Dabo Swinney's Clemson-Georgia preview (pt. 1)

way okay thanks Ross uh good to see everybody I know everybody's excited uh just like we are that that it's game week and get a chance to to get back in the into uh game mode around here but uh everybody's ready to kick it off excited to see our guys uh go play and uh compete see where we are and and see where we go from there but uh it's been a good camp we had good preparation I think we've got a committed team um you know I've enjoyed uh these last several weeks you know just being with these guys the leadership their attitude again the work ethic um it's been it's been a lot of fun to to prepare uh for the most part we're a pretty healthy team uh which is a which is a real positive for us coming out of Camp I'm excited about that um and uh you know just got one goal and that's to that's to find a way to achieve our first goal that's really what we're what we're trying to go down to Atlanta and do and uh certainly going to be a huge Challenge and um you know playing a game like this this is usually you get you only you only get opportunities like this in the postseason in the playoffs in a National Championship uh but this just happened to be on our schedule so uh it's a great opportunity to play the best team in the country right out of the gate uh and that's that's that's that's what they are if anybody don't think they're the best team in the country then they probably hadn't paid much attention these these guys are really really good uh Kirby has done a tremendous job uh down there and and uh you know they're they're they got a lot of guys back you know starting on the offensive side I mean you got a a Heisman quarterback he's a very very good football player they've lost two games in three years and um you know and part of that is they're incredibly a phys they're a very very physical football team on both sides of the ball so you got to be able to match that um and then you know by by nature of scheme uh you got to win competitive plays I think that's a big thing in a game like this but starting with their quarterback he's he's just uh he's just a very good player and um you know the kid is he's accurate uh he's opportunistic with his legs uh he really understands their scheme they do a great job in really you know making you play assignment football with how they formation and motion and and mix you know the inside zone game with their with their you know toss game and their counter game um in multiple way ways that they get do that with the play actions and screens built into it and and and you know they got dudes that can make plays down the field but I think I think Carson is accurate I think he's a great vertical thrower uh so just puts a lot of pressure on you and then offensive line uh there's there's probably none better in the country this is a really really talented group very experienced and uh big strong backs uh a lot of skill on the edges uh they uh you know got couple couple guys returning that have had a lot of experience in production in six and 86 and 11 he's probably as fast a guy we recruited him out of high school he's probably as fastest guys as we're going to see that guy can really really stretch the field and then they brought in a couple of guys obviously Kobe coming over from Miami so uh you just a complete group on that side of the ball and very experienced and and uh you know what you're getting and over on the defensive side uh same thing you know big long athletic uh physical got pass rushers they they got sub package stuff that they do where they're going to get their bu rushers on the field um you know you live in third and long on these guys it's it's a really uh a tall task so um you know one of the best safeties you're going to see in the country uh in 24 great player but again 13 97 11 I mean they got they got guys that can get after the passer and uh I mean they're Georgia so I mean they have a few new faces but uh they they all look the same you know they all can run they're all strong they're all physical uh not a lot of room for error with these guys and good kicker punter dangerous in the return game so again that's why they're the number one team in the country and uh you got to you got to play well right out of the gate U to to have a chance to win a game like this uh so excited about it looking forward to it and and we won't have to wait long uh be able to wake up Saturday and get right after it coach Georgia lost a lot of his offensive production the NFL and B and makon brought in a really good tight end from Stanford you mentioned the receiver from Miami no what you know of that roster how do you expect them to replace that offensive production yeah Delp I mean if you watched him last year I mean he's great player another kid we recruited uh number four he's he's made a bunch of plays for him last year he'll he'll He he'll and then they just added you know the kid the transfer so uh I don't see any change I mean they really really loaded it back they brought in etn so you know he's a he's a great football player I know they got one kid that's out but they that kid from Mississippi we recruited him too uh so uh I got to meet him in person he he's that guy's he he is go go take a picture of him in pregame uh you wa you see the you wa do you see that guy um so I think the biggest thing is you know you you obviously you got to you got to win your your share battles up front uh and I think the competitive plays but tackling is always at a premum openers are hard openers are always hard I mean you know in college football especially I I I don't think it's as hard in high school or or the pros because you get preseason games and scrimmages where you get more live football uh and you can kind of work out you know we don't get that in in college so I mean tackling is always at a premium but against a bunch like this by nature of who their blockers are and their backs uh tackling is will be critical uh in this game so you know they got they lost some skill but like I