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Articles by Houston Burnett
Clemson Football: 3 Stars for Week 2
Typing this up, I see a commercial for Stephen King’s new movie, The Long Walk. It’s essentially a fictional drama where the characters are forced to walk at a certain speed to survive. I’m not sure if it’s the analogy of a “long walk” or just the visual of Saturday’s game, but it reminded me of something straight out of a Stephen King horror novel. Anyway, here are three stars from this past Saturday’s game against the Troy Trojans.
3 Stars for Clemson- Week 1
First off, apologies for this article being a little late this week. The opening week of college football, paired with a holiday, really created a bottleneck when trying to get this article out. Now, onto one last look back at a weekend that made us go “meh”. The Clemson Tigers were defeated by LSU Saturday night, and while it’s a little hard to glean offensive stars from the game, there is one unit that deserves some credit, as well as a few individual performances on defense. Let’s dive in.
3 Stars for Clemson- Week 1
First off, apologies for this article being a little late this week. The opening week of college football, paired with a holiday, really created a bottleneck when trying to get this article out. Now, onto one last look back at a weekend that made us go “meh”. The Clemson Tigers were defeated by LSU Saturday night, and while it’s a little hard to glean offensive stars from the game, there is one unit that deserves some credit, as well as a few individual performances on defense. Let’s dive in.
Clemson Football 2025: Defensive End Preview Original
The unseasonably pleasant weather has only intensified the readiness of the entire Clemson fan base. The breeze of a fall day and the gradually shortening evenings have college football fans everywhere frothing at the mouth for games to kick off this Saturday. One group Clemson fans especially hope to see “frothing at the mouth” is the 2025 defensive ends for the Clemson Tigers. Questions are certainly running rampant this offseason.
Clemson Tigers News: Recruiting, Trevor Lawrence MVP and Hunter Tyson
The Clemson Tigers football program is in one of the busiest seasons for commitments, which means Morgan Thomas is keeping busy updating the commitment chart that he manages so well. With more commitment announcements expected over the next couple weeks, the prospects will be keeping Morgan on his toes. Subscribe to The Morgan Thomas Show to follow Morgan, Big Al and Houston Burnett along with all their videos and updates. On3 heaped praise on Clemson’s recruiting haul during the month of June.
Clemson Baseball: Are the Tigers All the Way Back?
This week is the unofficial “bye week” for Clemson Tigers Baseball. The Tigers stand at a respectable 28-17 overall and 11-10 in the ACC. It’s a stark contrast to just 4 short weeks ago when the Tigers were a paltry 2-7 in league play and were struggling at both sides of the plate. Now the boys of Doug Kingsmore not only look to be in NCAA tournament contention, but potentially a regional host if they are able to continue their winning ways. Some might say they are all the way back.
Clemson Baseball: Patience Paying Off?
This season has been a roller coaster for Clemson baseball. The Tigers have had several “down” moments to begin the year, but seem to have found their groove. Is this an instance of patience paying off? By the end of the night on April 11th, both of Clemson’s “diamond sports” provided a pleasant evening for all those clad in orange and regalia. The softball team finished off a season sweep of their feathered foes in the midlands in dramatic fashion.
Clemson Men’s Basketball: Killing Clemson Basketball
This week I take on the tall task of having to explain what in the world is happening with Clemson Men’s Basketball. So I’m bringing back an oldy but goody title this week in Killing Clemson Basketball. Well, as the old saying goes: You can’t kill what’s already dead. I’d wager some would say that in regard to the current state of the Clemson basketball program. The past week for Clemson was a week-long referendum on a frustrating season.
Clemson Men's Basketball- Maybe we spoke to soon
Greetings Clemson Men’s Basketball fans, I have returned from the stupor of lack of sleep from a newborn to talk a little basketball before the season ends. A few weeks ago, I said this team could be special. Now, even with an impressive win last night, the daunting final stretch has many wondering if Clemson fans (myself included) spoke too soon.
