Just as an aside......I was approached with an investment opportunity to start a Weightwatch center in Clemson. Trevor would be a great candidate. Little humor......Heard he was working out with the team. He was quite a player back in the day. (Lock Haven right)
I expect Coastal to go 2-0 this weekend. They lost in the NCAA's after two overtimes to Clemson at Clemson and I think Clemson is weaker than last year. Coastal did graduate some players, I don't know who, so i wouldn't bet on it but again my off hand prediction would be for Costal to be the top nut on the palmeto tree after this weekend. Does anyone know how Coastal has recruited/coached such good teams over the past few years? Clemson lost to UNC 3-1 last year at home in a convincing loss.
Crossed out word The word that the boards saw fit to cross out was the second part of Gamecock, so it is obviously a Clemson supporter. Wasn't trying to take this thing to the gutter Tarantini style.
Clemson at home..... Clemson has lost 2 games at home in the last 2 years and 4 games in the last 3 years. I don't think many teams in the country can match that record. They avenged the 3-1 loss to UNC in the ACC Tournament as well.
Docking was a heck of a player at Akron. His teams seem to play with the same fight that he displayed in the 80's. Opponents still haven't figured out how to stop Joseph from scoring. Could get ugly this weekend for the upstate having given up goals to lessor opponents...
Musicbox, about Trevor I think he and Explorers of Clemson would be the first to admit he is no longer at his optimum fighting weight. The guy can still play though and has scored many a goal during summer camps in staff games with his melon and two trusty feet. Have heard he was a tremendous player before breaking his leg. Known as the black hole because the ball goes to his feet and never comes out and famous for the Trevor Adair give and go, give me the ball and go to he##
i hope that the 'dins can play well this weekend and get some much needed confidence going as they get started with their conference season. i wouldnt mind seeing furman score about 3 goals per match. i think that they need that.
Dragon Before I respond to some of the comments made on this message board let me begin by stating a couple of things. I'm a former player of Doug's and I was part of his first recruiting class. Besides myself, I'd have to say that Doug did a pretty damn good job on my class and the three classes that followed when I played at Furman. My last season for Doug was in 1999 when our team accomplished all but one of our goals which was the National Championship. I can't possibly give enough credit to Doug, Brett, Charlie and the many other coaches and supporters of the program that helped to put Furman in the National Spotlight. As for the Clemson fan that still holds a grudge against Doug for not patting you on the back after a game...grow up. The celebration that took place at Furman in 99 was well deserved and I am proud that we have such passionate fans. It was one hell of a game. I started and played in all 4 games against Clemson during my carrear and that game by far was the best. It's actually a nice compliment to Clemson that we celebrated in such a fashion after the win. I have a number of great friends that played for Clemson during the same time and they all think Doug is the cream of the crop. You are entitled to your opinion. Now to the real reason I'm actually sending a message into a soccer website... Dragon, Pretty lame and cowardish to hide behind a name. Obviously you did play on Furman's team b/c we named the "Christmas Tree" formation my freshman year the week before our game against SC. We had never used that formation prior to that week and Doug noticed it while watching an English Premier League game the weekend before. In addition to your rambling, you mentioned that you are an SAE, but I hate to tell you that no SAE's have played Soccer on Furman's team since I started my Freshman year. Obviously a complete lie. In addition, I think it's pathetic that you can't give credit where credit is due. The year is 2003 and the only recruiting that was wasn't done by Boulware and Doug was the the class of 2000 which was shared by Doug and Higgi. That would be this year's Senior Class. Sense when does someone take credit for success of a team because of their Freshman or Sophomore recruiting class. Give me a break! Our best performing teams have been the class of 99-last year. Last year's class were Freshman when I was a senior...once again, Doug and Boulware's recruiting class. I'm not going to be negative towards anyone within our program, but let's not have jealousy cause others to be judgemental towards Doug. When I think back to my recruiting trips to a couple of colleges in the Southeast, I remember picking Furman over SC and Clemson due to Doug....Not the assistant coach... No knocks against Boulware who is one of the best coaches in my mind. But the point is you don't go to a division 1 soccer program because of the assistant coach, or because of the uniforms, or b/c of who the are sponsored by. You go b/c of the program and the head coach. I'm leaving work to go play some golf. Feel free to talk sh-- about me or Furman, but have the balls to be a man if you have something negative to write. Furthermore, Doug didn't just recruit, he created a family within that lockeroom. One that finally in 99 got over selfish goals and worked for each other in one common goal. We were willing to sacrafice a little social life and we were willing to sweat, bleed and die for each other on that field because of Doug. Seagraves
