The sky was clear, the air crisp and the field behind Charlotte Country Day School a mess, but Clemson made it through its first bowl practice without mishap.
"We made the best of it with the help of whoever it was that helped clear the field this morning,"
coach Dabo Swinney said. "They started early and worked on it all day to give us a chance to get outside."
"Today was a critical day for us, preparation-wise, because it's like a Tuesday-type practice,"
he said. "We needed to bang and clang a little bit. We were able to accomplish that objective, spread out and do what we needed to do."
Despite the distraction, the team came to work focused, but with 4 inches of snow on the ground, it afforded opportunity for some levity. Many had never practiced or played in snow, including senior defensive tackle Jarvis Jenkins. So coming out to the blanket of the white stuff was a gas for him, particularly when he nailed defensive coordinator Kevin Steele with a snowball.
The fun didn't hamper the workout, though.
"I was proud of them for the focus that they had. We did not have a lot of mental mistakes,"
Swinney said. "It was slippery and all of that. It wasn't quite the technique that you might want them to have on every single play. From an assignment standpoint, I thought they were pretty sharp, offensively and defensively. That's pretty good to see, that they're dialed in on the game plan."
South Florida, the Tigers' opponent in the Meineke Car Care Bowl on Friday, wasn't as fortunate. Nearly 40 players did not arrive until Monday, so rather than practice at Charlotte Latin School, the team worked out in the Charlotte Convention Center.
Both teams are scheduled to practice today at the Carolina Panthers' facilities adjacent to Bank of America Stadium. An outing at Charlotte Motor Speedway was moved to Wednesday - weather permitting - and several players from both teams will visit patients today at Levine Children's Hospital.
Forecasts for temperatures in the mid-50s by kickoff are encouraging. Swinney characterized it as a potential "heat wave."
Last year's bowl game in Nashville, Tenn., began in near-freezing weather.
