Tag: Clemson offense

Clemson crushes App State on historic night for Cade Klubnik

Cade Klubnik has historic night, leads No. 22 Clemson in rout over App State.

It was a coming out party — and then some — for the Clemson Tigers’ offense on Saturday night in Death Valley.

The 22nd-ranked Tigers found the end zone on their first eight possessions in a historic first-half performance en route to a 56-point half and a 66-20 victory over Appalachian State at Clemson Memorial Stadium.

Tigers quarterback Cade Klubnik started the night by completing his first 11 passes for 233 yards and three touchdown strikes. Before the night was done, he had accounted for a whopping seven touchdowns through the air and on the ground.

Klubnik’s explosion started when he hit freshman sensation Bryant Wesco on a perfectly delivered 76-yard bomb for a 7-0 lead after Nolan Hauser‘s extra point just a minute, 14 seconds into the game. That capped a three-play, 75 yard drive.

On Clemson’s next possession, Klubnik wasted no time driving his team back down the field. He hooked up with Wesco again, this time for a 51-yard gain that gave the Tigers 1st and goal at the App State 2-yard line. From there, the second-year starter at quarterback ran it in for a touchdown and a 14-0 lead.

Clemson’s third possession took only three plays as well, this time spanning 92 yards as tailback Phil Mafah broke an 83-yard touchdown run up the middle to make it 21-0.

Klubnik tacked on two more scores before the end of the first quarter, courtesy of a 41-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jake Briningstool that made it 28-0 with 2:34 left in the quarter and then a 29-yard touchdown to Antonio Williams with 1:11 remaining for a 35-0 lead.

All told, Klubnik was 11 of 11 for 233 yards and three touchdown passes in the first quarter alone. Wesco caught three balls for 130 yards. Clemson had a staggering 349 total yards and 13 first downs in the first period while holding possession of the ball for 6:43 compared to App State’s 8:17.

According to Clemson Sports Information, the 35 points were a school record for most in any first quarter and tied the school record for most points in any single quarter; the Tigers also 35 against Wake Forest in 1981, 35 against North Carolina in 2011, and 35 against Georgia Tech in 2020.

RELATED: Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik has a historic first half with seven touchdowns

Clemson found the end zone three more times in the second quarter, again thanks to Klubnik’s career night. He ran for his second touchdown on a 3-yard rush that made it 42-0 early in the period. Later, Klubnik hit freshman receiver TJ Moore for 33 yards and a touchdown that upped the lead to 49-7 lead.

Right before halftime, Klubnik connected with Briningstool again for a 17-yard strike — his fifth touchdown pass of the night. Clemson had a 56-10 lead after that and went into intermission leading 56-13.

According to ESPN Stats & Information, Klubnik is the first player at the FBS level with 5+ passing touchdowns, 2+ rushing touchdowns and a 90 percent completion rate in the last 25 years.

The Tigers closed the half with 525 total yards, with Klubnik 24 of 26 for 378 yards through the air and five more on the ground. He accounted for seven of the team’s eight touchdowns with nine different receivers catching passes, including Briningstool’s six catches for 95 yards.

Backup QB Christopher Vizzina took over in the second half and scored the Tigers’ ninth touchdown of the night on a 4-yard keeper with 3:10 to play in the third quarter to push the Tigers’ lead to 63-20. It was Vizzina’s first career college touchdown.

After App State’s fumbled the ensuing kickoff, Clemson tacked on a 36-yard field goal from Hauser with 1:51 left in the third.

Vizzina was 7 of 11 for 78 yards in the second half. Mafah finished with 10 carries on the ground for 118 yards, including his first-quarter touchdown. The Tigers finished the night with 28 first downs and 712 total yards to App State’s 24 first downs and 363 total yards.

It was just the seventh time in school history that Clemson finished with over 700 total yards. True freshman linebacker Sammy Brown led the Tigers’ defense in tackling (seven total, five solo).

With the win, the Tigers improved to 1-1. Clemson is idle next week before hosting NC State in Death Valley Sept. 21. Kickoff and broadcast information have not yet been announced. App State fell to 1-1.

How much is Georgia paying former Clemson OC Brandon Streeter?

How much will former Clemson Tigers offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter make in Athens?