said they got all kind of guys um that are there and have already made plays for them and couple new guys that maybe haven't made plays at Georgia yet but they they've made plays where they came from or you know it's a you heard heard some good reviews on a couple of the high school kids that have come in there as well you guys it's been a a long camp and you've had time to prepare to change your your game week preparation schedule at all and kind of let them get their lights on them or is it no this is our regular game week no it's definitely I mean you try to create the game week routine this week but it's different it'll be a different week next week uh when you when you have you know truly have five days to get ready for a new opponent uh you you've had a lot of time to get ready for these guys so yeah you got to be smart and how you get them ready uh Monday is is similar Tuesday Wednesdays are tough practices but you know at with this particular week again you have this type of emphasis and you get the things you need to get done but not quite as long uh as practice would be next week uh when you again you're you're looking at the opponent for the first time with your guys J Lucas and Shel Shelt Lis say us what's their status going into the week oh everybody's everybody's right now ready to play everybody's good to go included good to go until you hear otherwise uh everybody's day to day everybody's day to day I guess this is going to be a big few practices this week for the kicking competition it's still really tight whoer whoer is goingon to be the kicker he's won the job in Camp mentioned um etn coach his status is still kind of up in the air for the game but um how's he similar or different from his brother he's he's you know fast he's explosive he's he's I'd say more similar than not you know he's he breaks tackles he's got he's got speed uh you know probably a little little thicker than than maybe uh Trav was you know at that stage of his career but uh you know they they're they're both obviously great players what you see from to of wi the competition more go through the upright than the other guy you know I mean just that simple I mean it's not a it's not subjective uh it's it's cut and dry and so you know he just had a he just had uh and again I you know that could change next week change two weeks but um I mean he he clearly won the job and uh it's not like it was tied I mean it was for a while and then he separated so he's done a great job and he's earned the opportunity uh you know to start in this game does he kick Robert will be our kickoff guy so they'll both play is there anything different about him just in terms of his personality I guess do you feel comfortable putting a true freshman out there to do that against team like George I mean I've played a lot of true freshman uh I've started true freshman at every position on this team I believe uh at one point or another uh so you know all you can do is go by what you what you see at practice you know he's he's he's uh um in the right to go do it it doesn't matter if you're a true freshman or a fifth year walk-on U you know it's you can only go by what you see so uh he's he's around right at 80 plus percent and he had a good camp and you know he's confident kid um but you know he's the all-time high school field goal leader so he's made a bunch of them and uh so he's just it's the go it ain't more different uh just just continue to do what he's done his whole life this is what he's trained for obviously you got a lot of stuff going around but but if you're going to be a great kicker you know you that stuff can't affect you so we've tried to create as much pressure on him as we can and he's responded and he's been here since January so it's not like he just got here and um but he's uh we signed him to come in here and compete and he's done that and Robert has has battled as well but um you know again Nolan has come out on top to this point were there any thank you are there any questions that you still have headed into this week that you hope get answered before game time on Saturday about your team no I mean we know I know our team I know our Personnel uh I know what our strengths are I know I know where we where we you know or we've got to be smart um if you will so just want to go see us play I mean you got to go some soon or later you got to get going so you can you know uh no matter what happens in this game you there's a long season ahead and uh you got to go play to to you know you coach and you teach and you learn every single week and and it's that's what's fun once you get into the game week to to start getting some results and you start getting some uh some feedback on exactly where you are and what you got to do to get better uh win or lose May separate themselves on that pack of running backs behind Phil M well I think same guys you know they're all going to have an opportunity to play uh it starts with field and uh those other guys will get their opportunity as we go through uh the game and as we go through the season and and you know I think I think we'll to be determined as we as we go throughout the year I I I really I think all those guys are going to help us I really do I don't I don't foresee a situation where uh any of those guys don't get an opportunity to to help us at some point um I I really like what I've seen from from all of our guys but does somebody really separate you know I think we've gone as far as we can go in practice now you got to get to you got to get to game day and you know start stacking some days that way and see what happens but it all starts with with mafa anticipation for an opener like this really any opener but a game of this magnitude right out of the gate fills all offseason do you get a sense of a different buzz in the building this week now that it's finely game week oh yeah yeah of course I mean everything builds to this I mean you work all year um I mean we we get 12 Saturdays that that we know if Lord willing we don't have some catastrophe