Tag: Jonathan Weitz

Khalil Barnes and Jonathan Weitz earn ACC Player of the Week Honors

Two Tigers were excellent against South Carolina, earning ACC Player of the Week honors.

CLEMSON, S.C. — The Atlantic Coast Conference announced today that Clemson safety Khalil Barnes (Defensive Back of the Week) and placekicker Jonathan Weitz (Special Teams Player of the Week) have both earned ACC Player of the Week honors in their respective categories for their performances in Clemson’s 16-7 rivalry win against South Carolina on Saturday.

The pair of selections pushes Clemson’s total number of ACC weekly honors this season to 13. Clemson has garnered a total of 578 ACC weekly honors since 1968.

The selections are the first in the careers of both Barnes and Weitz. Barnes becomes Clemson’s second Defensive Back of the Week selection this year and its second in the last two weeks, joining Nate Wiggins’ accolade for his performance against North Carolina a week earlier. Weitz becomes Clemson’s second Special Teams Player of the Week this season following punter Aidan Swanson’s honor for his work against Notre Dame in early November.

Against South Carolina, Barnes posted four tackles, two pass breakups, a 42-yard fumble return touchdown and one interception. Barnes recorded the fumble return and the interception on back-to-back offensive plays by South Carolina on the Gamecocks’ second and third plays of the game, becoming the first Clemson player to record a takeaway on consecutive plays from scrimmage since Brian Dawkins against Duke in 1995.

Barnes became the first Clemson player with a fumble recovery and an interception in the same game since Dorian O’Daniel at Virginia Tech in 2017. It marked the first time a Clemson player had two takeaways in a game since Andrew Booth Jr. recorded two interceptions on the same field in a win against South Carolina in 2021. Barnes became only the second FBS player — and the only FBS freshman — to record three or more interceptions, multiple forced fumbles and a scoop-and-score this season.

Weitz finished 3-for-3 on field goals to account for the final margin of victory in Clemson’s nine-point win over its rival. He converted field goal attempts of 50, 49 and 42 yards after entering the evening with a career long of 41. His three field goals of 40-plus yards tied a school record, shared by Bob Paulling (vs. North Carolina in 1982), Nelson Welch (vs. NC State in 1991), Mark Buchholz (vs. Wake Forest in 2007) and Chandler Catanzaro (vs. Troy in 2011).

Weitz’ career-long 50-yard field goal in the first quarter was Clemson’s longest field goal since a 52-yarder by B.T. Potter in the 2022 ACC Championship Game. The 50-yarder came in the same stadium as the first 50-yard field goal in Clemson history, a 52-yarder by Eddie Seigler against South Carolina in 1971.

–Via Clemson Athletic Communications

Social media reacts: Jonathan Weitz’s huge day leads to Clemson taking down South Carolina

Jonathan Weitz was Clemson’s MVP in their win over South Carolina.

Dabo Swinney and the Tigers got revenge for last season’s loss to South Carolina, taking down the Gamecocks 16-7 on the road at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia behind an excellent kicking performance from Jonathan Weitz. 

Heading into this matchup, Clemson had struggled with field goals all season. Week after week, the Tigers felt the need to go for it on fourth down as they were simply not hitting their field goals. That was not the case against South Carolina. 

Showing faith in Weitz, Swinney trotted the kicker out on the field for some huge kicks, all of which he hit. Weitz hit a 50, 49, and 42-yard field goal, putting points on the board when Clemson’s offense struggled. 

Here is a look at how Twitter/X reacted to Weitz’s huge performance.

Five takeaways from Clemson’s revenge win over South Carolina

Here are five takeaways from a sweet revenge win for Clemson over South Carolina.

Dabo Swinney and the Tigers got revenge for last season’s loss to South Carolina, taking down the Gamecocks 16-7 on the road at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia; a great nice for the program and the fan base.

There was some good and some bad in the performance, with the Clemson offense struggling mightily and the Clemson defense carrying the offense to a win. Not every win will be incredibly impressive, and a win over your bitter rivals is tough to complain about.

This win had a lot to unpack, from a surprising MVP performance to a coach who has proven his worth this season. Here are five takeaways from Clemson’s revenge win over South Carolina.

Clemson ends South Carolina’s season with a 16-7 rivalry win

Clemson’s defense dominates as the Tigers take down their rivals on the road, ending their season.

Dabo Swinney and Clemson got revenge from last season’s loss, as the Tigers took down South Carolina 16-7 on the road at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia.

It was a dominant defensive performance from Wes Goodwin’s defense, which wreaked havoc for nearly the entirety of the game. No matter what Gamecocks’ starting quarterback Spencer Rattler tried to do, the Tigers’ defense made his day a long one.

The defense scored Clemson’s only touchdown of the game, with freshman safety Khalil Barnes picking up a fumble and taking it for a 42-yard scoop and score. He added an interception on the Gamecocks’ next offensive play. Overall, South Carolina had 169 yards and was completely shut down.

Clemson’s offense had a similar struggle to the Gamecocks, having a nonexistent passing game. Starting quarterback Cade Klubnik completed 15-27 passes for 100 yards, struggling to make much happen as the Tigers’ wide receivers struggled to catch the ball.