Clemson Men’s Basketball – The “S” Word
After a whirlwind of a week last week, I finally get a chance to talk about what I have been meaning to get to – Clemson Men’s Basketball is doing some rather unprecedented things at the moment. A lot of people aren’t buying into it, but I can’t help but let a word creep into my mind. A word that any Clemson basketball fan is hesitant to say. The “S” word. Clemson football, soccer, and even baseball fans have thrown around this word in the past.
Clemson Football: It’s time to refresh and reinvent
This week in talking about Clemson football, I had prepared an article talking about the little things that Clemson needed to do to return back to prominence. I even had some data to back that up. By around 4:15 on Thursday, that story got tossed, but I decided that the crux of this should stay the same. Even with the new coaching move, it’s less about an overhaul for the Clemson offense, and more about 2 simple things: its time to refresh and reinvent. I had a loaded afternoon last Thursday.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin - An Important Analogy for 2022
It’s the final “Smoldering Ruin” of the Clemson Football season. As we turn the calendar to 2023, there are more questions than answers and more opinions floating around on social media than I care to take in. We can at least take a look back at and reflect on the 2022 season. But let’s look at it from a very important angle, a specific lens if you will. How would you describe the Clemson season in 2022 in no more than 5 words?
Signing day is evolving, just like the rest of CFB
Last week, I spoke in large part about the ails of College Football in its current landscape and sensationalized nature in which people, including Clemson football fans, view the problems as “killing the sport.” Today, I look at something that actually has taken off in a different direction over the last couple of years. You could say the new changes are “killing signing day.” Who remembers 2011 and the sheer stunning nature of stealing Sammy Watkins right from under the Seminoles noses?
Clemson Football: Killing College Football
As the Clemson Football season winds down, I figured I would go ahead and get a jump start with writing about some of the larger “big picture” issues over the coming months of the offseason- everything from NIL, to expanded playoffs, and what to do to make college football better. I’m starting today with a more minor topic.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin – A Change in Posture Edition
This week in the 2nd to the last edition of “The Smoldering Ruin” we take a look back at an unexpectedly incredibly positive result for Clemson football in Charlotte this past weekend. The energy was low going into Saturday, but all of a sudden, there has been a change in posture. Two offensive drives in, and I was finished. I had conceded that Clemson was going to roll with DJ and we had to just hope that the Clemson defense (who looked shaky to begin with) could finally figure it out.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin – Too much to unpack
This week’s Smoldering Ruin tries to make sense of what transpired with Clemson football in Death Valley on Saturday. It’s not easy to explain, and it shouldn’t be. It’s almost too much to unpack. I try to be a rational writer when talking about Clemson. I know that, ultimately, I am an early 30-something with a history of playing football that came to an end closer to 2 decades ago rather than one. I know I wasn’t the greatest athlete.
Clemson Football: Bless Your Hearts - Them Edition
This week, in “Bless Your Heart”, we talk about THEM. You might hear them referred to as the school in the Midlands, the university of second choice, the feathered brethren, the coots, the chickens, the arch-rival of Clemson football. Whatever you call a South Carolina Gamecock, we hate it. Now let me start with a preface to this entire piece. There ARE sensible Gamecock fans. Some of my closest friends and family pull for South Carolina. Heck, I’m married to one.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin - Love in a hopeless place edition
This week, “The Smoldering Ruin” looks back at the Clemson football game against Miami. More specifically the awkward encounter with a woman who was definitely not drunk (wink) that was looking for love in a hopeless place. We had the perfect Saturday evening. North stands, the upper section of the lower deck- I’ll leave out the section on the row for anonymity, but you get it. The weather, although very chilly, was what November football should be all about. It was perfect. Well, almost.
Clemson Football: Bless Your Hearts – We’re back, we promise edition
This week in “Bless Your Heart,” we jump into Clemson football and their Week 12 opponent: The Miami Hurricanes. The Canes are talented and, with a new coach, have reinvigorated the energy of “The U”. Now, heading into their 11th game, it feels more like they are once again saying “We’re back, we promise!” October is a great month for football, but there are still weeks that it kind of feels like Summer (especially when games are at noon).
