Is Clowney the best to ever play DE ever? In college?

[I Bleed Garnet]

Hugh Green hasn't been mentioned yet?

[Barry_gamecock]

I think Clowney could get 20 sacks next year. If he does, I will call him the best. As far as just sacks go though, cant touch Derrick Thomas. Clowney actually needs to get a lot better against the run. I would rather have Sam Montgomery against the run. Hopefully another year in the weight room will change that.

[sc455]

Originally Posted by Barry_gamecock

I think Clowney could get 20 sacks next year. If he does, I will call him the best. As far as just sacks go though, cant touch Derrick Thomas. Clowney actually needs to get a lot better against the run. I would rather have Sam Montgomery against the run. Hopefully another year in the weight room will change that.

he is the only player ihave ever seen where i expect an impact play every snap..derrick thomas was a sheer pleasure too watch. amazing damb fb player.

[b381l]

As good as JC is, there is no way he is the best all time.

[cmmuir]

Originally Posted by b381l

As good as JC is, there is no way he is the best all time.

Clowney is a fine well spoken young man who obviously has a lot of respect for the game, the state and Gamecock nation. Congrats my man. I haven't seen a better grown man collegiate athlete since Peppers. Hey Frank M., have you tried to tell this guy to dominate the offensive boards. Just a thought.

[DiamondGamecock]

Originally Posted by b381l

As good as JC is, there is no way he is the best all time.

How so? Explain?
How is anyone better than JD? You could argue Charlie Ward was a good player, cuz he won the Heisman, but sat on the bench a year.
My point is, who? Peppers? Yeah he had a great NFL career an is still going, but who has the impact that Clowney has?
Clowney by far has more of an impact than any defensive player in the history of college football.

Every team, they key on him, why? because he is that good.

You cannot compare anyone to Clowney. Why? Because the impact he makes in a game, is irrelevent to any stat sheet.

[ReadR00ster]

Peter Boulware is a guy I think I would still put ahead of him at this point.

[robgusc76]

The best ever defensive end wouldnt lose the best overall defensive player to a linebacker from Notre Dame. Love the kid, amazing athlete, amazing talent, doing big things, but at this point, no.

[DiamondGamecock]

Originally Posted by robgusc76

The best ever defensive end wouldnt lose the best overall defensive player to a linebacker from Notre Dame. Love the kid, amazing athlete, amazing talent, doing big things, but at this point, no.

How would you even begin to compare Teo to Clowney?

[Cuck Flemson]

Originally Posted by Spurticus

I think by the time he leaves here next year, he'll be the best DE we've
had in USCs History, but there were a lot of other great DEs that I think
had better careers than Clowney will have.

Hugh Greene from Pittsburg (Late 70s/Early 80s) was the best I ever saw in
my lifetime.

Reggie White, Julius Peppers all these were probably better DEs during
their college careers than Clowney, but it was a different time, and
style of Football then. I think if you put a guy with Clowney's speed and
wingspan and play him against offensive formations and O/Linemen
that the above guys (and others) did, I think Clowney could have gone
down in History as THE BEST to have ever played DE.

Hands down Reggie White is the best I've ever saw play the position. He was a beast. No one could block him. Offensive line nightmare.

[DiamondGamecock]

Originally Posted by Cuck Flemson

Hands down Reggie White is the best I've ever saw play the position. He was a beast. No one could block him. Offensive line nightmare.

I disagree completely. White was good, but Clowney is an has been better.

[Evilchicken2]

Clowney has a long way to go before he can match David Pollacks motor...it's still going!

[Evilchicken2]

Seriously though, Clowney has a long way to go before anyone with a reasonable mind can call him the best. Can he top his 2012 sack total next season? We'll see.

[DiamondGamecock]

Originally Posted by Evilchicken2

Seriously though, Clowney has a long way to go before anyone with a reasonable mind can call him the best. Can he top his 2012 sack total next season? We'll see.

I completely believe he can top 13 sacks next year. He may even top 15 this year, because there is still one game yet to be played. We will wait an see, but I don't care who anyone names. No one has the freakish Talent at DE that Clowney has. I have never seen it, and I have watched a lot of football, for a long time.

[COCKYWOOD]

I think he has the talent, but remember last year he didn't start. If he improves as much next year, then yes he will be. Has to improve against the run and just get more n more reps. His pro career should be something to see!

[biltazar]

-Perhaps one of the best as a pass rusher, but anyone that is being objective has seen the opposition run the ball right through the position that he vacates getting up field as an attacker versus offenses. He is not yet a great run stopper from the DE position.

We use him to his strength, allowing him to rush high and wide as well as gamble on some loops and stunts to permit him to create negative plays such as sacks and TFLs. His total tackles is not that great because he plays much more on his athleticism that his skills, at least so far, but he has improved an awful lot from froshman to sophomore.

[b381l]

Originally Posted by DiamondGamecock

How so? Explain?
How is anyone better than JD? You could argue Charlie Ward was a good player, cuz he won the Heisman, but sat on the bench a year.
My point is, who? Peppers? Yeah he had a great NFL career an is still going, but who has the impact that Clowney has?
Clowney by far has more of an impact than any defensive player in the history of college football.

Every team, they key on him, why? because he is that good.

You cannot compare anyone to Clowney. Why? Because the impact he makes in a game, is irrelevent to any stat sheet.

If this were the 60's or 70's there wasn't as much passing as there is now, so there wasn't as much of an opportunity to get sacks. Back then, playing DE was as much about stopping the run. The game has changed so much, it really is impossible to determine who is the best of all time. But to say Clowney is the best all time, is just not accurate. Plus, if you aren't at least 50, then you wouldn't have seen enough good players to make a fair determination.

[Don Giovanni]

Since the bowl game is yet to be played for this season, I'm only using the sack numbers from the regular season for last year and this year to come up with this forecast, but this should be proof that Clowney will be considered the greatest college DE statistically to play the game by the time he leaves South Carolina, until someone comes along and surpasses his total. Here it goes!

Clowney had 6 sacks in the regular season last year.
He earned 13 this year (should have been 14 in my opinion, but that's another subject), so that is an increase in production of 116.67%. Since we all know that he should have at least this same level of increase in what will probably be his last year in college, that should equate to him earning 28 sacks (rounding down) in the regular season next year. That will shatter the current NCAA record for sacks in a season of 24, will put him #1 in school history for career sacks by a large number (he only needs 8 to tie right now), and will give him the NCAA record for sacks in a career for Division I (currently 44) with the chance to break the record for career sacks for all levels of college football which is currently held by D III at 53.5. Of course this is all based on before the bowl game this season, so the record may end up being even closer than we imagined!

So there you have it, mathematical proof Clowney will go down in history as the greatest college DE ever!

[TAFC 5 1981]

Lee Roy Selman (Oklahoma) deserves a mention