The Tigers run game was the lone bright spot on offense, running for 206 yards. Phil Mafah led the way with 89 yards, with Will Shipley adding 80 of his own.

The MVP of the game was Clemson kicker Jonathan Weitz, who looked like a completely different player against the Gamecocks. After entering the game struggling, Weitz hit a 50, 49, and 42-yard field goal. He and the defense carried this team to a win.

Clemson will now wait to hear where they will head for a bowl game, as South Carolina’s season has come to an end.

5 Clemson players to watch vs. Wake Forest for Homecoming

Here are five players to watch for Clemson’s Homecoming matchup against Wake Forest.

Clemson will host Wake Forest at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, and several Tigers will be under the spotlight for Clemson’s Homecoming game.

Last Week against Syracuse, we saw multiple Tigers step up when the team needed it most. From two freshmen phenoms to veterans in the Clemson secondary, this team did exactly what they needed to earn their first ACC win and shut out the noise on the road against a tough Syracuse team.

Wake Forest poses a different challenge, which the Tigers can handle. Here are five Clemson players to keep a close eye on when the Tigers take on the Demon Deacons:

Clemson kicker rejoins team as grad student, makes first career FG

What a wild story in college football.

Clemson kicker Jonathan Weitz made a routine 30-yard field goal for the first points of Saturday’s game against Florida State.

The distance doesn’t convey how unlikely the kick was.

Weitz served as Clemson’s backup kicker for four years and graduated this past year. With a job waiting for him in New York, he left the program — but he remained a Clemson student as he pursued his Master’s degree.

Last week, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney asked him to rejoin the team. When he trotted out against the Seminoles, it was his first career field-goal attempt for the Tigers. He drilled it through the uprights with his family in attendance.

For more Clemson news, analysis, and opinions, go to Clemson Wire.

5 Clemson players to watch closely vs. Florida State

Here are five Clemson players to keep a close eye on when the Tigers take on No. 4 Florida State on Saturday.

Clemson will play in a high-stakes game on Saturday when it takes on No. 4 Florida State at noon in Memorial Stadium.

Dating back to 2015, the Tigers have won the last seven matchups against the Seminoles.

While history is on Clemson’s side, there is a reason the Seminoles are the favorites to win on the road on Saturday, as they defeated then-ranked No. 5 LSU in Week 1 and are 3-0 on the year.

“You’ve got two great teams, two great programs and a rivalry game early in the season. So this is Clemson-Florida State at its best right here for sure,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said on Tuesday. “This is a great football team we’re getting ready to play. Every sense of the word.”

Here are five Clemson players to keep a close eye on when the Tigers and Seminoles kick off:

Dabo Swinney names Jonathan Weitz Clemson’s starting kicker against Florida State

Dabo Swinney made a big move, bringing back former walk-on kicker Jonathan Weitz to take over kicking duties against Florida State.

Have you ever sat on the couch watching your Clemson Tigers and thought they could use your help?

Well for former walk-on kicker Jonathan Weitz, that is exactly what happened. After Robert Gunn III missed three of his first four kicks of the season, it is time for a new strategy. Dabo Swinney did the unthinkable just days ahead of their Week 4 matchup with Florida State. It felt like something had to happen.

Weitz was not with the team this season but is enrolled in Clemson’s master’s program. Taking note that Weitz was still a part of the university, Swinney wasted no time calling Weitz and bringing him back to the team to kick.

During a press conference Tuesday, Swinney confirmed that Weitz is back on the team and will be Clemson’s field goal kicker for this Week when they host No. 4 Florida State Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

We went to the bullpen and called him off the beach,” Swinney said.

This is major for the Tigers, who now have a new kicker heading into arguably their biggest game of the season. Former starting placekicker Robert Gunn was just 1-4 kicking field goals this season, with Swinney feeling they needed some experience at the position.

“Honestly, we just needed a little bit of maturity there. I guess that would be the right word,” Swinney said. “I have not lost any confidence in Robert Gunn at all.

“He is just a young player, a freshman, that has to kind of work himself through it all. His kickoffs are amazing. He has been unbelievable there, but he has just been in a little bit of a funk. It really started in the Duke game. He was amazing all fall camp. Everyone thinks they can do it and it is easy. This is a great kid who really cares a lot, but sometimes you just need to catch your breath.”

Weitz was a walk-on from 2019-2022 who has experience with the team but little in-game experience. He was 3-3 in his career with extra points and kicked off ten times for the Tigers.

“He was pretty shocked to get a call from me on Sunday,” Swinney said. It is either going to be a great story, or it is going to be terrible. It is not going to be anything in between. He’s got a boss up in New York, probably pissed off at me.”

Something to note is the confidence Swinney has in Weitz. He would not be making a move like this if he didn’t feel it was necessary.

“He is not just a guy off the street. He is right now, but he was in our program for four years,” Swinney said. “He was the backup the last two years. He was a good backup, but we just happened to have BT Potter.”

It is a massive change for Clemson at a critical time in the season.