The Georgia Bulldogs hired former Clemson Tigers offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter as a quality control coordinator. Being in an analyst-type role for a school such as Georgia or Alabama includes some humbling work even for well-qualified college football coaches like Streeter.

The Tigers fired Streeter, a former Clemson quarterback, in January. Clemson owes Streeter a $1.85 million buyout. The Tigers will not have to pay all of the buyout, though, because it is reduced by what he earns in his new role, which is set to be $70,000 this year with Georgia.

Clemson averaged 33.1 points per game in Streeter’s lone year as offensive coordinator, which was ranked No. 24 in the country (only including games with Football Bowl Subdivision schools). Clemson’s offense improved in 2022, but it was not enough for the Tigers to make the College Football Playoff despite playing in a relatively weak ACC.

The Tigers were coming off a rough offensive season in 2021 during which they scored only 24.4 points per game (only including games with FBS schools). Streeter helped Clemson’s scoring offense improve from No. 85 to No. 24.

Georgia has won back-to-back national championships, but is replacing offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who left for the Baltimore Ravens this offseason.

Head coach Kirby Smart and Georgia have already found a replacement for Monken: Mike Bobo. Bobo, who was an analyst last season, served as Georgia’s offensive coordinator during the Mark Richt era.

Streeter brings substantial experience to Athens and is another example of a former top coach coming to Athens to serve in an analyst or quality control role.

Georgia continues to have an excellent coaching staff continuity. On the defensive side of the football, the Bulldogs retained rising coaching talent Glenn Schumann this offseason.

Streeter spent one season as Clemson’s offensive coordinator. The Tigers improved in 2022 compared to 2021, but threw for just 99 passing yards in a loss to South Carolina that ended its playoff hopes. Dabo Swinney and Clemson hired former TCU offensive coordinator Garrett Riley after the season.

Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei talks with former Clemson offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter. Syndication: The Greenville News

Now, Streeter will look to gain knowledge at Georgia after spending a long time at Clemson. Streeter played at Clemson from 1997-1999. He served as recruiting coordinator and quarterbacks coach after returning to the Tigers in 2014.

Streeter, who is no stranger to quarterback position battles, coached talented quarterbacks like Trevor Lawrence and D.J. Uiagalelei during his time at Clemson. D.J. Uiagalelei competed with Cade Klubnik for much of last season at Clemson.

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Mayes gets starting role on O-line: ‘He’s been begging for a shot and he got it’

After left guard Marcus Tate suffered a season-ending knee injury in the win over Miami last Saturday, a new starter will be fulfilling his position for this week’s rivalry game versus South Carolina. Junior offensive lineman Mitchell Mayes has been …

After left guard Marcus Tate suffered a season-ending knee injury in the win over Miami last Saturday, a new starter will be fulfilling his position for this week’s rivalry game versus South Carolina. Junior offensive lineman Mitchell Mayes has been a guy for Clemson who can come in and fulfill many different positions on the offensive line.

Mayes, who started at right guard for Walker Parks when Parks was out versus Louisville, hasn’t seen much playing time as a starter during his time at Clemson, but at a critical point in the season, it is time for the North Carolina native to step into a starting role.

Alongside Mayes on the offensive line this week is teammate and roommate Jordan McFadden. McFadden, a fifth-year senior, assessed Mayes’ performance last week and also shared that he has seen a growth in him as of recently. Being his roommate has allowed McFadden to witness the work that he puts in, both on the field and in the film room.

“Mitchell is a guy who’s been here for a while. He hasn’t necessarily played as much, but when Walker was out, Mitchell came in and played well,” McFadden said. “With Marcus getting hurt in the first quarter, and Mitchell came in and played well, that’s what you want. He’s been begging for a shot and he got it, and to come in and play well and to prepare each week not knowing if you are going to play or not is tough. I give kudos to Mitchell for that, not knowing if he was going to play Saturday or not, but he came in and did what he was supposed to do, and it was exciting to kind of see the growth of Mitchell from when he first got here to now.”

McFadden also emphasized that Mayes is prepared to step up and assume the starting role this weekend.