Admirable reply Seagraves Seagraves, I think we all know who you are and I respect your pride in your school, your coach and most importantly your teammates who are your family. About '99, I have to agree that your fans are certainly passionate but spitting, cussing and abusing doesn't make them classy which I think the rest of Furman strives for. I think the Clemson players you know are all pre-2000 because some of his behavior, anti-recrutiing and media comments happened after you left. All that aside I think he's a good man just trying to recapture the glory of 1999. I think what a lot of people associated with Furman forget is that 1 great year doesn't make you a great program. Remember that UNC-Charlotte went to the Final Four in 1996, College of Charleston was a perennial NCAA team and Wisconsin-Green Bay won a National Championship if I'm not mistaken and I don't think those programs are doing anything too spectacular. Furman has one win against Clemson since 1996 and South Carolina has none since 1995. NC State has more wins against Clemson in the same period than Furman and USC combined. The Christmas Tree formation of the modern era was used by Graham Taylor with England around 1992 when he was in World Cup qualifying after the disaster of Euro 92. Good to see someone defend their program to all ends. Your coaches on here needed the support. Oct. 5th and Nov. 9th............
sheeplover, im curious to know what was said in the media by coach allison, and what are his anti-recuiting antics. as far as the fans being classy, there isnt much the program or coach can do about some drunk frat boys talking crap. as far as spitting, did fans spit? i remember when you guys were celebrating after the infamous 9 man win for you guys and the fans were all over, acting inappropiate. our goalkeeper coach and a few of the players who knew who they were yelled at them to stop. Like ive always said, Furman doesnt have the history of other programs in the country. But since 99, we have made the ncaa tourny every year, and havent been fortunate enough to win one. Remember the game in the snow? its not like furman gets killed in the ncaa tourny. uab beat us the following year on a pk in overtime. so since 99, i think furman has established itself as a quality program who can compete. thats why we had so many top recruits. as far as this year goes.....my boys need some help, but hopefully they can turn things around. it can only get better.
Furman’s disastrous run As I predicted, Furman continues their run of disastrous results. After reading all the praise of Doug Allison on this thread, I have to ask myself how, with a squad full of gifted players like Clint and Josh, and experienced guys like Hoch and Cronin, how anyone can think that the coach is not a huge part of the problem? In my opinion, comments from Allison on their website like “we are still not giving the group effort needed to win,” are lame team-bashing excuses for his own failing – as if anyone believes that after their entire lives playing soccer these players have suddenly decided to stop caring and giving the effort needed. If Allison had the grace he’d be taking some of the heat himself, saying something like “the players gave it all they had … obviously I haven’t prepared the lads as well as I should,” but I think he’s concerned that comments like that might jeopardize his position (or future ambitions.) Even if he were right about the effort given, great coaches can inspire unbelievable effort and get players to go to the wall for them, so if Allison is right about the effort (which I doubt), then he is convicting himself of being unable to inspire the effort needed. I wrote on this board over a month ago that I thought there were serious problems with Furman’s program and I haven’t seen anything yet to suggest I was wrong. As it is, Furman is, what, 1-5-2? That says a lot.
FIXXXER, I'll send you a PM. And concerning Allison...IMO, he tried to recruit all "superstars", and sometimes you need to recruit role players with a blue collar attitude and work ethic. I know of a couple players who fill that bill, and Allison never gave them the time of day. Let's face it guys...most college coaches suck.
