May 31, 2012
Return To Thursday’s Press Conference Videos
Clemson Head Coach Jack Leggett
Opening Statement
We’re very excited about being in a regional. We think this is a very strong field. It has good ball clubs in it. A couple we’re familiar with and one we’re not. Two conference champions coming off strong weekend series’, so they’ll have some confidence. We’re excited about being here and playing. We look forward to getting back on the competitive field. We’re excited about getting ready to start.
On having three South Carolina teams in the regional
I haven’t thought about it that much to be honest. I’m just excited about playing and bringing our team down here to see what we can do. Regardless of where you go you’ll face good ball clubs and teams that were hot at the end of the year and had great seasons. We had a good run ourselves. We can’t worry about that right now. It’s one of those things that we played South Carolina and Coastal. When you go to regionals, sometimes you like to play teams you haven’t seen, but the programs in the state of South Carolina continue to get stronger and stronger. Unfortunately or fortunately, they’ll get grouped together at times, so here we are.
On the pitching rotation
Dominic (Leone) was an option for tomorrow, but he won’t be back until tomorrow. He had a tragedy in the family. We’ll miss him, but we’ll throw Kevin Pohle tomorrow. He has the most experience on our staff in these situations. He’s had a good season for us. He’s been consistent and you know what you’ll get out of him. I’m excited about seeing him on the mound tomorrow. After that we’re just going to paly it by ear and figure out who we play and what we have to do next.
On a potential rivalry match with South Carolina
I’m just locked in on 12 o’clock Friday versus coastal Carolina. That’s the only thing on my mind. You don’t have a chance at the things people are dreaming about unless you take care of business the first day. Coastal, we know them very well. We play them every year. We’re both familiar with each other. That’s our only concern, to play on of our best games of the year tomorrow against a good Coastal Carolina team.
On being shipped to the Columbia regional
This is the 23rd one I’ve been in. They’re all exciting and all bring a new challenge. They all have the same goal in mind to get past this one and get to the next one. It’s really no different. We are playing teams that we’re a little bit familiar with, but that’s happened before. I don’t think it changes my approach at all. They’re just a team that’s in our way, and we’re a team in their way. It doesn’t matter where we play or who we play, you just have to play your best baseball this time of year or you’re not going to last very long.
On postseason play
It’s a clean slate in my mind. We played really well the last couple of months of the season. We’ve played some good games. We lost some tough games. We lost a 2-1 game and a 3-2 game, but we’ve also won some good games. The FSU game is one I’m feeding off and feeling good about in the ACC Tournament. Leading up to that, we had a couple of good weekends before that. I think we’re playing well. I think we’re in the right frame of mind. I’m not feeding off anything negative; I’m feeding off everything positive. You have to think about all the good things you’ve done all season long. It’s your responsibility as a teammate and player at this level and as an athlete at Clemson to figure out a way to get themselves exactly where they need to be at noon time tomorrow.
On Daniel Gossett
Daniel (Gossett) has pitched very well or us. He’s been picking it up lately and getting good experience along the way. He started early in the season as a closer, had some ups and down there, had experience as a middle reliever then long reliever and midweek starts, and now he’s getting some bigger starts for us. He’s responded very well and is getting more experience and confidence all the time. He’s becoming consequently more successful every time out. He has a great future for us.
On playing on the road
We’ve in a lot of ways played pretty well on the road this year. Our players feel comfortably. You get in a routine and there are not a lot of distractions. Coming down here, the pressure is not on us. We’re a team trying to fight to get to the next level. I look at this as a good environment and a good challenge for us. All I can think of is back in 2002, we stood as a team down on the tarp and I can remember Khalil Greene said, “We need to win on the road.” That made an impression on me at that time thinking this young kid the first thing that comes out of his mouth is we need to be able to win on the road. You can feel safe at home, but going on the road you need to be able to lock in and fight as a team. We usually play better with our backs against the wall. We’ve been grinding all season to get to where we are right now. Hopefully we can have some fun out of this thing.
Clemson 3B/1B Richie Shaffer
On a potential rivalry match with South Carolina being a distraction
It can be easy to get distracted if you’re not focused on the task at hand. It will be difficult to stay focused, but we have to take care of business tomorrow because if we don’t do that who knows what can happen.
On if he gets frustrated when teams pitch around him
I don’t think frustration is the word for it because I’m happy getting on base and that will help the team out. As a hitter I’d lie if I said I didn’t want to swing every time up, but I just have to stay with my approach and know that Phil (Pohl) and the other guys can drive me in. I don’t think frustration is the right word to use, but like I said I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to hit.
On looking forward to the MLB Draft
This is a very important time for our team. That would be selfish for me to think about individual future. I’m just trying to stay concentrated on the task at hand and do everything to help our team win and deal with Monday when it comes.
On why the team plays well on the road
It’s hard to explain. I think it’s just a thing where we get into a routine and a groove, all wake up at the same time, eat breakfast at the same time and everyone’s together. At home, people show up at different times. Maybe the team being together a lot more is something that gets us together.
Clemson C/!B/OF Phil Pohl
On a potential rivalry match with South Carolina being a distraction
I don’t think so. Like coach said, we’re focused on noon tomorrow against Coastal. That’s our primary concern. It’s definitely out there and we’re hearing it, but we’re geared up for tomorrow.