“I could tell in his face that he was ready to go,” McFadden said. “He had prepared, and we live together so it’s easy to stay on him to make sure he’s watching tape or whatever. He takes it serious, whether it be recovery, the film room. He prepares each week as if he is a starter. Knowing he was coming in, I told him that he’s fine, he did it the week before. He goes against the best guys in the country each day in practice.”

Brandon Streeter also shared his perspective on Mayes assuming a more critical role on offense this Saturday. The offensive coordinator expressed that the more playing time Mayes gets, the more he trusts and feels confident in his abilities when he enters the game.

“He did really good against Louisville,” Streeter said. “He had some mistakes, but for the most part he was very productive against Louisville. First start, I’m sure he had a lot of pressure on him to perform well. He came over very well against Miami. Again, he just showed us that we can be very comfortable with him in there. He’s just gaining confidence each week. He has done very, very well each week. Excited about him getting more and more opportunities, and that’s what this program is about: next-man-up mentality. That’s what he’s been able to do.”

Tigers talk Uiagalelei’s response to criticism: ‘We wouldn’t be here without D.J.’

Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei has been the prime target of criticism when it comes to the woes of the Clemson offense over the course of the last two seasons. However, over and over again, the Clemson coaches and the entire team has praised …

Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei has been the prime target of criticism when it comes to the woes of the Clemson offense over the course of the last two seasons. However, over and over again, the Clemson coaches and the entire team has praised the signal caller’s poise under the microscope of criticism.

On Monday, the Tigers talked to the media about how the California native has developed such a high level of resilience over the past two years.

Tight end Jake Briningstool shared that he has a high level of respect for the starting quarterback. From the tight end’s perspective, Uiagalelei has led the offense and picked them up when adversity has come their way throughout the course of the season.

“It just comes with the position and all the criticism and everything that comes to it,” Briningstool said. “I think for D.J. especially, everything he has gone through over the past two years, year and a half, I think it has really bettered him and made him a better quarterback, a better teammate, a better leader. I think everything has just been for the positive.

“I love D.J., I would go to war for D.J., I would do anything for D.J. I think just being there for him, giving him his confidence, letting him know that it’s OK to make a mistake, we’ll have your back. I think that’s just really helped him up. We’ve picked him up when he’s needed it and he’s picked us up as an offense when we needed it. We wouldn’t be here without D.J.”

Senior offensive lineman Jordan McFadden believes that Uiagalelei’s ability to brush off the criticism and continue to put his head down is a testament to his character.

“I can honestly say that he hasn’t changed at all,” McFadden said. “When he’s playing, he’s the same person, but maybe when he’s not playing as good that day and that gives Cade (Klubnik) a shot, he’s that same guy. He’s supportive of Cade and the whole offense. He wants to see the offense and the team succeed whether he’s in there or not. As a leader, as a quarterback of the team, that’s tough to watch when you’re not leading the show or you’re not in there, but that speaks of what kind of guy he is. To understand he is maybe not playing his best, but supportive and leading, that tells you what kind of guy he is.

“He’s one of the best teammates I’ve ever played with. Just year in, year out, last year, this year, every game, whenever something goes wrong, he gets 90 percent or 100 percent of the criticism, but the majority of the time, it’s really not his fault, if we’re being honest.”

No one has more praise for Uiagalelei than Brandon Streeter, who shared that of course the quarterback has faced adversity, but that’s life. The offensive coordinator emphasized that in football, it’s all about how one responds to the adversity they face, and that’s something he believes Uiagalelei has done an excellent job at. When adversity has come the quarterback’s way, he has learned, grown and become the best version of himself.

“I can’t say enough about that kid, about D.J., and his heart, and his character, his perseverance,” Streeter said. “He has never wavered in his work ethic, and we saw some heavy adversity last year and then the best part about it is, you try to learn from the adversity and that’s what he’s been able to do. He’s had some adversity this year too, but he’s able to respond and that’s what life is about.”

Briningstool on rivalry game: ‘We’re going to be able to dominate’

Clemson tight end Jake Briningstool is a sophomore, but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t understand the intensity of this week’s rivalry game versus South Carolina. The Tennessee native spoke to the media on Monday and detailed the moment when he …

Clemson tight end Jake Briningstool is a sophomore, but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t understand the intensity of this week’s rivalry game versus South Carolina.

