CLEMSON, SC - Well, if there was any concern that the bye week might disrupt the offensive momentum that the Tigers created in the 66-20 win over App State, it was folly. Cade Klubnik and the offense picked up right where they left off, scoring 28 points in the first quarter against NC State on Saturday and taking a 45-7 lead into the locker room at halftime. In his last 2 first halves, Cade is 38-47 for 558 yards, 10 total touchdowns, a 55-yard TD run and no interceptions! I immediately said after the Georgia game that there was no reason to panic and that the offense would be fine, but even I didn't expect the absolute perfection that we have seen since the first possession of the App State game. Over the last 2 games, the starting offense scored touchdowns on 12 straight possessions and 14 out of 15. Clemson is the only FBS program in the last 20 years to have consecutive 28-point leads in the first quarter!
I said that as disappointing as that second half against Georgia was, the benefit was that it would make the Tigers better, and perhaps that is what we are now seeing. It's as if the defenses are running in slow motion compared to what the Tigers saw in that opener against perhaps the best defense in the country. I would love to see a rematch with the Bulldogs now that Cade and the offense is playing with the confidence they have right now. Like last week, the final score is no way indicative of how much of a blowout this game was. Cade only played the first half against App State and only played the first possession of the second half, resulting in a touchdown, against State. Similarly, the defensive starters all came out of the game in the second half, and that allowed State to score 28 points. Vegas had the Tigers winning by 18, but I predicted 41-12, and my score would have been much closer to the final if the starters had played four quarters. The Tigers' offensive and defensive stats would be much better if they hadn't pulled their starters in each of the last two games, but it will pay dividends down the road. That is how Dabo made 6 straight playoffs; by getting his talented young players valuable game experience when the opportunity arises. It will make them that much better later this season and next year.
With the win, Clemson became the 14th school in history to win 800 games. I said last season that the Tigers might beat Auburn as the 13th program to reach the milestone, but the Tigers on the Plains barely beat them to it, now with 801 wins. That's ironic, given that Dabo is an Alabama grad, but he told me after the game, maybe they can beat Auburn to 802. The Tigers have not lost to NC State in Death Valley since 2002 when Philip Rivers was their quarterback. I remember that like it was yesterday, but that's a long time ago!
I wrote that one of the big positives I took away from the Georgia game--other than the defense in the first half and no injuries--was that the Tigers took care of the football. They didn't put in on the deck, and the only turnover was a circus catch on a long pass by Cade late in the game. Turnovers were the primary reason that the Tigers didn't win the ACC last season. All 4 of their losses were a direct result of them. It has been the opposite so far this season, with just the one aforementioned turnover against Georgia and a fumbled punt return against App State by Antonio. The defense, which has forced more turnovers than any unit in the country since 2018, did not create any against Georgia but has come up with 3 in each of the last 2 games. The Tigers are now 22-1 since 2020 when winning the turnover margin!
Dabo revealed to us after the game that Adam Randall, who had a great game with a TD catch, was remarkably playing with a stress fracture in his toe. He insisted on playing and will have his surgery on Monday. Dabo hopes to have him back by the UVA game. As I expected, Tyler Brown did not play after rolling his ankle in the App State game, but I expect him to be available if needed next week against Stanford. Bryant Wesco was banged up early in the game and is day to day. The national rhetoric about Clemson going into this season was the offensive struggles over the last 3 years and lack of explosives from the receivers. However, what they all don't realize is that the Tigers have been absolutely decimated with injuries at the receiver position for 3 straight years. For example, Antonio Wiliams and Cole Turner, who combined for 3 touchdowns today, were both out for the season at this time last year. The third starter, Beaux Collins, went down later in the season. It was the same story in 2022 and 2021 as well. In fact, in 2021 the injuries were so bad that Will Swinney had to start at WR in the last 3 games, all of which the Tigers won! Sure, the two true freshmen--Wesco and Moore--have injected some juice to the offense, but it's not like the Tigers have lacked talent over the last 3 years. They simply weren't available because of injury. In spite of Randall, Brown and Wesco's minor injuries, the Tigers are relatively healthy at the position, and if it stays that way, they will have a chance to win the whole thing. By the way, Dabo held DE Peter Woods to be on the safe side, and the defense clearly did not need him. He should be able to play next week, but with the way the offense is rolling, Dabo might decide to hold him until he is needed. OT Colin Sadler also did not play and is day to day.
I'll have more in a bit, and be sure to check in on Sunday evening for my Zoom call with Dabo. In the meantime, post-game interviews, highlights and notes are below!
