Keeping Up With The Kerns: C-L-E-M-S-O-N T-I-G-E-RRRRR-S

So I know I have not posted anything about Clemson Football yet...and that's because I went so long without posting I decided to save it all for one long post.
In case you have been living under a rock...here is an up to date record of our football schedule this season. (Sorry it did not copy and paste how I wanted it too)

2011 Clemson Football Schedule
09/03/11 vs. Troy Clemson, SC W, 43-19
09/10/11 vs. Wofford Clemson, SC W, 35-27
09/17/11 vs. Auburn Clemson, SC W, 38-24
09/24/11 vs. Florida State Clemson, SC W, 35-30
10/01/11 at Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA W, 23-3
10/08/11 vs. Boston College Clemson, SC W, 36-14
10/15/11 at Maryland College Park, MD W, 56-45
10/22/11 vs. North Carolina Clemson, SC W, 59-38
10/29/11 at Georgia Tech Atlanta, GA L, 31-17
11/12/11 vs. Wake Forest Clemson, SC W, 31-28
11/19/11 at N.C. State Raleigh, NC L, 37-13
11/26/11 at South Carolina Columbia, SC L, 34-13
12/03/11 vs. Virginia Tech Charlotte, NC W, 38-10
Discover Orange Bowl 01/04/12 vs. West Virginia Miami Gardens, FL 8:30 p.m. ET

Our record so far is 10-3 INCLUDING an ACC Championship win! But this season has been a little bit of a roller coaster. After a less than stellar season in 2010, my expectations were not too high for 2011. Granted, at the start of each new season my hopes are always up for a great season but I could have never imagined we would be as good as we were this season.

We started off with an EIGHT game winning streak and every Clemson fan (myself especially) was on an ultimate high. I, myself thought that the toughest part of our schedule was behind us and we were well on our way to an undefeated season and maybe, just maybe, even a shot at the National Championship (I know, I know, I got WAY ahead of myself).

Then came our first loss to Georgia Tech on Halloween weekend, man that was a rough day of disappointment- but I was still incredibly proud of my Tigers! The next game that followed was Wake Forrest, that game was a nail biter and way too close for comfort, but we pulled through and I started to get my excitement back. Then came the worst part of the season starting with the NC State game, which just plain terrible, followed by the USC game. USC is such a personal game because of the rivalry so it is ALWAYS one we want to win so badly and it is always a huge let down to see us lose that game. We went from, at one point being ranked number 5 in the BCS to moving all the way down to number 20. It was confusing to see a team that was doing SO well and playing so well at the beginning and middle of the season get worse at the end.

Nevertheless, we made it to the ACC Championship, in CHARLOTTE I might add. We were set to play Virginia Tech, who at the time was ranked number 5 while we were number 20. Even though we had already beat them once this season we seemed to be getting worse while they seemed to be getting better. So although I was hopeful, I did not forsee the game going so well, but even though my spirits were down after our last two losses I was still excited for what I knew would be a fun weekend. We had tons of family and friends come to town for this game. We hosted a big tailgate at our house all day on Saturday, I love night games! Boy was I wrong about the game, it was AMAZING! The Tigers played so well and we took home the ACC Championship victory 38-10, which we have not done since 1991. We also secured a spot in the Orange Bowl in Miami! The energy in that game was incredible and I could not have been more proud of my Tigers!!!

I have been a Clemson fan my whole life and have been going to most home games since I was one year old. I have seen a lot of mediocre seasons and have loved and pulled for them regardless. But this season was special, it shows a lot of promise for us with such a young and talented team. I think alot of it has to do with our coach, Dabo. I really love him as a coach and people can say what they want about him, but I think he is very talented, truly believes in our team and will take us great places. This season I have loved Clemson football a little more than ever and I have never been so proud and excited for the future of the team.

Here are some pictures from some of the home games this season...