Joseph Ngata – Page 12 – Syndication Server

TCI confirms Clemson starter out against Pitt

Clemson’s offense has been dealt another blow ahead of the Tigers’ game against Pittsburgh. This particular hit is out wide. Joseph Ngata is in COVID-19 protocols and will miss Saturday’s game against the Panthers, a source has confirmed to TCI. …

Clemson’s offense has been dealt another blow ahead of the Tigers’ game against Pittsburgh. This particular hit is out wide.

Joseph Ngata is in COVID-19 protocols and will miss Saturday’s game against the Panthers, a source has confirmed to TCI. Ngata is the second starter the Tigers have lost in as many weeks for that reason.

Center Hunter Rayburn missed the Syracuse game and will also be out Saturday, putting sophomore Mason Trotter in line for his second straight start.

It’s also another blow to a receiving corps that’s dealt with its share of injuries. E.J. Williams, who recently underwent a knee scope, missed the Syracuse game while Frank Ladson (groin) was categorized as day to day earlier this week by Clemson coach Dabo Swinney.

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For Swinney, this particular offensive issue is ‘beyond frustrating’

Dabo Swinney was a receiver during his playing days at the University of Alabama. He began his coaching career instructing that position and still works often with Clemson’s receivers during practice. So it’s easy to understand why there’s a …

So it’s easy to understand why there’s a particular inconsistency within Clemson’s offense that’s eating at him.

Two days after the Tigers’ narrow win at Syracuse, Clemson’s coach lamented more dropped passes by the receivers. Swinney doubled down on his belief that it was D.J. Uiagalelei’s best game to this point after the sophomore quarterback completed 21 of 34 passes with a touchdown and no picks, his highest completion rate since completing 72% against Georgia Tech on Sept. 18.

It was also a season-high in completions for him, but there could’ve been more had Clemson’s receivers caught more passes that were as consistently accurate as they’ve been all season.

“It’s beyond frustrating,” Swinney said. “We’ve actually practiced well. It’s incredibly frustrating. Early on, we were missing plays and now the quarterback is putting the ball on the money.”

Swinney said he counted five drops after reviewing the tape of Friday’s game. They started on Clemson’s second possession when Justyn Ross broke wide open near midfield. Uiagalelei stepped up in the pocket to avoid some pressure before hitting Ross between the numbers with a pass, but Ross couldn’t snag the ball as he fell to the turf in pain. He limped off after the play but later returned to finish the game.

“That’s going to be a 50- or 60-yard play. There was nobody around Ross,” Swinney said. “I thought D.J. did a great job in the pocket sliding, and Ross just kind of stepped funny and kind of lost his focus on the ball.”

Joseph Ngata made an extending 19-yard catch for Clemson’s first touchdown while Ross also had a leaping, acrobatic catch near the goal line to set up the Tigers’ second score late in the first half. But Ross had another drop on the first possession of the third quarter that would’ve bailed the Tigers out on third-and-16 after a botched snap earlier in the drive. Ngata had a drop or two as well.

“It’s very frustrating because I know we’re better than that,” Swinney said. “We’ve got to finish.

“We’re making some. We’re just not being as consistent as we’re accustomed to around here. And so we’re just kind of in a little bit of a funk there. We’ve just got to keep working our way through it.”

And while the drops may be the most noticeable to the naked eye, they’re not the only area in which the receivers have struggled with consistency. Blocking on the perimeter has been an issue at times, which again showed up against Syracuse.

There were some blocks made that helped spring chunk plays on the edge, but there were also some breakdowns that assisted in killing drives. On their first possession, the Tigers got a screen out to tight end Davis Allen, but Ajou Ajou, getting his first career start, never got a hand on cornerback Garrett Williams, who shot into the backfield to drop Allen for a loss.

“We literally don’t even touch him. We took the play off,” Swinney said. “That’s frustrating, and we’ve got to get that corrected. That’s on us as coaches. Period.”

Uiagalelei connected with Davis on another pass for 13 yards early in the fourth quarter, but a hold on Ross brought the play back to a 3-yard gain. Swinney said there were times when the blocking was good but also other instances where receivers failed to execute blocking assignments.

Swinney again pointed the finger inward when it comes to fixing those kinds of mishaps that are playing a part in keeping Clemson’s offense from establishing any sort of rhythm.

“The effort was great, but our technique has to be better,” Swinney said. “We had a missed assignment on a quick pitch to the left. Both receivers are supposed to be cracking, and we’ve got one that goes down and blocks the safety. Again, that’s on us as coaches to get us better.”