Re: Furman’s disastrous run Disastrous? Not so. They've been unlucky in close games. Moreover most if not all teams that face SLU and Coastal don't do well. If Clemson loses to Coastal will that be a disaster? I don't think so. It's the normal ups and downs of college soccer. As the kids graduate it's more likely that a program will go up and down. That's just the way it is. This thread reminds me of politicians that claim constant disaster in order to push their favorite causes.
What?!? Veteran Observer, that's ridiculous. WHAT coach have you heard say "They gave it all, and I didn't prepare them well enough". You're just trying as hard as you possibly can to find SOME way to pin it on Allison. How bout this: stop, because it just might not be his fault. When he says team effort, he means working for each other. I'm sorry, but giving them the ball at the top of our 18 for one, then putting it in ourselves for another, has NOTHING to do with coaching, unless you want to try to argue that "well, a good coach would've taught him to clear it the other direction, instead of towards his own net", which I'm sure he MEANT to do to start with. Because considering your last argument, it seems like you just might try to make an argument like that. I am not clearing Allison of all the blame, but in the losses of late (which I have SEEN for myself), he is right about saying it's the team effor that's a problem. That is not team bashing to state the truth, in fact, he could say much worse things that would still be accurate.
Re: Re: Furman’s disastrous run NOTE TO ATTACKING: “Unlucky” is losing one match on a fluke goal, but 1-5-2 is DISASTEROUS, especially for a team that went to the Sweet 16 last year and, with a couple of good breaks, might easily have gone farther. NOTE TO DJANSSON: It doesn’t require any effort find blame for Allison here. Like I said, if you (and Allison) are right about the effort the team is giving, then you’re only supporting my argument. If Allison’s players aren’t giving him the effort, or working for each other, there is no one BUT the coach to blame. Am I holding Allison personally responsible for Kenny’s own-goal? No. But the team Allison puts on the field is HIS responsibility, and if he doesn’t have 11 motivated players in his squad, that, too, is HIS fault. NOTE TO ALLISON FANS: you can’t have it both ways -- if you’re going to give Allison the credit for Furman’s past success, then you have to give him the blame for the present failure. Absent a miraculous reversal of form, by Sunday evening Furman will be 1-6-2. I’m sorry Furman fans, but this is a disaster on a previously unknown order of magnitude and, like it or not, the coach has to shoulder the lion's share of the blame.
I'm sorry but how many of Furman's games have you watched? I would bet the answer is none. Believe me when I tell you that Furman has been unlucky. I think they would be near .500 if they could have kept the ball out of their net in the last five minutes. The positive that they have going for them is that they've got most of their game in place but just need to add a few things, especially width in the attack and defense. They keep too many players in the central part of the field where it's impossible to control the flow of the game. Hence they have trouble creating quality attacking chances and slowing the game down by knocking it around the back. They'll get that ironed out. Disastrous? Did you get your talking points from the last Democratic debate?
OUCH!! Now you’ve stepped over the line – calling someone a “Democrat” should be enough to get you banned from this board forever. No, seriously, but I did pick up some great one-liners from the California recall debate. “There’s a hole in Allison’s game plan big enough to drive my Hummer through.“ (Got that one from Arnold.) And this one, “I’ve got the perfect a role for Doug Allison in my next movie: ‘The Terminated’.” Just kidding. Hey, I don’t want to turn this into an English class, but “disaster” is the right word. Look it up. There’s a fat dictionary in the dining hall. Just ask the staff if you can borrow Villalobos’ booster seat. (Sorry, couldn’t resist.) Kidding aside, I understand your desire to support your team, but I really don’t understand where your optimism is coming from. You’ve written that this team “will get better as the season goes on” but don’t you realize that the season is basically half over? You’ve done a credible job outlining some of the problems, but there really isn’t much time to “get that ironed out.” If Furman were to go unbeaten the rest of the season they’d only be something like 10-5-2. Anyone out there (even JBinSC) think that’s going to happen? I know a lot of your players, and I don’t doubt their heart or willingness to work, but I’m convinced that these results are exposing Allison’s “coaching” for what it is. I’m open to reviewing evidence to the contrary, but so far, no one has offered anything substantial.
