GATOR BOWL- CLEMSON vs. NEBRASKA

Since taking over as interim head coach halfway into the 2008 season, Dabo Swinney has twice faced the daunting task of going against opponents whose head coaches had recognizable and respected names, established reputations and NFL experience on their resume'. So far, so good. Both Virginia's Al Groh and South Carolina's Steve Spurrier are former head coaches in the NFL whose teams lost to the Swinney-coached Tigers. In the upcoming Gator Bowl, Swinney and the Tigers will again face a team whose head coach has a ton of coaching experience, including nine years in the NFL and six years as DC of three major college programs with both Super Bowl and BCS National Championship rings to show for it. The Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach, Bo Pelini, served as DB coach with the San Francisco 49ers under George Seifert and won a Super Bowl. Pelini also served as LB coach for the New England Patriots under current USC Trojans coach Pete Carroll and finished up his NFL career as LB coach for the Packers, going 33-15 under coach Mike Sherman. Pelini then served one year as DC for Nebraska, another year as co-DC for Oklahoma and spent the most recent two years as the DC for LSU, winning a BCS national championship in 2007.

The Nebraska football program has a rich championship tradition, having won five national championships, including back-to-back titles in 1970 and 1971. The Cornhuskers also had back-to-back titles in 1994 and 1995, with their most recent title coming in 1997. As all Tigers fans know, there is a little history between these two teams where national championships are concerned. Clemson defeated Nebraska 22-15 in the Orange Bowl on Jan. 1, 1982 and won the 1981 national championship as a result. Since the Cornhuskers' perfect season in 1997, they have had some successful seasons- going 12-1 in 1999, 10-2 in 2000, 11-2 in 2001 and 10-3 in 2003. Lately, there has not been as much to cheer about. In 2004, they lost 6 games, lost 4 in 2005, lost 5 in 2006 and lost 7 in 2007. Nebraska's AD was fired last year and replaced with former Cornhuskers' head coach Tom Osborne, who in turn promptly fired then-head coach Bill Callahan one day after the final game of a 5-7 season. Osborne then hired Bo Pelini, who in his first season provided a bigger turn around than most expected and improved the regular season record to 8-4. As mentioned in a previous article, the losses came to some tough competition in Oklahoma, Missouri, Texas Tech and Virginia Tech. The future again looks bright for the program and the Nebraska football fans are excited. Here's hoping Clemson dampens their enthusiasm just a bit with a win over the Cornhuskers in 2008. MORE ON THIS MATCHUP TO COME. Go Tigers!