The Tennessee native spoke to the media on Monday and detailed the moment when he first realized that this rivalry game is unlike any other game the Tigers play all season.

“I would say just definitely last year,” he said. “Playing in the game one time before, kind of know what the mindset is going into it, kind of know it’s a little personal. I kind of know what it takes for this week and everything that goes into it. I think definitely playing in it last year just helps me out a lot this year. I just know what to expect. I’m definitely excited and we’re going to be able to dominate.”

Last year was a little bit different atmosphere than what the Tigers expect to experience on Saturday. For the first time since 2018, Clemson is back in Death Valley for a game against the Gamecocks, and the support of the fans could be a major difference maker in this game.

Briningstool explained that playing in Columbia last year, with the home crowd against them, was good preparation for this year.

“It’s a lot different playing there than playing here, but walking out having stuff thrown, people yelling stuff, it’s a whole different atmosphere being in Columbia as opposed to another ACC school,” he said. “I’m excited for the challenge and I think it will be another good game.”

The 6-foot-6, 230-pounder shared that this game feels more personal. There’s evidently more weight to it, not just for the fans, but for the players down on the field as well.

“I would say the environment and the atmosphere just got a little different feel to it, especially being a rivalry game,” he said. “And just down on the field, you just want to do your job a little more, you just want to get the guy across from you just a little bit more just for the sake of the rivalry and what it means to so many people.”

Although South Carolina’s games have been a little sporadic when it comes to consistent performances this season, the team is coming into this rivalry game riding sky high on confidence following the dominant defeat over No. 5 Tennessee last Saturday. Briningstool expressed that the Gamecocks’ confidence just makes this game more interesting and that’s something that he’s embracing.

“I think personally I love that they did that,” he said. “I think it makes them better for us and I think coming in here hot, with a sense of arrogance to them, I think that’s perfect for us. I think every week is the biggest game of the year and I think this week just has a little more to it and it’s a little more personal. We didn’t watch much of their game, kind of just caught the score, but I think seeing that, seeing how they really dominated the game and handled Tennessee, I think it’s more fun for our game and really just hypes it up even more.”

Turnover bug continues for Clemson despite dominant win over Miami

Ever since the come-from-behind win over Syracuse which featured four turnovers committed by Clemson, the team has just not been able to shake off the turnover bug. Even in the win over Louisville last week, the Tigers committed three turnovers. …

Ever since the come-from-behind win over Syracuse which featured four turnovers committed by Clemson, the team has just not been able to shake off the turnover bug.

Even in the win over Louisville last week, the Tigers committed three turnovers. Prior to this game, Clemson had an equivalent turnover margin with 14 turnovers and 14 takeaways, but the turnover trend for the Tigers is concerning at this stage of the season. In the 40-10 win over Miami on Saturday, Clemson was plagued by the turnover bug for the fourth consecutive game. 

The Tigers committed three turnovers in the win over Miami and with just two takeaways, the Tigers were unable to win the turnover margin for another game this season. Ultimately the turnovers did not prove to be a major factor in determining the outcome of the game, but it did not make Clemson’s offense look more polished in its performance over the course of all four quarters. 

The first turnover occurred in the second half, when in the third quarter Miami was able to get an interception. The other two turnovers came off fumble recoveries by Miami cornerback DJ Ivey and defensive lineman Jordan Miller. 

On the first play of the fourth quarter, Miller recovered the fumble and was able to pick up 26 yards on the recovery, which ultimately set the Hurricanes up for a touchdown just a few plays later.

These types of turnovers are something that has become a part of Clemson’s identity this season, and despite a dominant performance on both sides of the ball, the turnovers may have prohibited an even more dominant performance in the win over the Hurricanes.

Dear Old Clemson is excited to announce a limited edition football and poster signed by Clemson’s Avengers.

Now there is a new way you can support Clemson student-athletes. Purchase collectibles from Dear Old Clemson and the proceeds with go to support Clemson student-athletes. Visit Dear Old Clemson to find out how you can help!

