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Greg Oliver

Following the conclusion of last Sunday’s worship service, a fellow church member and ardent South Carolina fan asked me if I was happy about Clemson’s 40-37 overtime road win over Miami the previous day.

Recognizing the tone of his voice as more sarcastic than congratulatory, I listened as he pointed out that Clemson is just a two-man team with senior standout running back/receiver/kick return extraordinaire C.J. Spiller and wide receiver Jacoby Ford and that the program will be hurt once they leave. I replied that quarterback Kyle Parker will probably be back next year (and even if he doesn’t, the position appears to be in good hands with Tajh Boyd and, perhaps, Willy Korn) and that running backs Andre Ellington and Jamie Harper will be among the returnees receiving an opportunity to shine.

While I appreciate the “concern” expressed by my Gamecock acquaintance, those worries are better suited for this off-season and, perhaps, next season. There is still plenty of football remaining this season and the Tigers proved last Saturday that they could beat any team in the country when playing up to their capabilities. Narrow defeats at home to TCU (14-10) and on the road at Georgia Tech (30-27) earlier this season have already shown that the Tigers possess the ability to stand toe to toe with some of the nation’s best.

The biggest problem the Tigers experienced earlier in the season was the offense’s inability to find the end zone. Some of that could be attributed to immaturity — at quarterback, where a redshirt freshman was calling the signals; at wide receiver, where Ford was the only experienced player returning (and that position still has some concerns even though Marquan Jones has enjoyed some excellent moments); and an offensive line that seemingly couldn’t get out of its own way — especially in the red zone.

But a week off, sandwiched between the disappointing loss at Maryland and the home contest at Wake Forest, appears to have provided the wake up call this team needed. During the past two games, against a Wake Forest team that had been hot prior to its Death Valley visit, and Miami, a Top 10 team, Clemson has scored a total of 78 points. Of that total, the Tigers have scored eight touchdowns after scoring only seven in their first five games. The offense has seemingly come to life under Parker — despite his penchant for fumbles and interceptions that still age Clemson fans every time it happens — and play calling that appears more balanced.

The key, make no mistake, has been Spiller. His 310 all-purpose yards gained against the Hurricanes shattered an ACC record and, perhaps, moved him into strong Heisman Trophy contention if the team can continue its hot play of late. Spiller is being used this year, his final year in orange, the way he should have been used the past three years. The more than 6,000 all-purpose yards he has gained during his illustrious career would have been greatly exceeded had his coaches put the football in his hands more often.

The most important thing, though, is that this Clemson program, now led by head coach Dabo Swinney is showing signs of maturity right before our very eyes. Swinney earned his first signature coaching win against Miami — even bigger than the South Carolina victory last year that removed the “interim” tag from his title because Miami is, well, Miami. His team’s “never say die” attitude, so evident in the Georgia Tech and TCU defeats, finally paid off in a win against a team entering the game ranked 10th in one poll and 8th in the other.

Now, the next big test of Swinney’s young head coaching career is whether or not his team can make the Miami win the turning point of its season. Clemson fans are hopeful the 2009 road win over the Hurricanes doesn’t produce the same outcome as 2004, when the Tigers followed an upset win at Miami with an upset loss to a previously winless Duke squad.

While it appears the Tigers will gain a reprieve this weekend in Death Valley against Coastal Carolina, a team that isn’t even in Division I (although Michigan probably thought the same thing before being upset by Appalachian State at home a few years ago), there are other potential stumbling blocks.

Florida State has enough talent and a huge comeback win against North Carolina in Chapel Hill to pose a serious threat and N.C. State and Virginia — though mediocre record-wise, are still dangerous. Of course, ending the regular season against USC in Columbia is no picnic either — knowing that only a game-ending field goal by then Clemson placekicker Mark Buchholz was the difference between victory and defeat during the Tigers’ last visit.

Yet, Clemson certainly has the talent to win all of its remaining contests and its performances against Wake Forest and Miami indicate that this is a program that is dangerous when playing up to its capabilities.

College football has proven that the fortunes of teams can change dramatically from one week to the next and Clemson has recently proven that it is indeed a changed team from what fans saw earlier this season. The next five weeks, and perhaps beyond, will prove whether the positive change that has occurred will continue.