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin – Purple tops, orange britches forever
This week in a delayed edition of “The Smoldering Ruin”, we take a look back at the Louisville game where Clemson football donned their purple and orange uniform combo. It’s something they haven’t done in 12 years, but they may need to add that combo into the season forever going forward. I love the military appreciation game. It’s a game that provides so much perspective, even in brief snippets.
Clemson Football: Bless Your Hearts – It’s All Still Ahead of You Edition
As I wrote in an earlier article this week, everyone in the collective fanbase needs to take a breather. This week’s “Bless Your Heart” lays out that there is a more positive track to the season going forward for Clemson football. It may or may not involve the playoffs, but certainly it’s all still ahead of the Tigers going into week 11. Clemson fans did exactly what I thought they would this week. I would say overreact, but it is to the point now where it’s comical.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin – Let’s take a beat edition
This week in The Smoldering Ruin we take a look back at the weekend that was (or wasn’t) for Clemson football during Dabo’s 2nd trip to South Bend. Everyone needs to take a breath and relax. Let’s take a beat. Losing is the worst. I hate watching Clemson lose games. If you are like me, you feel like absolute death for a few days. I haven’t read Twitter since Saturday night and I don’t plan to until at least Thursday.
Clemson Football: Bless Your Heart - The Home Stretch Edition
I am back from the bye week and still knocking off the cobwebs as I write this week’s edition of Bless Your Heart. We have entered the home stretch for Clemson football. The final month. The “Championship Phase” as we’ve heard in years past. It starts again on Saturday night in South Bend, Indiana. I’m not going to lie- I like the bye week. It’s a week where I don’t knock years off my life stressing over the Clemson game while also being able to dive headfirst into watching the sport I love.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin: “You thought they had us, didn’t you?” Edition
This week in The Smoldering Ruin, we take a look back at an eventful Homecoming weekend for Clemson football. Everyone got to come see the always exciting pre and postgame activities and one heck of a game on Saturday. Naturally, the haters have come out for Homecoming week too. As many times as this has happened in the past, I have got to ask: You thought they had us, didn’t you? Exhale.
Clemson Football: Bless Your Heart - Go Back to the Big East Edition
In this week of “Bless Your Heart” we take a look at this week’s opponent, none other than the Syracuse Orange. A team that any Clemson football fan (and most ACC fans) will agree needs to go back to the Big East. At this point next week, Clemson will be 2/3rds of the way through the season, going into a much (MUCH) needed bye week (for everyone) before a stretch run that begins in November in South Bend against The Fighting Irish. That’s what we know.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin – Don’t Lose Sight Edition
This week in The Smoldering Ruin, we look back at the weekend in Tallahassee. Although there was some tension at the end, a Clemson football win in Doak Campbell is something we as fans don’t need to lose sight of. I can remember every game in Tallahassee like it was yesterday. I remember driving home from a school event with my oldest brother in 1998.
Clemson Football: Bless Your Heart - Hunches and Trendy Picks Edition
In this week’s Bless Your Heart, Clemson football makes the trip to Tallahassee for its toughest road test to date. Which means now everyone is going to have a hunch and make the Seminoles the “trendy pick.” This is nothing new for Clemson and is something we should expect for the rest of the year. Man, how the tide has turned in this rivalry.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin - Catching Up Edition
This week in “The Smoldering Ruin” I play catch up on the week that was at Clemson football at Boston College. It’s been a week. A lot’s been going on behind the scenes at the Burnett estate. Between a trip to urgent care 5 minutes before close (everything is fine) and dealing with the absolute clown show of trying to update the family phones in the “post covid” world, it cut into a lot of the time that I usually spend on getting this 1st article of the week out.
