When Clemson began preparation for its Cotton Bowl matchup with Notre Dome this past Wednesday, Dabo Swinney could tell his team had the previous 10 days off.
“We looked like we had not practiced in a week and a half or played,” Swinney said.
However, he said the Tigers bounced back on Thursday and had the right mindset. On Friday they took another step and had a lot more intensity.
Of course, it helped that Clemson was in full pads on for the first-time during bowl practices as the team did some live work.
“It will be two weeks tomorrow since we played, and there is only a certain amount of time you can go in this game without putting your pads on somebody,” Swinney said after the Tigers wrapped up practice at the Poe Indoor Practice Facility in Clemson.