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Clemson reaches into bag of tricks for ‘huge game-changer’

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Clemson’s offense continues to do its part in making sure the Tigers play the same game each week, and that’s not a good thing. A week after seemingly taking a couple of steps forward against Boston College (438 total yards), the …

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Clemson’s offense continues to do its part in making sure the Tigers play the same game each week, and that’s not a good thing.

A week after seemingly taking a couple of steps forward against Boston College (438 total yards), the Tigers went backward against Syracuse on Friday in a win that was once again too close for comfort. Clemson (4-2, 3-1 ACC) again failed to reach the 20-point mark against an FBS opponent, mustering just 319 yards and failing to get out of its own way at times with penalties, drops and missed assignments that again left it up to the nation’s second-best scoring defense to bail the Tigers out.

It wasn’t until Syracuse’s Andrew Szmyt sent a 48-yard field goal wide left with 38 seconds left that the Tigers could breathe yet another sigh of relief in their 17-14 win. It was their fourth straight one-possession game and third victory decided by six points or less.

But a couple of quarters earlier, with a somewhat promising drive going, the Tigers reached into their bag of tricks for a play that ultimately helped them prevail.

“The fake punt was huge,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said.

With Clemson facing fourth-and-5 from Syracuse’s 41-yard line with 1 minutes, 10 seconds left in the second quarter, Swinney called a timeout to think it over. He ultimately decided to send the punt team out kick it away. Or so he let on.

“I was coming off the sideline, and I was pissed,” quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei said. “I was like, ‘Dang, why the heck aren’t we going for it?’ Coach Swinney, he wouldn’t tell nobody.”

The only other people that knew were punter Will Spiers, his protectors and his gunners, who had been practicing this particular fake all season, Swinney said. The formation, though, seemed to indicate something was up.

Receiver Joseph Ngata lined up off the ball to the boundary behind three potential blockers, including tight end Davis Allen. After the snap, Ngata looked toward Spiers as if he was supposed to be the intended receiver. Only that wasn’t the case.

Spiers faked a pass to Ngata as Allen, who initially acted like he was blocking, leaked out of the formation down the sideline. Syracuse didn’t bite on the pump fake, but Spiers let Allen matriculate down the field and heaved a pass his way anyway.

Clemson punter Will Spiers (48) throws a pass on a fake punt play against Syracuse during the 1st half at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y. Friday, Oct. 15, 2021 Bart Boatwright/The Clemson Insider

Syracuse cornerback Garrett Williams had Allen covered, but the 6-foot-6, 250-pounder extended over Williams to haul in a 17-yard pass to keep the drive alive.

“I just felt like we had it set up,” Swinney said. “And it was just a matter of making the right type of throw, and (Spiers) did. And Davis went up and finished the play.”

Of course, Spiers being a former high school quarterback gives Swinney more comfort in making that call. Uiagalelei said Spiers, who also serves as Clemson’s emergency signal caller, slings the ball around during seven-on-seven drills in the summer.

“That was a dime, man,” Uiagalelei said. “That was a huge game-changer.”

It’s the second straight season the Tigers have successfully pulled off a fake punt against Syracuse. Without it, Clemson may have been lamenting a loss late Friday night instead of discussing a win.

Seven plays after Spiers’ completion, the Tigers went up 14-7 on Kobe Pace’s 2-yard touchdown run in the final seconds of the second quarter. It put Clemson in position to take a two-score lead on B.T. Potter’s 40-yard field goal with 9:22 left in the fourth quarter, a cushion the Tigers needed after Syracuse made things interesting late.

“It was a big play for us,” Swinney said.

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Ngata puts Clemson on the board with acrobatic catch

The Tigers are finally on the board. After an anemic first quarter, Clemson responded with an impressive touchdown drive, capped off by a highlight-reel catch, courtesy of Joseph Ngata. B.T. Potter drilled the extra point to give Clemson a 7-0 lead …

The Tigers are finally on the board.

After an anemic first quarter, Clemson responded with an impressive touchdown drive, capped off by a highlight-reel catch, courtesy of Joseph Ngata.

B.T. Potter drilled the extra point to give Clemson a 7-0 lead and finish off a 12-play, 87-drive that lasted 6 minutes and 57 seconds.

On that drive, Clemson averaged 6.2 yards per play, relying on 38 passing yards, 24 rushing yards and 30 penalty yards. