ESPN is sending a new broadcast crew to Death Valley for this weekend’s Rivalry Week showdown between the Clemson Tigers and South Carolina Gamecocks.
The broadcast crew of Roy Philpott (play-by-play) and Sam Acho (analyst) will have the call of Clemson vs. South Carolina from the booth. Taylor Davis will serve as the network’s sideline reporter.
Kickoff for Clemson vs. South Carolina is set for noon ET Saturday. The game will be televised on ESPN. It’s the first time this season that Philpott and Acho, who are in their first year working games together, will call a Clemson game.
Philpott is no stranger to Clemson fans. He’s been with ESPN since 2013 and before then was the editor and publisher of a Clemson news and recruiting website for several years. A Clemson graduate, Philpott also lent his voice to Tigers baseball and women’s basketball for the Clemson Athletic Network before joining ESPN.
Acho is a former defensive end/linebacker who starred with the Texas Longhorns from 2007-10 under Mack Brown before a nine-year career in the NFL with three teams, including the Arizona Cardinals and Chicago Bears. The Cardinals drafted Acho in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL Draft.
The Tigers (9-2 overall, 5-1 ACC) rose four spots to No. 12 in this week’s US LBM Coaches Poll following their 51-14 victory over The Citadel last week and after a plethora of teams ranked ahead of them lost. Cade Klubnik was 12-of-16 for 198 yards and three touchdowns in the Tigers’ romp over the Bulldogs. Antonio Williams (5 catches, 72 yards) caught two touchdowns, giving him four in the past two games.
South Carolina (8-3 overall, 5-3 SEC) is having one of its best seasons under coach Shane Beamer. The Gamecocks are ranked No. 14 in the Coaches Poll this week and have two Top 25 wins on their resume, beating then-No. 10 Texas A&M, 44-20, at Williams-Brice Stadium on Nov. 2 and then-No. 23 Missouri on Nov. 16.
Gamecocks quarterback LaNorris Sellers is third among SEC quarterbacks in rushing yards this season with 489 yards and five touchdowns on 139 carries (3.5 AVG). Sellers, a redshirt freshman, is eighth in passing yards among SEC quarterbacks with 2,110 yards and 17 touchdowns to six interceptions through the air. He has started all but one game for South Carolina.
The Tigers have won eight of the last nine games in the series, including last year’s 16-7 triumph in Columbia. South Carolina upset Clemson, 31-30, in the Gamecocks’ last visit to Memorial Stadium in November 2022, handing the Tigers their second loss of the season and squashing any remaining hopes Clemson had of reaching the four-team College Football Playoff.
Clemson leads the all-time series with South Carolina, 73-43-4. Dabo Swinney is 9-6 against the Gamecocks as Tigers head coach.
[lawrence-related id=30856,30842,30834]
Contact/Follow us @Clemson_Wire on X, and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Clemson Tigers news and notes, plus opinions.