first part of the season, whatever it was the first 6 or 7 games was smoke and mirrors. They didn’t like that, which I like. It was a very quiet room, and when I said that, there were a lot of guys that were starting to get a little PO’d,” Venables said.
Saturday’s game against Wake Forest is the Military Appreciation game as well as the senior recognition game. For the seniors, running down the hill for the last time will be an emotional moment.
“As I come down the hill, I have to take a deep breath and keep my emotions down” long snapper Jim Brown said.
“It’s an unbelievable entrance. It means a lot to be up at the top of the hill with people you’ve worked with basically your whole life here. Locking arms with them and rocking back and forth is something that has kind of evolved over time, and looking up and seeing all of the fans who have taken the time out of their day to come support you playing the game that you love. Just being to run down, it’s a great experience overall,” offensive lineman Ryan Norton said.
“I’ll definitely be excited, but I’ll try to hold back the tears. It’ll definitely be an emotional moment for me, but I think I’ll handle it well. If I don’t, I’ll hide it. There’s been a lot of ups and downs, but at the end of the day, I can say that I am very happy with where I am,” wide receiver Charone Peake said.