I have been following what has been posted here for a while now and would like to respond to some. First and foremost, the truth is that Furman struggles right now are beyond what we all expected. We all knew they were gonna struggle after losing a lot of starters last year. What the boyz need right now is for somebody to lift up their confidence and give them the right motivation individually. Bashing of players isnt gonna help them right now because they have a lot of young very talented but inexperienced players. There are some clemson fans here that either no nothing about soccer or are just damn. For them to talk crap about the Furman fans is rather stupid because you know what, i know some Clemson players who loved when the fans were yelling and talkin crap about them. ItS THE REAL SOCCER ATMOSPHERE and i would suggest for them to make a point of going to Europe and witness a soccer match there. Let me comment just a little bit about Doug. He isn't the perfect coach, there are none but he is one of the best in the business if you ask me. I think only his players can attest to this. About somebody compaining that he refused to pat a player on the back after a game that *#*#*#*# happens especially after what happened in the game. I remember watching Clemson playing UNC Chapel Hill at Clemson i think in 2000. After the game( clemson lost), Chris Carrieri went to shake Trevor's hands but He refused to. Isnt that the same *#*#*#*#, if not worse. But because i know a lot about soccer i know these things happen. All coaches get mad at something when their team is struggling ina game and even Sir Alex has in the past lost it a couple of times. So i think you should judge Doug's coaching credentials which i think is absolutely superb turning a program like Furman into a top 25 program. What i know for sure is that he is the BEST RECRUITER IN THE COUNTRY and i can substantiate this. Last but not least let me address the questions about Higgi. Higgi is a very capable coach and its true he led Furman over USC in the spring of 2001 which he should be proud of, i know i would. Higgi had very good relationship with some of the players at Furman and what happened to him was rather unfortunate. What he was being blamed for wasnt necessarily right but was good( for the players) coz he was just trying to make the players happy at Furman. So i think he has every right to be bitter after how he was treated before and after the incident that led to him leaving. And i think the people bashing Higgi are doin it for personal reasons and you know what, Higgi was a little bit straight forward and blunt with some people (players) but dont make up *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# about his coaching abilities or character coz you disliked him coz he told you what he wasnt.
Let me say this about Higgi. I have asked several Furman people what happend last year. None of them has given me any specifics. They've all been respectful of the situation and haven't gossiped with me about it (it's true and I decided it wasn't right to ask after a while). So play on people and I think most people wish the best for both Furman and Clemson.
To all Furman ex-players and coaches I think this has been a great opportunity for everyone to vent their frustration, passion, bitterness, love and many other emotions directed towards the Furman program. These are my parting thoughts. Every coach makes mistakes. Allison blowing me off after the game was an act of frustration at being beaten and out-played twice in a year. The only reason I took exception to it was beacuse I thought more of him to do that. Maybe a little petty of me but I think all Furman players and fans would expect that from him. Furmanfootball, I remember the incident after the UNC game with Carrieri and Trevor and I was dissapointed with Trevor's reaction even if Carrieri had acted like a clown the whole game. I think every Clemson player, fan, coach and also Trevor would expect more from himself. I remember Trevor being the first one to congratulate coaches and players from the other team after losses in big games and there is no classier guy. I would love to see that list of Clemson players that were reported to loathe him because I don't believe it even exists. ONE of the quotes from Allison that showed a lack of class: "If Clemson is the #2 seed then we should be the #1 seed". This was after the brackets for the 2000 NCAA Tournament were announced. Now where is the logic there? First of all Clemson didn't make the bracket so making it a personal attack was the first mistake because that went right up in the locker room. Second, Clemson beat Furman comprehensively 2-0 and Furman had one of the easier schedules of any team in the tournament because of the Southern Conference. I thought it was a very raw deal for