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College-Football Notebook: Bowden on hot seat at Clemson
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Published: September 30, 2008
■ Just five games into the season, Coach Tommy Bowden of Clemson finds himself in a tight spot with last week's loss to Maryland.
Then again, Bowden has had plenty of experience the past 91/2 seasons navigating through the hottest of waters.
The latest problem came Saturday, the Tigers squandering an 11-point halftime lead in a 20-17 loss to the Terps. Clemson's players were already battered from a season-squelching first-game loss to Alabama. Now, they've got the memory of angry Death Valley fans booing loudly as time ran out.
"As a coach, you're disappointed that you let 80,000 people down," Bowden said yesterday.
Bowden remained confident in offensive coordinator Rob Spence and his playcalling. Bowden also said he wasn't considering benching quarterback Cullen Harper.
The dissatisfaction with Bowden and his staff was evident after Saturday's loss. Set up on Old Greenville Highway alongside the campus was a silver stew pot on a blue camping chair, a hand-markered sign affixed that said, "Tommy's buy out fund. Pledge here."
It might take a few such pots to scrape up the $4 million Bowden would be owed if he's fired before Dec. 1 under his new contract agreed to after last season that ties him to the school through 2014.
Clemson's next game is on Oct. 9, a Thursday night, at Wake Forest.
■ Starting times were announced yesterday for two area games scheduled Oct. 11
North Carolina will be at home against Notre Dame, with kickoff set for 3:30. The game will be televised regionally on ABC and nationally on ESPN.
East Carolina will play its last nonconference game of the season at Virginia, with kickoff set for noon. The game will be televised by Raycom on the ACC's syndicated network.
■ Quarterback Pat White of West Virginia has a bruised thumb, but Coach Bill Stewart says that White will play in Saturday's Big East opener against Rutgers.
White went to the sideline after being tackled in the third quarter of a 27-3 win over Marshall on Saturday. He said after the game that he could have continued to play if needed, but with the Mountaineers well ahead, Stewart went with backup Jarrett Brown replaced.
Stewart said that White practiced Sunday and that the thumb will be treated with ice this week as a precaution.
■ LSU and Florida, the last two BCS national champions, will play in prime time Oct. 11, with game time set for 8 p.m. EDT and national television coverage scheduled on CBS. It will be the second straight year that the LSU-Florida game is in prime time on CBS. LSU won last season's game 28-24.
■ Running back Robert Elliott of Mississippi State will miss the rest of the season and have surgery to repair an injured knee.
Elliott, a redshirt freshman, tore two ligaments in his knee on a run in the second half of Mississippi State's 34-24 loss at LSU on Saturday. Elliott's absence will force the Bulldogs (1-4, 0-2) to rely on starter Anthony Dixon and Christian Ducre at tailback the rest of the season.
■ Safety Gary Chandler of Kansas State has been suspended indefinitely after being arrested for driving on a revoked license and obstructing the legal process. Team spokesman Kenny Lannou said that Coach Ron Prince decided yesterday that Chandler won't be involved with the football program until his legal problems are resolved.
Riley County police said that Chandler was charged Sunday morning after being stopped while driving a Chevrolet El Camino with a passenger in the bed. Police said that Chandler at first gave a false name and when he gave his real name, officers found he was driving on a revoked license.
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