WITH THE WIN...
- Clemson earned its 800th all-time win, becoming the 14th FBS program (and first ACC program) ever to win 800 games.
- Clemson went from 700 all-time wins to 800 all-time wins in a span of 118 games, its fastest stretch of games between milestone wins and surpassing the 134 games needed to move from 400 all-time wins to 500.
- Clemson improved to 61-30-1 all-time against NC State. NC State is one of three programs against which Clemson has won at least 60 games all-time (South Carolina, 73; Wake Forest, 71).
- Clemson earned its 17th win in a 20-game span in its series with NC State.
- Clemson extended the longest home winning streak in series history by winning a 10th straight home game against NC State at Memorial Stadium, dating to 2004. The last time NC State won in Clemson was in 2002 in a game branded by ESPN as “College Football Thursday Night presented by Circuit City.”
- Clemson earned its 10th straight home victory in its series with NC State, posting its eighth home winning streak of 10 or more games against a single opponent in school history (21 vs. Furman from 1938-present, 16 vs. Virginia from 1956-89, 16 vs. Wake Forest from 1963-91, 15 vs. Duke from 1982-present, 15 vs. Presbyterian from 1944-present, 14 vs. The Citadel from 1929-present, and 12 vs. Wake Forest from 2000-present).
- Head Coach Dabo Swinney moved to 12-3 all-time against NC State.
- Swinney improved to 9-2 all-time against NC State Head Coach Dave Doeren. Doeren became the second coach ever to be defeated by Swinney nine times, joining Dave Clawson (10).
- Swinney moved to 17-4 all-time in games immediately following regular season open dates.
- Clemson pushed its record at Death Valley against NC State to 25-11 since the facility opened in 1942. Clemson’s 25 wins against the Wolfpack at Death Valley are its second-most against any opponent, trailing only Clemson’s 36 wins against Wake Forest in Memorial Stadium.
- Clemson improved to 99-15 against ACC opponents, including postseason play, since 2011. Clemson is one win shy of becoming the third team in the country to win 100 games against conference opponents in that span (Alabama and Ohio State).
- Clemson improved to 22-10 under Dabo Swinney in games against opponents to which it lost its most recent meeting in the series.
- By defeating an NC State program to which it lost last season, Clemson still has not been beaten by the same team in back-to-back years since Florida State defeated Clemson three times across a three-year span from 2012-14.
- Clemson improved to 45-26-1 in conference openers since joining the ACC.
- Clemson improved to 67-3 at Death Valley in the College Football Playoff era and is tied with Alabama for the nation’s best home record in that time frame.
- Clemson improved to 133-18 against AP-unranked teams under Dabo Swinney and improved to 110-8 in those games since the start of the 2012 season.
- Clemson improved to 96-13 in regular season play since the start of the 2015 season.
- Swinney earned his 172nd career win to pass the career win totals of College Football Hall of Famers Wallace Wade (171-49-10) and Mark Richt (171-64) and match the career win total of College Football Hall of Famer Dan Devine (172-57-9).
- Swinney (172) pulled within one victory of Bobby Bowden (173) for the most career head coaching victories leading an ACC program.
- Swinney (99-9) earned his 99th career home win and pulled within one victory of becoming the first Clemson coach to win 100 career home games.
- Swinney improved to 39-5 all-time against teams from the state of North Carolina.
- Clemson is now 83-3 when rushing for 200+ yards under Dabo Swinney.
- Clemson is now 70-2 since 2015 when outscoring opponents in the “Middle Eight,” defined as the final four minutes of the first half and the first four minutes of the second half.
- Clemson improved to 65-4 when having a 100-yard rusher since 2011.
- Clemson is now 82-6 when scoring first since 2015.
- Clemson has now won 116 of its last 121 games when leading at halftime.
- Clemson improved to 137-4 since 2011 when leading after three quarters.
GAME NOTES
- Clemson has now scored 59 or more points in back-to-back games for the third time in school history (59 vs. both Boston College and Wofford in 2019; 59 vs. Florida State and 77 vs. Louisville in 2018).
- Clemson has now scored 50 points in back-to-back games for the first time since a four-game streak late in the 2019 season.
- Clemson totaled 523 yards and has now reached 500 yards of offense in back-to-back games for the first time since 2022 against Louisiana Tech and Wake Forest.
- Clemson rushed for 269 yards and has now rushed for 250 yards in back-to-back games for the first time since the 2021 season against Wake Forest and South Carolina.
