Clemson Football Monday Practice Report

Sept. 14, 2009

Clemson, SC – Clemson returned to the practice field on Monday night to begin preparation for the Boston College game. Clemson worked for 90 minutes, a little longer than a normal Monday practice. The Tigers were also able to get an earlier start than normal because coaches had two extra days of time to prepare due to the Thursday game at Georgia Tech.

The Eagles will come to Clemson with a 2-0 record and one of the top defenses in the nation. Boston College has given up just seven points in its first two games.

The Eagles also have the confidence of having won their two games at Clemson since they joined the ACC (2005 and 2007) and they haven’t lost at Death Valley since 1958.

“We had an excellent practice,” said Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney. “We had been away from the practice field since the Georgia Tech game and it was time to get back to work. The time away was good for us physically, because the Georgia Tech game was very physical. But, Michael Palmer is the only player who is really banged up (hip), but I think he will be ready by Saturday.”

“This will be a physical game. It always is when we play Boston College. They are an excellent team and an excellent program. They have gotten to the championship game each of the last two years and that is a spot we want this year, so obviously this is a very big game this coming Saturday.”

At the end of practice, Swinney announced a new award, the “Shovel Award”, which will go to a defensive lineman who “dug in” and played well. The first recipient was sophomore defensive tackle Brandon Thompson, who helped hold ACC Player of the Year Jonathan Dwyer of Georgia Tech to 66 yards rushing and 3.7 yards per carry last Thursday evening.

“I was proud of the effort and performance of our defensive line against Georgia Tech. Brandon Thompson did a great job and will be the first recipient of this award. He showed a lot of strength and toughness at Georgia Tech.”