us because we shouldn't have had to play a team as good as Furman in the 1st round when you are the #2 seed but we made no public complaints or anything aimed at Furman or the NCAA like Allison or that kid Carl something who fired everyone up with his words and he played about 10 minutes. At the end of the day Furman is an excellent program but still not a Clemson or USC. Can they beat them when they play out of their skin, yes, on any given day, no, but with Furman and USC combining for one win against Clemson since 1996 there can be no realistic admittance of either being on the same level with Clemson. Now the most outrageous quote that I have read is that Allison is the best recruiter in the country. A good recruiter but not in the same league as Bolowich, Cirovski, Yeagley, Gorman, Gelnosnatch and many other coaches. Can you match Furman's players of the last 5 years with Trevor's? Nusum, Raad, Goldsmith, Leese Alvarez and especially Clark are good players but compare them with... Krakowiak - Hermann Award Winner Lisi Onyewu Warren Stalteri Lewis Quill Bilyk Woods Potempa Fuller Cutler Westfield etc..... All Americans, MLS, Europe. I respect Furman. I respect USC. I don't like them but that means nothing because I'm sure nobody can stand Clemson from either program. I'm out. Clemson - NCAA Champions 1984 1987 ACC Champions 14 times 2 Hermann Award Winners
Vet Observer Wrong. The coach alone can not create and develop the chemistry between the players.. so he really has very little to do with them working for each other. I do, however, agree with the remark referring to Allison fans who give him credit for the past, but won't blame him for the future.. either he's responsible for both, or he probably isn't responsible for either.
Re: To all Furman ex-players and coaches Accusing them of being a bunch of has beens! For shame! Seriously . . . I look forward to going to a lot of Clemson games this year. I hope they do very well.
As far as recruiting, you have to admit it is tough for Furman to compete with the likes of Clemson and USC, considering they are established programs. But Furman has only been in the top 25 since 99. And since then they have been able to draw top recruits. Its harder for Furman to get top kids because of academics, social life...etc. Furman is a school of 2400. Its alot different when you go on a recruiting trip to Furman, then go to Clemson the next weekend. Trust me I know. But you have to give credit to Allison for bringing in top players who could go to established programs but opt to go to a tiny school in the middle of nowhere, with a fairly new ESTABLISHED program. He was able to bring in: Nusum, Goldsmith, Bradford, Esquivel, Kidd, Foxhall, Cronin, Raad, Maslow, Hanley, Simo, Griffin, Moor, Villalobos, Dempsey, Clark, Hoch, Patrick Tanner..... These guys have all played at high levels, and chose Furman over top programs. And there are many more who took a chance on the program, when Furman was not a top school, and could have also played anywhere in the country: Alvarez, Seagraves, Junot (who had a played with a broken foot vs. Clemson), Marks, Blount. So obviously you have to put Allison up in the top 5 over the past few years of recruiting. In my opinion, South Carolina has struggled over the past few years, while Clemson and Furman have dominated the state. But now its Coastal's turn, and Coastal was a joke program when I played, but gives a perfect example of college soccer. You have your moments.
USSoccer fan you must be kidding.... Sure you may have had some good players but you are kidding yourself trying to compare those Furman players with Clemson's players. Let's look closer at the Furman players you said you could play anywhere in the country and Clemson's stars. Furman: Clark: The ONLY MLS or national team player, will give you this one. Goldsmith: A-League Alvarez: A-League Nusum: A-League Marks: Does not play at a hight level Blount: Does not play at a high level Seagraves: Does not play at a high level Junot: Does not play at a high level and is a p*#@y who talked trash before the 2000 NCAA game, came on for 5 minutes, talked more trash and left his teammates to face the loss. Clemson: Onyewu: Olympic Team and played in the UEFA Cup last week againts Benfica for his Belgian club Stalteri: Canadian National Team and plays for Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga Krakowiak: National Player of the year and played in Germany until injury forced him home and into the MLS Lisi: MLS and trained with Full National Team Lewis: Olympic Team and MLS Warren: Olympic Team and MLS Woods: MLS now A-League Bilyk: MLS now A-League Fuller: MLS now A-League Wilson: MLS now A-League Potempa: MLS until injury........ The list goes on and on and on but I think I made my point. Furman does well, Clemson does better.