- After averaging 9.8 yards per play last game against Appalachian State, Clemson averaged 7.8 yards per play against NC State. It marked Clemson’s first time averaging 7.5 yards or more per play in consecutive games since averaging more than 8.0 yards against both Virginia Tech and Notre Dame in 2020.
- Clemson exceeded both 200 rushing yards and 200 passing yards for the second consecutive game. Clemson is now 63-1 when both passing and rushing for 200+ yards under Dabo Swinney and 113-1-1 in program history when reaching those marks.
- With 384 first-half yards and 42 first-half points on Saturday, Clemson has now combined for 933 yards and 101 points in the first half of its last two games. Clemson scored points of 15 of its 16 drives — including touchdowns on 14 of those drives — in those first halves.
- Clemson has now recorded 400 yards in consecutive first halves for the first time since 2019 against NC State (403) and Wofford (438).
- Clemson has now scored 45 or more points in the first half of back-to-back games for the first time in the Dabo Swinney era.
- Clemson’s 59 points in the game were the Tigers’ second-most in its 92-game series history with NC State, trailing only its 62 points in a win in 2012. Clemson’s 31-point margin of victory was its fourth-largest in series history.
- According to ESPN, this game marked the fourth time that a team had scored 40 or more points in a half against an NC State team coached by Dave Doeren, joining 2013 Florida State (quarterbacked by Jameis Winston), 2016 Louisville (quarterbacked by Lamar Jackson), 2019 Clemson (quarterbacked by Trevor Lawrence).
- One game after recording 349 yards and 35 points in the first quarter against Appalachian State, Clemson posted 222 yards and 28 points in the first quarter against NC State. Clemson holds a 63-0 combined edge in first quarters through three games this season.
- According to ESPN, Clemson became the first FBS team in the last 20 seasons to lead by 28 or more points after the first quarter of consecutive games.
- Despite playing only two-and-a-half quarters, quarterback Cade Klubnik completed 16-of-24 passes for 209 yards with three passing touchdowns and added four carries for a career-high 70 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown.
- Klubnik opened the scoring on the game’s opening drive, culminating a four-play, 75-yard drive with a career-long 55-yard touchdown run.
- The 55-yard run by Klubnik was the longest by a Clemson quarterback since Trevor Lawrence’s 67-yard touchdown run against Ohio State in the 2019 Fiesta Bowl.
- The rushing touchdown was the third of the season for Klubnik and the ninth of his career.
- Klubnik has now rushed for a touchdown in back-to-back games for the second time in his career (2023 vs. Florida Atlantic and Florida State).
- On his seventh completion, Klubnik (409) became the 10th player in Clemson history to complete 400 career passes. On his ninth completion, he passed Kyle Parker (401 from 2009-10) for the ninth-most career pass completions in Clemson history.
- With 279 combined passing and rushing yards in the contest, Klubnik (4,679) became the 14th player in school history to record 4,500 career yards of total offense.
- On his third touchdown pass of the game, Klubnik (29) passed Mike Eppley (28 from 1980-84) to enter the Top 10 in school history in career touchdown passes.
- Wide receiver Antonio Williams caught three passes for 39 yards with two touchdowns.
- The game was the second multi-touchdown performance of Williams’ career, joining his two-touchdown game against Charleston Southern last season.
- Williams has now caught a touchdown in back-to-back games for the first time in his career.
- Clemson scored its second touchdown of the game on its second drive of the game on a 31-yard touchdown pass from Klubnik to Williams. The scoring drive covered 91 yards in only 1:34 in elapsed game time.
- Williams added his second touchdown of the first quarter on a two-yard pass from Klubnik.
- Running back Phil Mafah rushed seven times for 107 yards with a touchdown.
- Mafah has now rushed for 100 yards in consecutive games for the first time in his career.
- Mafah became the first Clemson player to record back-to-back 100-yard rushing games since Will Shipley accomplished the feat against Florida State and Syracuse in 2022.
- Mafah’s seven carries were the fewest by a Clemson player amid a 100-yard rushing performance since both Lyn-J Dixon (four) and Tavien Feaster (six) recorded fewer carries during 100-yard rushing games against Louisville in 2018.
- Mafah scored Clemson’s fourth touchdown of the day on its fourth offensive drive, scoring on a 38-yard touchdown run.
- On the touchdown run, Mafah (2,056) became the 22nd player in school history to reach 2,000 career rushing yards.
