Finding answers at receiver

One of this week's most interesting quotes comes from Bryce McNeal.

"Coach (Jeff) Scott said he is not sure if it is going to be a four-ro­tation, a three-rotation or an eight-man rotation like it has been. He says it depends on what we do on the practice field. He said don't be upset if you get zero plays for the Auburn game. It will all base down to us and how we do during practice as indi­viduals."

Saturday's game at Auburn is viewed as a day of reckoning for Clemson in a number of ways, and receiver is definitely on that list. All August, we heard from the coaches that the receivers were doing great and that there wasn't nearly as much concern about them internally as there was externally.

Now, we get to see just how far they've come ... or how far they need to go.

Last year, the feeling-out process at receiver took a while as the coaches assessed who was game-ready and who was not. It was only after five games that Brown, Clear and Jones essentially took their spots on the bench as Swinney and Co. decided to make a more concerted effort to get the ball to the players who were most capable of producing. The process feels much more accelerated this year.

Clemson can run the ball against Auburn, but the Tigers are going to have to have something in the downfield passing game, and probably something beyond just Dwayne Allen. Mississippi State's receivers botched a number of opportunities last Thursday against Auburn, and it probably cost the Bulldogs the game.

It's been hard to get a precise read on these guys in the first two games as Clemson has carved up weak defenses. All that begins to change Saturday.

Let's take a look at what has happened so far with these guys:

Bryce McNeal--27 snaps, 3 catches, 58 yards
DeAndre Hopkins--33 snaps, 3 catches, 32 yards
Jaron Brown--33 snaps, 3 catches, 22 yards
Brandon Clear--29 snaps, 2 catches, 99 yards
Terrance Ashe--31 snaps, 1 catch, 43 yards
Marquan Jones--34 snaps, 1 catch, 8 yards
Xavier Dye--35 snaps, 0 catches
Brandon Ford--18 snaps, 0 catches

The one that stands out is Dye, the Tigers' leading returning receiver from last season with 14 catches. Dye is a senior, and he emerged late last year with some big catches against Florida State and N.C. State.

Dye, though, happens to be at the same position as Clear. And you could make a strong argument that Clear has been the most impressive receiver thus far. He made an excellent catch on the sidelines last week against Presbyterian, and the guy brings energy and enthusiasm.

Dye? We know coaches weren't happy with him for incurring a procedure penalty against Presbyterian. We know he got chewed on the sideline in the first half against North Texas.

Is Dye in the dog house? We don't know that. But in listening to what Billy Napier said about Dye yesterday, it's evident there's some frustration with his mental approach to the game.

“I think Xavier has done a lot of things well, and he’s made some mistakes. He had a penalty last week. But I do think Xavier has played in some big games. This is the kind of game in the past where he’s made some plays. It’s no different from Florida State or N.C. State or Virginia or whoever. He knows what these games are about. Hopefully his attention to detail and focus will be there, and when given opportunities he can be productive."

Looking at the top three receivers (McNeal, Hopkins, Brown), it's easy to wonder about the long-term evolution of the receiving rotation this season.

Are these guys -- a freshman, a redshirt freshman and a redshirt sophomore -- the most talented receivers on the roster? You could make that case.

What does this mean for the veteran receivers? Will Dye (senior), Ashe (senior), Clear (junior), and Jones (junior) ultimately see their reps pared down if the three young guys emerge?

We don't know the answers right now. It's surely going to be interesting to watch it all unfold, though.

Turn-a-phrase of the week goes to my pal Charlie Bennett of The Anniston Star.

Auburn’s not exactly sure what to expect from Clemson on Saturday, but that’s OK.

Clemson’s probably not sure what to expect from Clemson either.

Pretty much sums it up, no?

Sounds like Auburn is watching a lot more Clemson film from last year than this year.

“I think it’s tough to gauge the speed that they’re playing at right now,” said Auburn center Ryan Pugh. “It’s tough to see really are they that motivated to play that week or what’s their mind set? You don’t know that. So you’ve got to go back and watch films of games that really mattered.”

Here's a look at Auburn defensive tackle Nick Fairley, who's no doubt on the radar of Clemson's interior offensive line after his frequent disruptions last week in Starkvegas.

Nick Fairley in­tercepted a pass, recovered a fumble and finished with 2.5 tackles for loss last week at Mis­sissippi State.

That performance, the two possessions created by the de­fensive tackle's turnovers, were the difference in Auburn's 17-14 win. Fairley was in a good mood afterward, strolling around the locker room with a wide smile when assistant coach Tracy Rocker approached.

He wasn't handing out vali­dations.

"Can you do it again?" Rock­er asked.

"Yes, I can," was the re­sponse.

Fairley, to hear players and coaches tell the story, is one of Auburn's most talented ath­letes. Though he plays tackle, the junior has the skill set of an end -- complete with straight-line speed and the quick feet to match.

He simply was more than the Bulldogs could handle.

Gene Chizik remembers working as a GA at Clemson for some guy named Danny Ford.

Auburn's head coach was a youngster in search of a job, any job, during the spring of 1988. Danny Ford, who was coaching at Clemson back then, offered one of his team's graduate assistant positions.

Chizik didn't have to think long on that one.

"It was just one of those unique times in your life where you got an opportunity," he said. "It was just the right place and right time. It was a great time in my life. It just got me propelled into the col­lege football scene, which was big for me at that time."

In this piece, Auburn center Ryan Pugh said Clemson's defense reminds him of LSU's.

Gus Malzahn said he wants to dial up the tempo this week after slowing things down at Mississippi State.

Paul Johnson surely doesn't do much to dispel the notion that he's arrogant, does he?

Here's his take on motivating players:

“From the looks of the game, I can certainly motivate better,” Johnson said. “But you know what my experience has been in 31 years? That’s movie, TV crap. You’d better be able to motivate yourself. I’m not going to motivate you 12 Saturdays a year. Anybody that thinks you’re going to go into the locker room and somebody’s going to punch the locker, or cave in the blackboard or head butt somebody and everybody’s going to go ‘AAAAAAAAHHHH!’ It’s make believe. It doesn’t happen.”

Is the guy smug and arrogant? Certainly appears so.

But more of him, please. College football has too many coaches who are afraid to say anything.

And we'll close with a priceless video by the "Armenian Demon," who trashes Tennessee almost as much as Oregon trashed the Vols on Saturday night in Knoxville.



LW