Clemson Football: Bless your Heart - Call the OOBA edition
Clemson football travels to New England this weekend to take on the (it’s not in) Boston College Eagles. The foliage will be in full swing. The weather will have a crispness to it. And if you ask the random guy at South Station in downtown Boston for directions, you might hear “well it might be more efficient to call an OOBA”. Man, y’all Yankees have a funky accent. Bless your heart. Don’t get me wrong, I would love the opportunity to go to BC in the future for a game. Boston is a fun time.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin – Crushed Solo Cups and Cheap Cigars Edition
Oh man, I can’t say how I have been looking forward to writing this edition of The Smoldering Ruin. The NC State Wolfpack, fresh with confidence and belief, came to town to play Clemson football Saturday night only to have their dreams dashed, solo cups crushed, and cheap cigars made somehow even less enjoyable. I am going to have fun with this one.
Clemson Football: Bless your Heart - Toby from HR edition
It’s NC State hate week for Clemson football. It’s a top 10 showdown. And everyone is talking. This week in “Bless Your Heart” we get graced by dandy Dave Doeren. If you don’t know who that is, it’s Toby from HR (you know the bland guy that gets dunked on by Michael in The Office) and his confident Wolfpack.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin – Bust open the Krispy Kreme edition
It’s that time of the week again – a look back at the weekend that was. Clemson football took a short trip to Winston-Salem and found themselves in a knife fight. But in the end, they found a way to win. So bust open a box of Winston-Salem’s own Krispy Kreme and let’s look back at the Smoldering Ruin in Wake Forest. Well would you look at that. Clemson found a way to win a closely contested ranked win, exploded on offense, and still managed to make everyone mad about something.
Clemson Football: Bless Your Heart - Wake Forest Edition
I’m little late to the party this week, had some fire drills in real life to have to manage, so it’s taken me till Saturday to get to this week’s “Bless Your Heart”. This week is just a couple hours stroll for Clemson football north to Winston-Salem and Wake Forest. To start, what the heck is a Demon Deacon? Yeah, yeah, I get the whole “Southern Baptist” heritage thing, but the artwork of the mascot looks more like a disgruntled usher than Demon Deacon.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin - Classy in Defeat Edition
In this edition of “The Smoldering Ruin,” we take a look back at the week that was Clemson football vs. Louisiana Tech. It was hard fought with the Tigers coming out on top, but the Bulldogs were absolutely classy in their defeat on Saturday. We’re a fourth of the way through the season. The Tigers are 3-0; they have scored as many points as they have in 3 games in roughly the same time frame as 2014-2020 and have given up about the same as well.
Clemson Football: Bless Your Heart: Louisiana Tech edition
It’s the end of your work week and the beginning of week 3 of the college football season. Which means it’s time for our weekly addition of “Bless Your Heart” looking at the Bulldogs from Louisiana Tech who travel to take on Clemson football this week. Man, it’s been a week. On a more somber note, I hope that everyone who can make it to the game this weekend does. Not just to support the Tigers, but to show support for the Breese family.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin - Furman
This week in “The Smoldering Ruin” we take a look back at the opening home weekend when Furman came to Clemson football. And there is plenty (fortunate and unfortunate) to talk about. I always try to take a day or 2 after the game to process the weekend before I put pen to paper. I don’t like being a “shock writer” full of bloated hot takes that makes someone seem less interested in the sport they cover and more interested in being the focal point of attention for people after a game.
Clemson Football: Bless Your Heart - Furman edition
Clemson football “escaped” Atlanta on Monday but didn’t seem to escape the controversy that came along with the offensive performance. Finally, after a week of criticism (due or undue), Clemson flips the page to Week 2 this week. Today’s “Bless Your Heart” deals with the Furman University Christian Knights, or otherwise known as the Purple Paladins. The Furman game is always a fun time when it gets scheduled. Everyone from Clemson knows someone (or several someones) who went to FU.