- Clemson’s fifth drive of the game — its opening drive of the second quarter — resulted in an Aidan Swanson punt. Including eight consecutive touchdowns drives against Appalachian State and four touchdown drives to open the game against NC State, the punt ended a streak of 12 consecutive drives engineered by Klubnik and Clemson’s first-team offense in which Clemson scored touchdowns.
- Wide receiver Cole Turner scored his first career touchdown of any kind on an 18-yard run in the second quarter.
- The touchdown run by Turner was the first by a Clemson receiver since Will Swinney scored on a fake field goal against UConn in 2021. It was the first touchdown run by a Clemson receiver on an offensive play since Tee Higgins’ 36-yard touchdown run against LSU in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game to end the 2019 season.
- Running back Jay Haynes scored his first touchdown of the season — the second of his career — on a 19-yard run in the second quarter.
- The touchdown run was Haynes’ first since scoring against Charleston Southern last September.
- Clemson scored four rushing touchdowns and has now recorded four or more rushing touchdowns in consecutive games for the first time since 2020 against Pitt and Virginia Tech.
- Wide receiver Adam Randall recorded a team-high and career-high 69 yards on a career-high-tying five receptions with one touchdown.
- Randall recorded his first career touchdown reception on a four-yard pass from Klubnik in the third quarter.
- With 29 yards in the contest, tight end Jake Briningstool (1,005) joined Jordan Leggett (1,598 from 2013-16), John McMakin (1,255 from 1969-71), Dwayne Allen (1,079 from 2009-11) and Bennie Cunningham (1,044 from 1972-75) as the fifth tight end in school history to reach 1,000 career receiving yards.
- Defensive end T.J. Parker recorded 2.0 sacks among his five tackles. He matched his career high in sacks of 2.0, set at Syracuse last season.
- Parker recorded his first sack and forced his first fumble of the season on a strip-sack in the first quarter.
- The forced fumble was the first of Parker’s career.
- The fumble was recovered by defensive end Cade Denhoff, who recorded his first career fumble recovery in his first career start.
- Parker added his second sack of the game in the second quarter.
- Cornerback Avieon Terrell recorded the game’s second takeaway in the first quarter, forcing and recovering a Kevin Concepcion fumble.
- The forced fumble and the fumble recovery were both the first of Terrell’s career.
- Cornerback Ashton Hampton recorded a 53-yard interception return for touchdown in the third quarter on the first interception of his career.
- With the victory and Hampton’s pick-six, Clemson has now won 22 consecutive games in which it scores a non-offensive touchdown, dating to the middle of the 2017 season.
- The pick-six by Hampton was Clemson’s first of the season and its first since Shelton Lewis’ 46-yard interception return against Georgia Tech last November.
- Linebacker Sammy Brown recorded a career-high 4.0 tackles for loss, the most in a game by a Clemson player since Jake Venables’ four tackles for loss vs. Wofford in 2019.
- Clemson won the turnover margin for the second time this season and the 100th time in Dabo Swinney's tenure. Clemson is now 94-6 in Swinney's tenure when it wins the turnover margin.
- Clemson won the turnover margin, 3-0. It was Clemson’s third time finishing plus-three in the turnover margin in its last seven games, dating to last season.
- The game was Clemson’s first without a giveaway since the 2022 ACC Championship Game against North Carolina.
- Safety R.J. Mickens played his 50th career game.
- Kicker Nolan Hauser converted a 20-yard field goal on the final play of the first half to move to 3-for-3 on field goal attempts in his career.
- Clemson scored in a 283rd consecutive game to tie the 1887-2019 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets for the 15th-longest streak of games without being shut out in FBS history.
- Clemson has now scored at least one rushing touchdown in a national-best 80 of its 85 games since the start of the 2018 season. Clemson has also rushed for multiple touchdowns in a national-best 67 games since the start of the 2018 season.
- Clemson has now rushed for a touchdown in 55 consecutive home games, the nation’s longest active streak. The last team to hold Clemson without a rushing touchdown in Death Valley was Troy in 2016.
- Clemson opened conference play at home for only the third time in the last 13 years. Clemson has now won nine of its last 10 conference openers since 2015.
- Clemson opened conference play against NC State for the 11th time in school and conference history. The win improved Clemson to 7-4 in those contests and represented Clemson’s fourth straight win against the Wolfpack in conference openers (1997, 2008 and 2013).
- Captains for the contest were defensive tackle DeMonte Capehart, offensive lineman Tristan Leigh, safety R.J. Mickens and wide receiver Antonio Williams.
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