Clemson went down the road to Atlanta as field goal favorites to take on Georgia Tech. Like last week, the Tigers got off to a slow start in the 1st half. Late in the 2nd half they overcame a holding penalty and a 3rd & 22 to keep a scoring drive alive. In the 2nd half the Tigers started strong but Tech kept battling and eventually came away with a 24-21 win on a no-time-left FG. I apologize for the lack of images. The wire services didn’t provide any by the time we had to publish.
The Tigers won
the toss and deferred. The Yellow Jackets mixed runs and passes effectively to move down to the Tiger 30. The defense had a chance to make a stop on 3rd & 9, but the Tech receiver broke free to move the chains. Later the defense got Tech in a 4th & 2 from the 4 and stopped them on a bubble screen. The play resulted in a 4-yard loss and the Tigers took over at the 8. The Tigers started with a Cade Klubnik completion and some Adam Randall runs, but Klubnik fumbled on an option run. Tech took over at the Tiger 30.
The Tiger defense held and forced a 4th & 3. This time the Yellow Jackets settled for the FG to take the lead 3-0 with 5:50 left in the quarter. Randall returned the kickoff to the 21. The Tiger offense seemed to settle down and mixed runs and passes to move into Tech territory. The aggressive Tech defense forced a 4th &3 at the 35, forcing the Tigers to attempt a FG but it sailed far to the right.
The Yellow Jackets moved pretty effectively as the secondary continually got burned down the field and the pass rush was non-existent. A 42-yard pass put the Yellow Jackets at the Clemson 5. Tech RB Jamal Haynes ran it in on the next play. The extra point made it 10-0 with 14:55 left in the half. The Tiger offense continued to be anemic and they punted. Cade was overthrowing receivers and the run game just wasn’t there. The offensive line was not winning any battles.
Tech moved into Clemson territory inside the 30, pushing the Tiger defense around. But then DC Tom Allen decided to get aggressive and the defense limited Tech to short gains or losses. They had to settle for a FG and the score was 13-0 with 7:46 left in the half. It was well past time for the offense to get something going.
The offense was again anemic but on a 3rd & 22, Randall took off on a draw for 30 yards and kept the Tiger drive alive. They kept the momentum going and moved to the 17, mostly on the legs of Randall and Klubnik, as the 2-minute warning came. On 3rd & 2, Bryant Wesco, Jr. caught a pass down to the 4. On 3rd and goal inside the 1, Cade tried to push it in on a sneak, but the Tiger offensive line couldn’t get any push at all. On 4th, Cade leapt over the defense to get the score. The score was 13-7 Tech with 49 seconds left in the half. and that’s where it ended.
The Tigers came out firing in the 2nd half with a balanced attack and good running by Randall. They got inside the 10 and then Cade telegraphed a slant that Tech picked off and ran back to midfield. The Tiger defense stepped up big time and stopped the Yellow Jacket offense cold with a sack and a forced fumble when Avieon Terrell got through on a blitz.
The offense got the ball at the 24 after the punt. After a decent Randall run, Klubnik hit Wesco on a crossing route and no one touched him after that for a 73-yard score. Clemson was finally in the lead 14-13 with 9:36 left in the 3rd quarter. The defense throttled Tech on their possession and forced the punt. Westco had a nice return but an unnecessary roughness penalty pushed the Tigers back to the 30.
Clemson’s next possession was the victim of some bad play calling and a missed read by Cade on a blitz. After the punt, Tech started at their 9. The Yellow Jackets moved out to midfield and the Tigers forced 3rd & 16 but Tech QB scrambled for 15. Tech tried a trick play with a snap to the TE but the Tigers stuffed them. They Tigers took over at their 41.
The Tiger offense abandoned the run when they shouldn’t have and went 3 & out. The Yellow Jacket offense got some momentum going and moved out to their 34 as the 3rd quarter ended. They kept the momentum up when play resumed and moved down to the Tiger 2. They punched it in and then converted a 2-point try with horrible pass coverage by the Tigers. The score was 21-14 with 10 minutes left.
The Tiger drive started with a Tyler Brown jet sweep for 13. They moved on down the field and into Yellow Jacket territory. Cade had some effective runs and Wesco had a key catch down to the 12. A pass interference gave the Tigers 1st & goal at the 2. After an incomplete pass to Josh Sapp, Randall powered straight ahead for the score. The game was tied 21-21 with 3 minutes left. The defense would have to have a big series. Tech steadily moved down the field and kicked a 55-yard FG with no time left. The game was over and the Tigers were 1-2 on the season.
So, I think it’s now fair to say that the Tiger team some pundits were pushing as a championship winning team is not what they thought they were. Clemson has some serious deficiencies on offense, and even on defense which was supposed to be a big strength. Cade is just too up and down. The offensive line doesn’t push anyone around. Today the defense rarely got pressure on the QB on passing downs and they, just like last year, had fits with tackling a running QB. I hate to be a downer, but that’s what I see. How about you? Let us know in the comments below. See you next week.
