Sunday Notebook: Tigers expect the best from UNC, No Tom Cruise for Swinney

CLEMSON—The No.1 Clemson Tigers and this week's opponent the North Carolina Tar Heels are teams on two different trajectories. The Tigers are coming off a dominant performance in their fourth straight win this season over the Charlotte 49ers, while the Tar Heels are coming off a heartbreaking loss to Appalachian State that dropped them to 2-2 on the season.

But Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney is expecting to get the Tar Heels best shot Saturday when the Tigers travel to Chapel Hill.

They're just a few plays away from being 4-0," Swinney said. "They had a big win to open the season. They had a really close, tough loss against Wake. That one yesterday came down to the wire. They've gotten behind but they have come back, so they've shown resiliency. They've played tough.

"It's easy to see coach (Mack) Brown's influence and their effort. They're a team that will be super pumped and ready to play us on Saturday. We're going to have to do a good job preparing for them. They're going to be ready. We have to make sure we are ready."

No Tom Cruise for Swinney: Clemson was the center of the Disney world Saturday night, as filming for the new Disney movie "Safety" took place during halftime. The film recounts former Clemson football player Ray Ray McElrathbey, who adopted his younger brother, Fahmarr, while a member of the football program in 2006.

The film stars Jay Reeves as Ray; Thaddeus J. Mixson as Fahmarr; and Corinne Foxx as Kaycee. When Swinney was asked who would play him in a movie, he did not hesitate.

"That's easy, Matthew McConaughey. I have said that many times," Swinney said. "I've said that many, many times. He might be a little busy. He's a (Texas) Longhorn. He'd be my top choice for sure...Tom Cruise is too short."

Tigers in the polls: The Tigers held firm to their No. 1 ranking in both the Associated Press Poll and the Coaches Poll.

With their win Saturday, Clemson improved to 12-2 all-time in games as the AP No. 1-ranked team. Thirteen of Clemson's 14 games played at No. 1 all-time entering Saturday have come during the Dabo Swinney era.

Big Favorites...again: The Tigers (4-0, 2-0 ACC) are a 28.5-point favorite to start the week on the Tar Heels (2-2, 1-0).

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