Clemson Football Will Be Without Two Starters Thursday

Sept. 20, 1999

Clemson, S.C. – The Tigers will be without two starters for the Virginia Tech contest. Starting offensive guard Will Merritt suffered a broken collarbone in practice on Friday and will miss this Thursday’s game. Starting defensive end Gary Childress reinjured a pulled calf muscle and will not make the trip to Virginia Tech. Childress missed the Marshall game with the same injury, then started Clemson’s victory over Virginia. Freshman Nick Eason is expected to start in Childress’s place, while Theo Mougros will get the start at guard in Merritt’s absence.

Bowden said he does expect starting offensive tackle T.J. Watkins and starting tight end Pat Cyrgalis to be ready for the Hokies. Watkins suffered a high ankle sprain in practice since the Virginia game, while Cyrgalis suffered a sprained ankle in the win over Virginia.

Time Set For Clemson’s Contest With UNC Gametime for the Clemson vs. North Carolina contest slated for October 2 at Death Valley has been set for 3:30 PM, the Atlantic Coast Conference announced Monday. The contest will be televised by ABC and it will be homecoming weekend and Parent’s Day on the Clemson campus.

Tickets for the game, priced at $25, are available at the Clemson ticket office in Memorial Stadium.

This will give Clemson at least three consecutive games on network telvision. Clemson’s 33-14 win over Virginia on September 11 was shown via ABC, while this Thursday evening’s game with Virginia Tech will start at 8:00 PM and will be shown nationally by ESPN.

Crawford Leaves Clemson Head Coach Tommy Bowden announced Monday that reserve running back Shawn Crawford has decided to leave the football team. Crawford, an All-American and former Clemson National Champion in track, had been practicing with the team since the beginning of practice in August. He did not appear in a game. He will compete with the Clemson track team for his final year of eligibility beginning with the indoor season in December.