WHAT WE ARE HEARING: PREVIEW AND PREDICTION FOR NO.20 CLEMSON vs. NC STATE

Welcome to the ACC opener edition of What We Are Hearing!

As I fully expected, the Tigers took their frustrations out on App State after the disappointing second half against Georgia, and oh what a difference a week makes! After the 3-point performance against Georgia, many Clemson fans were in panic mode, thinking that it was going to be another long season for the offense, but I tried to explain that it was the first game of the season, and they were going up against possibly the best defense in the country with a hostile crowd. Sure enough, Cade Klubnik, Garrett Riley and the offense showed us all what they’re capable of doing, putting together a historic offensive clinic in the first half. They scored touchdowns on all 8 of their possessions in the first half, going into the locker room with a 56-13 lead, and the second half was all about getting the young backups some valuable game experience. It was just the shot in the arm that the Tigers—especially the offense—needed, going into the bye week full of confidence and belief. Now, the Tigers turn the page to ACC play in full control of their own destiny. With FSU already 0-2 in conference play and on the brink of collapse, the ACC is ripe for the taking, and it begins with familiar foe NC State on Saturday in a renewal of the historic Textile Bowl. On to the matchup!

NC STATE SYNOPSIS

After dominating the series over Dabo’s tenure and beating the Wolfpack 16 times in 17 years, the Tigers lost in Raleigh in double overtime in 2021 and lost again in Raleigh last season thanks to a pick-six by All-American LB Peyton Wilson, who is now with the Steelers. So the juniors for Clemson have a 1-2 record against State. The Pack was ranked a couple of weeks ago before losing to Tennessee in Charlotte 51-10. The game was a little like the Tigers’ loss to Georgia. It was a 10-3 game late in the second quarter, and State was in position to tie the game going into halftime, but a pick-six by Tennessee made it a 14-point lead, and it just snowballed from there. That was the Pack’s only loss so far, with home wins over Western Carolina and LA Tech last week. State had a seasoned, veteran quarterback in Grayson McCall, a transfer from Coastal Carolina. However, McCall was knocked out of the game in the second quarter last week, so freshman CJ Bailey will make his first career start in Death Valley. Talk about a baptism by fire! The 6’6, 190-pound Miami native showed a lot of poise last week, rallying his team from a 17-6 halftime deficit to the 30-20 win. He was 13-20 for 156 yards with one interception. He had 4 runs for 27 yards and a touchdown as well.

There will be a ton of pressure on Bailey stepping into this environment for his first career start, but he has a good support system in place with capable backs and KC Concepcion (#10) in the passing game. The freshman All-American WR last season had his coming out party against the Tigers and was the primary reason, other than Wilson’s pick-six, that State won. He had 5 catches for 83 yards, scoring their only two offensive touchdowns, and added 2 carries for 51 yards. At 5’11 and 187 pounds, the Charlotte native is off to a great start this season, with 22 catches for 199 yards and 3 scores, all of which came in the opener against Western Carolina. In fact, those were the only 3 touchdown thrown by State in its first 3 games.

In spite of the dangerous Concepcion, State’s offense is built around the run with its three-headed monster in the backfield. 6’0, 215-pound RB Jordan Waters (#7) is a sixth-year senior, who spent the last 5 years at Duke. You probably regrettably remember him from the Tigers’ opener last season in Durham. He rushed for 63 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries and also had 3 catches for 46 yards. He leads the team with 37 carries for 156 yards, including a long of 50, and 2 scores. He is first in the pecking order, but 5’11, 195-pound sophomore Raphael Kendrick (#0) and 5’11, 182-pound freshman Hollywood Smothers, from Charlotte, have been averaging more yards per carry at 5.8 and 5.2, respectively. Kendrick scored his first touchdown of the season last week, and Smothers has yet to find the end zone. State’s second-leading receiver, behind Concepcion, is junior TE Justin Joly (#15).

Sophomore kicker Kanoah Vinesett is in his first year as a starter but is off to a hot start. He’s 5-5 on field goals with a long of 52 yards.

CLEMSON STATUS

The first of two byes came at a good time for the Tigers, not only feeling good about their offense but allowing some bumps and bruises to heal. DE Peter Woods sat out most of the App State game after a dirty cut block below the waste, which was not called. However, he should be good to go on Saturday. WR Tyler Brown rolled his ankle in the game and is day to day. With a healthy stable of receivers, we may not see Brown on Saturday. OG Marcus Tate was able to play in the last game, but Dabo decided to play it safe and rest him, and he will be back on Saturday along with Trent Howard, who also missed the last game. There was some bad news on the injury front, however. OT Dietrick Pennington will need surgical repair to his ACL and miss the remainder of the season. The Tigers are still plenty deep on the offensive line, but it’s a shame that they have lost the 350-pound junior, who would have seen plenty of playing time this season. Also, LB Kobe McCloud and S Caleb Nix suffered torn ACL’s in the App State game. The loss of McCloud will open the door for highly touted freshman Sammy Brown to see the field more on defense. He has already made his presence felt as a starter on special teams, and he led the team with 7 tackles against App State. Safety Tyler Venables was ejected in the second half of the App State game for targeting, so he will miss the first half of this game. Ricardo Jones filled in for him nicely, though, recording his first career interception.

Other than Cade’s spectacular, historic performance with his 7 TD’s, 378 yards and 90 percent completion rate in one half of play, the big takeaway from the App State game was the coming out party for true freshman receivers Bryant Wesco and TJ Moore. They each made their first career catch late in the opener against Georgia, and each scored his first touchdown the following week. Wesco’s 76-yard TD catch on the third play of the game set the crowd into a frenzy, and he topped that with a sensational catch on the next possession, setting up another score. Both Wesco and Moore were highly rated recruits, and Clemson fans were anxious to see more of them than they saw against Georgia. I was not surprised that Dabo was reluctant to play them early against an elite defense like Georgia, in that environment and stage—especially with very capable and more experienced receivers like Antonio Williams, Cole Turner and Tyler Brown, but I think it’s safe to say that we will see more and more of the two freshmen going forward. Don’t forget, though, that Cole Turner made some great plays as well, as did Antonio Williams! TE Jake Briningstool also had a huge game with 100 yards and 2 scores. I can’t wait to see what this offense does for an encore on Saturday!

PREDICTION

State may have ended its losing streak to the Tigers, winning two of the last three, but the Pack have not won in Death Valley since 2002! A noon game is never as intimidating for the opponent as the noise and electricity of a night game, but it will be a packed house and nothing like this freshman quarterback has ever seen. I expect the Tigers to keep that offensive momentum rolling and kick-start conference play with another big win.

The Prowl toward another ACC Championship and return to the College Football Playoff continues…

CLEMSON    41        NC State    12