Clemson Football: The Smoldering Ruin: Georgia Tech
Just as I did some hate week writing for Georgia Tech this past week, I will also provide a reaction to Clemson football this past long weekend that was in Atlanta with the 1st edition of “The Smoldering Ruin:” Georgia Tech edition. What if I told you a week ago that Clemson’s fanbase, the national media, and pretty much any friend in your phone would be texting to tell you how bad Clemson’s offensive performance was? You would be terrified.
Clemson Football: “Bless Your Heart” Week 1: Georgia Tech
Can you smell it? The freshly cut grass on a late summer afternoon. It means 2 things: 1. Endless high school matchups between teams who have no business playing each other in 105-degree weather, and (more specifically) 2. Clemson football and college football are back. Every week this season I will give you a look back at the week that was and, starting today, a look ahead to the next opponent in a little segment called “Bless Your Heart”. Bless your heart, Georgia Tech.
Clemson Football: We know it’s almost time because It’s Move-In Week, Baby!
It must be almost time for Clemson football. It’s move in week in Clemson. It’s that time of year when it’s almost impossible to drive to the grocery store for an entire week, much less try to go anywhere to eat. The campus is packed to the gills with a litany of different characters. There’s the clueless freshman, who is a literal fish out of water. Seasoned Sophomores with the foundation of the 1st year behind them are walking around ready to take on the rest of college.
Clemson football: 5 dream home and home series for Tigers
Happy August, Tiger nation. Clemson football starts this month. That feels good to say. Confidence springs eternal for every fan base, and over confidence springs eternal for South Carolina fans. We are past the point of media days, but there is still time to wait before games kick off. We’re at the point in the summer where I am stoked to watch a pre-season NFL game where the stars will not play.
Clemson football: Footloosin’ our minds – Media’s obsession with Dabo continues
You remember how the pastor in Footloose hated dancin’? Apparently, the gutters of the Twitter app have the same opinions. We’ve come to that point in the summer where we collectively hold our breath on what thing in Clemson football will be misconstrued, taken out of context, and gaslit in to a 5-alarm fire by the media.
Clemson football: Another round of college football realignment means certain uncertainty
With the news the UCLA and USC are abandoning the PAC-12 for the Big Ten, Clemson football is once again thrown into certain uncertainty. What a day to start working on “5 Home and Home match-ups I’d like to see Clemson play”. Before I could put pen to proverbial paper, the news came out that USC (the more successful one) and UCLA had shocked the world and made the move to the Big 10 conference.
Paul Finebaum speaks on Clemson and Dabo and as always it's nuts
Paul Finebaum has spoken on Clemson and Dabo Swinney again and, as always, it’s hilariously nuts. If you are someone who gets into fantasy fiction, nerd out over medieval stories, or have just seen or heard of the cultural behemoth that is “The Lord of the Rings,” then you might be familiar with the character Gollum. He’s a tragic character who speaks, often to himself, when the most important thing in his life- his precious ring- is threatened with destruction.
Clemson football: The double edged sword of rain games
Writer’s block can be tough, but who knew I’d find the answers in Alabama, Death Valley and the soggy high school football fields of Union, South Carolina. I mean from the billions of dollars I’ve made off the last 2 articles (right, Marty?), I have really been trying to hammer down and find a good angle for my 3rd entry into the Rubbing the Rock “universe”. So, how about we go play in the rain, shall we? In the midst of all this, for some reason I had the SEC network on.
Clemson football: Hate, heartbreak and Georgia Tech
Hate, Heartbreak and Georgia Tech. Well, hello again, Tiger nation, The last time we came together I regaled you with the tales of old that led me to root for the boys in the orange on Saturday. Now, I know the last decade of heartbreak has been comparatively less than say the 90’s? The early 00’s? The late 00’s?
When did you get hooked on Clemson football?
Our newest contributor, Houston Burnett, tells us how he got hooked on Clemson football. Greetings and salutations, Clemson Nation. This serves as my official introduction to the Rubbing the Rock community, so I wanted to make my first article something that gets some interaction with the fanbase. Don’t get me wrong, I will have plenty of takes for the upcoming 2022-2023 year.
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