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Clemson is honoring a very special group in the middle of what it hopes turns into an equally special season.
The Tigers (7-0, 4-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) will celebrate the 30th anniversary of their 1981 national champions on Saturday against North Carolina (5-2, 1-2) as they continue trying to reach the same heights they did three decades ago.
''As I keep saying each week, seven wins is not what we came here for,'' Clemson offensive coordinator Chad Morris said. ''7-5 is not a great season.''
Morris and the Tigers are seeking more, much more.
A win over the Tar Heels would match Clemson's best start since 2000 and be just its second 8-0 mark since those `81 Tigers went on to a 12-0 season, capped with a surprise 22-15 victory over Nebraska at the Orange Bowl to win the championship that's still the benchmark for Clemson football.
Coach Dabo Swinney said he expects some members from that title-winning squad to speak to their 2011 counterparts on Friday night before a halftime ceremony the next day.
''It's hard to believe it's been 30 years. That's a special time,'' Swinney said.
Swinney was 11 when the Tigers of Perry Tuttle, Terry Kinard and William ''Refrigerator'' Perry had their perfect season. But Swinney was a receiver on Alabama's 1992 national champions and revels in those memories when he can.
Right now, the Tigers are busy making new memories - and there are plenty of parallels.
Then-coach Danny Ford, an Alabama grad like Swinney, got the job when former coach Charley Pell left before the end of 1978 and led the Tigers to a championship three full seasons later.
Swinney is in his third full season after taking over in the middle of 2008 when Tommy Bowden left.
Few expected much from the national champs, who were 6-5 in 1980 and left some wondering if Ford was the man for the job. Swinney knows the feeling after the Tigers went 6-7 last year, their first losing season in 12 years, and his job status was the biggest question on campus.
The 1981 team was led by stunning freshman defensive end Perry, who helped the unit force a school-record 41 turnovers. Flash forward 30 years and wide receiver Sammy Watkins has stood out for an offense averaging more than 487 yards and 38 points.
Current Clemson tight end Dwayne Allen understands it's far too soon to think about bigger pictures. The Tigers haven gotten to this point, he said, by refusing to panic and concentrating on what's in front of them.
Those qualities showed through in last week's 56-45 victory at Maryland. The Tigers twice trailed by as many as 18 points yet rallied to victory with 39 points in the second half. Allen recalls telling his offensive teammates after Maryland's lead grew that the Tigers would do whatever was necessary to leave with a victory, even scoring 70 points. ''For a while there I thought we were going to have to do it,'' Allen joked.
For Allen, it's just applying the words of Morris when he first met with the offense after accepting the coordinator's job in January. Clemson was known for defense and that had to change.
With Watkins, Allen, quarterback Tajh Boyd and tailback Andre Ellington, it has this season. Boyd's leading the ACC in passing and total offense, throwing 19 touchdowns against just three interceptions. Ellington rushed for a career-high 212 yards and two touchdowns.
That should put plenty of pressure on North Carolina's defense, which is third in the ACC this season in points allowed at 20.1 a game. Coach Everett Withers says the Tar Heels can't focus too much on shutting down any one of Clemson's playmakers because that will leave holes for the others to take advantage of. North Carolina must do what it does in order to compete.
''That's what the challenge is for our team, to keep getting better each week and find a way to win the game,'' Withers said.
The Tar Heels have played well so far despite losing coach Butch Davis weeks before the season began, although they are coming off a 30-24 loss to Miami.
Freshman tailback Giovani Bernard has rushed for 100 or more yards in five straight games, three shy of the ACC record held by former Virginia runner Tiki Barber.
Swinney knows how quickly a few mistakes can turn title talk into fan grumbling, especially when the greatest team in school history is watching from the stands. ''It's a special time when you get a group like (the 1981 team) together,'' Swinney said. ''The best way to honor them is to play our best and get a win on Saturday.''
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AP Sports Writer Aaron Beard in Raleigh, N.C., contributed to this report.