uh we get 12 days that we know we get to play the game of football so I mean you spend the rest of the year preparing practicing meeting um training running you know uh just competing against each other so now you get a chance it's finally here one of those Saturdays I mean there there's a there's it's just you just can't wait to get up and get to work like it's you know if you're a football guy this is what you've done your whole life man it's like it never gets old this is just you know it's fun it's fun to when it's finally here because there's so much that goes into it again it's so different from all the other sports right you know baseball you play every day your practice is the game uh you know basketball it's every few days couple games a week you move on quick you know football man it's you live with it for a week and you only get 12 12 days that you and then whatever you get after that is what you've earned you know uh through those 12 days so but even with that if if if if it's perfect you get 16 days so it's just not a lot you know and uh so man everybody loves football in this country and it's awesome to be a part of something that people are so passionate about and and uh you know start thinking about all the way back in the spring uh so just glad it's finally here and ready to get going and excited to play you know a great opponent I mean cuz I think um you we'll find out a lot in this game on um you know where we are and what we got to do to move forward Saturday's Forida state Georgia Tech you can see both quarterbacks put their hands trying to here have you figured out how much you'll you'll use that inh helmet communication and how will it help in certain parts of the game when we can not use it yeah no I think we'll use it every play um I mean it's an advantage uh I mean you know there might be a few times where you know you maybe signal something but it really doesn't it to me it's not as much an advantage to signal from the sideline there may be a couple of tempo things where you're trying to really really go uh that you'll use that but um pretty much every play it's been good I think it's great again it's it's a long time coming uh I'm not sure what took so long for it to just like the tablets I don't know what took so long for that to to finally happen uh um you know so it's great that we've got video technology on the sideline that's that's really good all the high schools have had it for years now uh so we finally got that but I think it's great because you can really alert your quarterback to some things uh and you can you can have it's been fun you know just going through that all through Camp um you know being able to you know when you get to play in U and you know just eliminates a step of having two signal uh to get to get your stuff in and then you know your coordin your your your quarterback can communicate it how we want you can it adds another Tempo you can huddle a little bit more than maybe you have in the past if you're worried about signals and things like that protecting your signals um and then um you know Drive the tempo you know from there but I think just situational awareness um uh alerts you know uh certain plays that that you maybe a pressure call that you're expecting pressure uh but it's not a pressure you know some of your check plays that you have uh where you can communicate and just you know little little reminders uh to your quarterback so I think it's great and same thing on the defensive side richond Weaver tiger tailgate show in Rich Tech on Sports how has the opportunity of all your coaches analysts being able to actually coach how has that changed how you're approaching uh obviously fall camp and then heading into the season how important it is well it's a game changer and it's an equalizer because I think a lot of that's been going on ac across the country anyway and uh you know so it kind of levels the playing field from that standpoint um and U so I think it's it's great uh it's been a lot of fun it it's created um you know a lot of intensity a lot of focus uh just just much more efficiency with your practice and being able to you know whether it's your Indie periods your your your group work your scout work special teams uh because you just everybody can coach everybody can teach and it creates so much more opportunity for guys to you know uh build the resume start their coaching career you know legitimately and uh you know being able to anybody can meet with anybody I think another big benefit is going to be the development of your young players because now you know it's not just the position coach that can sit down and meet guys and watch tape with them now any of those anybody they can they can meet with them watch tape with them you know when we do some of our uh all throughout practice when we do some of our good on good periods we can have Scout on the other field because we got enough staff that can go coach and teach it you know where where we can have if we got team pass good on good we could have our scout team pass you know where they're doing Clemson they're they're you know they're running Clemson's offense and defense so they're developing so they're getting getting reps because once you get on a 20-hour clock you can't rep three groups so you you have to be very organized very efficient and how you go about your practice and so a lot of lot of times during the season those guys don't get you know a lot of reps other than just their Scout reps but they're running other people's stuff so being able to have a staff that can separate and just keep teaching and developing I think that's great uh you know for the development of your young players uh so there's a lot of benefits to it um it's been great for us it's fun to see all these guys coach you know some of these guys especially uh some of these guys that have been around here and just been waiting on the opportunity uh it's it's great to see them be able to you know really insert their personality into our team I think guys like