Streeter asked how Tigers can get back to being ‘WRU’

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for the Clemson offense this season, but now at the final stretch of the season the pieces of the puzzle are coming together. Clemson, over the years, has been known for the exceptional talent it recruits at the …

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for the Clemson offense this season, but now at the final stretch of the season the pieces of the puzzle are coming together.

Clemson, over the years, has been known for the exceptional talent it recruits at the wide receiver position. However, this season, no player has reached 500 receiving yards yet. Instead this season, passes have been spread more evenly across the wide receivers, tight ends and running backs, which just serves to show that offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter is trying to diversify his offense.

Streeter spoke to the media on Monday and was asked for a program that prides itself on being “Wide Receiver U,” what he thinks has caused a lack of production at the receiver position and how the Tigers can get back to being WRU.

“I think number one is our tight end room is very, very good,” he said. “That is allowing us to spread the ball out, not just with the receivers, but I believe — I don’t even know if this is true or not — but I’m guessing our running backs have more catches than we have had in the past. Our tight ends I know have had more catches than they have had in the past. I love that about our offense, because now we can spread the ball around and not need it to be one or two or three just receivers that are making those plays.”

Streeter shared that the versatility and dynamic nature of his offense has actually kept defenders on their toes all season. The offensive coordinator shared why this season he is putting more emphasis on keeping defenders guessing.

“So, I think I really enjoy the fact that we are able to highlight different position groups and be able to have go-to plays for different types of guys,” he said. “We are always going to have great wide receivers here, there’s no question about it. But just being able to spread the ball around, I think it really keeps the defense guessing on where you’re trying to throw the football and they can’t focus in on one or two guys, because we have several guys who are very close as far as receptions.”

Uiagalelei talks how energy shift helped propel Clemson to win

After a tough loss on the road to Notre Dame, all eyes were on how Clemson would respond to adversity. With the spotlight cast upon quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, there was some pressure to see how he could lead this offense out of the hole it was …

After a tough loss on the road to Notre Dame, all eyes were on how Clemson would respond to adversity. With the spotlight cast upon quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, there was some pressure to see how he could lead this offense out of the hole it was left in following the loss to the Irish. However, the junior signal caller displayed why he’s the starting quarterback for the Tigers in the 31-16 win over the Cardinals.

Uiagalelei spoke to the media after the win over Louisville and was candid that in the previous two games, he was not playing to the standard that he expects of himself.

“I haven’t been playing where I want to play at,” he said, “and the biggest thing for me is to go out there and just play my game, just go out there and have fun, have some joy and cut it loose.”

However, the strength of a great team lies in how it responds to adversity, and that’s exactly what the Tigers had to do coming into the game this week. Uiagalelei reflected on how the energy the team brought to practice this week seamlessly translated into its performance in the game.

“I thought we responded good,” he said. “I felt like we had a good week of practice. I felt like we came out and responded well. I felt like we played hard and that was the biggest thing. I felt like we played real hard. I thought everyone out there was out there playing and having fun. At the end of the day, I thought we were physical and we came out there and dominated.”

“I think the biggest thing was to come out here and I definitely think we wanted to play good tonight and we definitely wanted to play great,” he added. “We wanted to come out here and dominate and try to get back on track for how we play offense.”

According to the signal caller, energy is everything. From practice to the win over Louisville, the team brought the energy this week and that made all the difference in the quarterback’s eyes. Going forward, Uiagalelei emphasized the importance of harnessing this type of energy and preparation for the final stretch of the season.

“It definitely was a great week,” he said. “The biggest thing was the energy was up. The energy was great. Everyone was executing well. We have energy and people out there want to practice, that’s the biggest thing. For us, we will be able to harness that and keep that going. We just need to see when we put weeks together like that, with that type of energy, that type of preparation, that type of focus, then the sky’s the limit for us.”

Dear Old Clemson is excited to announce a limited edition football and poster signed by Clemson’s Avengers.

Now there is a new way you can support Clemson student-athletes. Purchase collectibles from Dear Old Clemson and the proceeds with go to support Clemson student-athletes. Visit Dear Old Clemson to find out how you can help!

