Last Blog

My dream is to one day be retired from football and have enough time to be a sports writer. Football is where my heart is at. I love writing about the sporting news from week to week. I started out writing about English class and my points and views in there, but I decided that wasn't for me. It has been interesting watching this years college football season and expressing my views on here. I hope that one day I can express them in a newspaper. I hope that my writing has maybe help tell someone what is going on in sports. From Clemson University this is Landon Walker signing off.

Football Season almost over

The Fall seems to fly by with football season every year. The first kickoff of the season seems to fade very fast into the bowl game. The cold weather really starts to let you know it's coming to an end. As the NFL playoffs approach and the college bowls start, it was a good one to talk about. You can't really explain the happenings of the 'o7 season. It has been one to remember for years to come. Although it's over their is always the promise that next year will be just as exciting.

Pressure

Any sports fan knows how much pressure a coach is under when they take a Clemson job. Clemson fans expect you to win the games that you have to win no matter what. Clemson fans don't like putting up with a coach who can never get them to the promised land. They want to be returned to the Danny Ford days again. So when selecting a football coaching job, Clemson is always one of the scariest.

Tommy Bowden

Clemson fans don't know really where to stand on Tommy Bowden. He finished this year with nine wins and a peach bowl game. They still expect him to win the big one no matter what. I think that he is under pressure every year and maybe he is getting tired of it. He is scheduled for an interview with the Arkansas Razorbacks. Tommy Bowden's future is in the air. Will he sign a extension with Clemson or finally move on.

Clemson Community

I feel like I fit in great with the Clemson Community. It is a great community that cares a lot about its football. Clemson is one of the most upbeat College towns around. I feel like I am at home when I am in Clemson. The atmosphere is unlike any other, and I will continue to enjoy it for four years.

The lasting effect of Football

You wake up one morning feeling every bone in you legs and joints popping and aching with a tremendous amount of pain. You get up out of bed and struggle walking to the bathroom because your legs haven't got the idea it's time to get up. You wonder why you put yourself in the kind of shape that you did. This is called the after life of a NFL football player. Some people don't realize what a Professional athlete has put their body through just to be at the place they are now. It's not cut out for everyone by no means. Every college football player dreams of making it big time. I play college football and it has always been my dream. The only question that I just keep coming back to is can my body handle it. I want to be able to go outside and play catch with my kids one day. I want to be the dad who runs around with them. I don't want to be the dad who needs a cane to get outside. I hope to get the opportunity to play in the NFL one day, because if I do I won't stay for ten years. I will stay the contract length and get out.

IF YOU ONLY BELIEVE

Everyone says that everything happens for a reason in the world today. I think this statement is about as true as it gets in the world today. Who would think that Bobby Bowden's seminoles would have beaten the undefeated Boston College Eagles to set the Clemson Tigers up to compete for the ACC championship. People will say that Clemson will only win eight games every year. It's kind of like the curse of the bambino. It seems every year Clemson just gets stuck with eight games and a decent bowl game. Every year after the 1980's it seems that things just don't fall in place. Clemson just cracks when things get heated and the money has to be made. Clemson has been given the opportunity of a lifetime to step up and take hold of an opportunity. If Clemson beats Wake Forest and then Boston College, it will be Clemson's chance to win the ACC for the first time since 1991. Will Clemson make hay while the sunshines or go down being another eight win team? Only time will tell for the tigers.

Weirdest Football Season

With South Florida at #2 in the nation, everyone begans to see how weird the season actually is. USC was knocked all the way back to #14 after a loss to Stanford. The defending national champs at #15. The outcome of this years Nationial Champion is unpredictable. With good teams losing games they are suppoose to win, and average teams going undefeated, things couldn't get any more stranger. I would have never thought Boston College would be at #3 in the nation after watching them play Wake Forest. Every game has become important for every team. Teams are living from week to week, never knowing when they will be beat off. Things just don't seem right in college football this year. Where is The Miami Univeristy, or FSU? South Florida is ranked ahead of both of them, because neither one is in the top 25.

One word to describe Clemson so far

UNWRITTEN

Your Clemson Tigers

To many suprise the Clemson tigers are 4-0 and 13th in the nation. Cullen Harper is playing like a three-year starter and the offensive line is filling the gaps left by four seniors last year. I think that the people outside of Clemson are the more suprised ones. People in Clemson haven't forgot totally what it's like to win a few games. If you ask most Clemson natives they will quickly tell you about the Danny Ford era, and ofcourse the 1981 National Championship. Most of them will never forget those days. The question they ask is, will this 4-0 team bring Clemson back to the promise land? Well with three Atlantic Division games left in the ACC, and three Coastal Division games left only time will tell. If the Clemson tigers can maintain this attitude about themselves and continue to win, we may see a new era in Clemson within the next year. Only time will tell with the Clemson Tigers, but the future sure looks bright.

Inequality

In class we discussed how in today's society racism is still a problem. Whether we like it or not, their never will be total equality in society. People can see that it never will be. Theirs always going to be that one person who think whites should have this or blacks shouldn't do that. In South Carolina most of the population is black, but when you look at Clemson University the population is white. This is just one of the issues that we have to deal with today. Some places in the U.S. still have segregated rooms and areas. I think it will always be an issue, because parents will always teach their kids what they believe.

Interview Reflection

I thought the interview with my dad helped me see how I've matured and came along with reading and school. He told me that with my maturity, I have become a better listener and reader. He thinks that as you get older, you see that their are more resonsibilities you have to take charge of. I first realizez that when I came into my first semester at Clemson. I was shocked when things weren't as easy as I imagined them to be. I expected all my problems to go away. I found out that I was wrong after my first round of test. I had almost failed every one of them. I was stressed and didn't know what to do. I immediately went to my advisor and my parents for help. They told me that the first round always gets freshmen because you haven't learned to study yet. So I wanted to take my dissaproval out on the next round of tests. I studied better and excelled on the all my midterms. I see exactly what my dad meant when he said learning from your mistakes will you make you a lot better in the long run.

Florida State Weekend

Their is a lot of excitement in Clemson, SC this labor day weekend, and all because a nationally televised football game. I am a football player for Clemson, so I may have a bias opinion of the weekend. It could be one of the best weekends all year, if we do win the game that is. The game brings a lot of positive energy to the University as well as the fans. This kind of game test the school spirit as well as the pride of the University. Students are going to go all out for the game. I have been waiting for this weekend since January, and it's going to be worth while. This kind of game leaves people in the nation not only knowing about Clemson, but asking how to get here. I think it could be one of the most exciting games in school history. Hopefully the work put in this whole off season will pay off come Monday night. Some are upset about one day of fall break being taken away for the game. In my opinion being given the day off for the game is the only reasonable thing to do. Theirs going to be all sorts of opinions about the situation, but what's done is done. I guess the biggest question left here to ask is, are you ready for some football?