I've had a few conversations with my Clemson ppl about the game and more specifically our qbs and so i figured I'd share my two cents here as well.

QB:
I'd like to preface this by saying that this is not intended to disrespect KB2 in any way. I think Bryant did a PHENOMENAL job at QB last year and truly exceeded all my expectations. However... if I had no history or knowledge of him prior to watching the spring game, I would have had him a distant 4th on the depth chart.

TL is the real deal and seemed to soak in the spotlight (albeit small) I don't have any doubt that he will raise his game to another level on the big stage (much like DW4). The only question mark that still remains for TL is his ability to take a hit. DW4 had this ability like no one I've ever seen in a clemson uni so only time will tell here but TL was making reads like a pro and he moves excellently. I don't think I saw him make any major mistakes. I took notes on the game after watching it the second time through and TL's grade in my mind was an A.

HJ is 2nd to me and it's pretty obvious he's been working hard since Syracuse. Other than a few plays he was sharp and smart as well. He limits us in the read option but tbh, I'd rather run more directly anyway. I graded him a B

CB was 3rd, even throwing the ints. He was aggressive and I can't fault him for trying. His decision making was the issue not just his accuracy. I graded him a B-

KB was off, big time. 5 straight 3 and outs, should have been picked off more than 3 times... but missing Richard (twice) and Renfrow when they were so wide open was extremely frustrating in a spring game. I love KB and want him to be successful but I don't see how he can improve his 10+ yard down field throws enough to catch up fro TL or HJ. I graded him a D

I told Lowell that when you are playing a video game and you create a QB and you don't have limitations, you make Trevor Lawrence... You make him 6'5, 210lbs and max out arm strength, accuracy, speed etc etc etc. And when you are building a QB with limitations you have to pick either fast and athletic or a pocket passer. And that's KB.

I don't think this competition is close to being over and regardless of who becomes our starter, I hope KB has a major role on this team and then a great career in the pros, but he won't be a pro QB (just saying).


The offense:
WRU is back. We have so many great WRs who will contribute and Dion looked ready to plug in already. Do you think any of the upperclass guys might want to switch to DB/S since we have depth issues there and they would get playing time?

O-Line looked solid and improved. I think without any major injuries here we should be able to control the line of scrimmage most of the season pretty easily. Hope they use every practice against our Def to improve.

TEs looked okay. I hope Richard will have a good season. Having a reliable TE just makes your offense better.

Overall i felt the offense will be fine as long as the right QB is leading...

Defense:
D-line is loaded, stacked and dominate. I have no issues here. We are going to give people fits. Holy crap they are good.

Linebackers looked decent enough but we'll have to see how they do when teams start trying to throw quick screens to get away from our line

secondary looked decent against great talent on the offense. They will improve and we won't have much room for error or injuries. But hopefully we'll stay healthy and get some depth this summer with the full recruiting class arriving and maybe someone switching from WR.

overall i felt the defense will be as good or better than last year. I except the numbers to not always line up with the dominance similar to last year b/c of 4th quarter garbage time scores/yardage.

Kicking: we will be improved and it'll be good to have two reliable kickers. I think from 45 and in we'll be solid and punting should be decent. I expect kick off returns to be improved and coverage to be similar to last year.

As a full team, we are legit top 3. I think the playoff will be similar to the past few years, Clemson, Bama, some Big 10 team and then whatever flash in the pan team looks great (IE UGA or Oklahoma the last couple years). Unless we have major injuries or just **** the bed, we should win the ACC again.

I'm not sure if this is our year or not but I definitely think this season could very well be special.

Great point about building a player, because it's true. Lawrence is about as prototypical as you can get.

I have been trying to get around to my spring game post... so here i go. When the defensive front came back i knew the national guys would have the Tigers as a play off favorite.
So the Spring game. I'm glad I'm not the only one to watch it more than once. Watched the whole game twice then the first half once more time. First spring game with enough excitement to do so.
QB's KB2 is a senior. He should be past his read the defense and accuracy problems. He had big game Hunter on his squad. He had the most experienced tight end. He had Thompson. He was not set up to fail. But without being able to run he could not shine. Last year when he hit the long ball against Kent St. I thought we can make the playoffs with KB2. Since be was hurt against GT he has not been able to stay confident in the pocket for the long ball.
The King of Sling lived up to the hype. He looked so comfortable on the field. How many practices did he have before the Spring game? He should only get better. And yup. Trevor is the super Madden player lol. I think the defense will be good when the season starts. The receiver core is unbelievable. I hope the defense coming back is not wasted opportunity for a very special season.
12.5 wins? Over or under? Dabo has spoiled us. When you feel like you should get 12 or more wins it shows how special this run has been so far.
Best is the standard! Go Tigers!