McFadden on loss to Notre Dame: ‘It almost didn’t feel real at times’

After the loss to Notre Dame on the road, Clemson returned home with an 8-1 record and a lot to figure out on both sides of the ball. With only 281 yards on offense in the loss, nothing seemed to be clicking the entire night. Even the effectiveness …

After the loss to Notre Dame on the road, Clemson returned home with an 8-1 record and a lot to figure out on both sides of the ball. With only 281 yards on offense in the loss, nothing seemed to be clicking the entire night. Even the effectiveness of the run game that we’ve seen this season was just not working for the Tigers, as they had their worst rushing performance of the season against the Irish.

Offensive lineman Jordan McFadden spoke to the media on Monday and expressed his shock at Saturday’s performance. As a veteran on the team, McFadden gave his perspective about what he believes went wrong in the game.

“It’s definitely about studying the tape,” he said. “Saturday’s game came as a shock to me. I feel like we prepared well. I feel like guys were locked in all week. I felt like before the game, guys seemed super locked in and everything like that. So, it was kind of, you know, a shock. It almost didn’t feel real at times.”

The South Carolina native was candid when reflecting on the game and didn’t shy away expressing his disappointment with the team’s overall performance against the Irish.

“We’re definitely disappointed,” he said. “Not what we prepared for, not what we worked all season for or offseason for, definitely not the outcome we wanted. There’s nothing we can go back and do now to change it.”

McFadden questioned what factors may have contributed to the poor offensive showing and ultimately he believes it came down to the unit’s cohesion. He felt like even if 10 guys did everything right, one guy just wasn’t on the same page, and we saw that lack of cohesion reflect in the outcome of the game.

“I feel like when we have mistakes or when we stall out or when we don’t finish drives, it’s because maybe 10 people are doing what they’re supposed to be doing and one person is not doing the right thing,” he said.

The graduate senior shared where the mindset of the offense is now. Sometimes it may be hard to sweep a loss like the one on Saturday under the rug, but McFadden emphasized the importance of redirecting the team’s focus to the next task at hand, which is facing a dynamic Louisville team in Death Valley this weekend.

“Definitely, I’d be lying if I said that we didn’t want to make it to the playoffs,” he said, “but I think right now our focus is getting back on track beating Louisville. I think if we win out, things will take care of itself.”

Uiagalelei says confidence is still ‘sky high’ after loss

After the worst offensive performance of the season in the loss to Notre Dame on Saturday, quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei spoke to the media after the game and offered his take on where the team is in terms of confidence. The junior signal-caller …

After the worst offensive performance of the season in the loss to Notre Dame on Saturday, quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei spoke to the media after the game and offered his take on where the team is in terms of confidence.

The junior signal-caller described his confidence as “sky high” despite having the lowest total yards on offense (281) all season.

“Same confidence I’ve had all season,” he said. “I would rather die with these guys in the offense — my offensive line, my running backs, my tight ends, my receivers, coach (Brandon) Streeter. I would rather die with everyone on the offensive staff. The confidence is sky high. I believe in the offense and we all believe in ourselves. We have a great offense and we have to continue to show that and next week will be a good week.”

Some may question where the quarterback is mentally after being benched late in the third quarter to bring in true freshman Cade Klubnik for one drive, but Uiagalelei insists he was locked in and would do whatever the team needed him to do in that moment.

“The mindset don’t change,” he said. “Whenever we come out of the game, we want to be the biggest supporter I can to my brother Cade. He’s going to be great. It all happens, quarterbacks, we all make mistakes, but he’s going to be a great ball player. Biggest thing I love about Cade is he’s aggressive, he’s a baller. He’s a young player, he’s a freshman, but he’s going to be great. I told him he’s going to have a great career.”

 The California native was already trying to shake the loss and emphasized to the media that this loss will test the resilience of the Clemson program. The quarterback referenced the 4-3 start to last season, and in that moment they had to decide the fate of the remainder of the season.

With a loss to Notre Dame, Clemson’s record moves to 8-1, but Uiagalelei insisted that the goals the team set out to accomplish at the beginning of the season still stand and ultimately how the team chooses to respond to this adversity will dictate their fate.

“We have a great team,” he said. “Today sucks, but you have to respond. We got the right makeup of the team that’s going to come back and respond, and that’s what you have to do. At the end of the day, you’re either going to starve or you’re going to go out there and eat, and we have to go out there and eat.”