Charles Dickens would have appreciated Clemson’s offensive effort Saturday night.
The acclaimed novelist started A Tale of Two Cities with that famous line, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” It might be cliche, but it accurately describes the Tigers’ ebbing and flowing in their 48-20 win over Louisiana Tech.
Clemson finished with a season-high 521 yards of offense with a rather balanced 241 yards through the air and 280 on the ground, the latter led by Will Shipley’s 11.5 yards-per-carry average. But unlike a week earlier against Furman when Clemson reached the end zone on five of its first six possessions, it took a while for the Tigers to get going.
At times, Uiagalelei and his supporting cast showed flashes of the new-and-improved unit they had been in the previous six quarters leading up to their final hurdle before that marquee ACC opener at Wake Forest next weekend. And other times, it looked 2021-ish.
“Lots of ups and downs, but overall I thought we had a really good game,” quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei said.
Both of Tech’s Power Five opponents have now gashed the Bulldogs’ defense, but Missouri, a team that was taken behind the woodshed by Kansas State a week later, opened the season by putting 52 points on Tech. Despite piling up nearly 240 yards in the first two quarters, Clemson had just 13 points at the half Saturday.
Part of the problem early was red-zone inefficiency. The Tigers made trips inside Tech’s 20-yard line on three of their first four possessions but had to end two of them with B.T. Potter field goals. Clemson also punted on half of its first-half possessions, mustering just 26 yards over 14 plays on the drives that didn’t end in points.
“Turn a couple of those field goals into touchdowns,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “There were a couple of more missed plays where we were just off that, for us to get to really get where we need to be, we’ll have to make a couple of more.”
Uiagalelei wasn’t as sharp early on as he was the previous week when he turned in his most efficient performance as a Clemson quarterback. There was the occasional drop that didn’t help, but Uiagalelei also wasn’t as crisp with his accuracy, including one ill-advised throw that would’ve been an interception had it not been dropped by a Tech defensive back.
Uiagalelei completed just 12 of his first 22 passes, and Clemson rarely called Shipley’s number in the first half despite him averaging 7 yards a pop in the first two quarters. He got just five carries in the first half, and Clemson held just a 10-point lead at the break.
“I know I was kind of pissed with the way we came out in the first half and just me missing a couple of throws,” Uiagalelei said.
That’s when things changed with the help of Clemson’s defense.
Despite yielding more than 300 yards passing, the Tigers forced four turnovers, including consecutive takeaways on Tech’s first two possessions of the third quarter. The first set Clemson up at Tech’s 32-yard line, and Shipley weaved his way through the Bulldogs’ defense for a house call on the next play.
“I felt like I went away from the run game a little bit too fast in the first half,” said offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter, who dialed up 25 run plays in the final two quarters that went for 193 yards. “We got back to that in the second half, and those guys rescinded up front. It was awesome to see.”
It was the start of three straight touchdown drives for the offense, which put together its longest of the night after Malcolm Greene intercepted Tech quarterback Parker McNeil in the red zone midway with 12 minutes, 8 seconds left in the third quarter. Shipley kept the drive alive near midfield with a 9-yard spurt on fourth-and-short, Uiagalelei found freshman Adam Randall for 11 yards on third-and-9 for another set of downs at the Bulldogs’ 21, and he later connected with tight end Davis Allen to convert another third down inside the 10.
Phil Mafah capped the 14-play, 90-play march with a 4-yard touchdown plunge as part of a 21-point third quarter for the Tigers. And after the defense set Uiagalelei and company up with another short field by getting a turnovers on downs, Uiagalelei put the proverbial nail in the Bulldogs’ coffin with a 32-yard scoring strike to Beaux Collins on the next play to give the Tigers a three-touchdown lead late in the third quarter.
“It was 13-3 (at halftime), but we knew that if we put some plays together that we’re going to bust it wide open,” Uiagalelei said. “And that’s exactly what we did.”
Clemson found the end zone on four of its final six possessions. The lone punts came at the end of drives led by freshman Cade Klubnik, who made his first appearance late in the third quarter. Uiagalelei completed five of his final seven passes to finish 17 of 29 for 221 yards and two touchdowns, and Shipley added 139 yards and two scores on just 12 carries.
“I thought we got better tonight even though we probably left another 100 yards out there on just a few plays that we missed. But good balance and made some good adjustments,” Swinney said. “They’ve had the opportunity to be successful. Last year, we had to manufacture a lot. This year, it’s there. We’ve just got to do it, but it’s there. Last year, it wasn’t always there.”
The Tigers ended the night averaging 7 yards per play and had its first turnover-free game of the season while getting in 74 plays. After the way things started, it’s some much-needed momentum for the unit with the schedule set to go up a notch in difficulty next week.
But there’s still work to do.
“We can be a really good group,” Swinney said. “We’re very much a work in progress, but we’re getting better. And I thought we closed the gap a little bit tonight.”
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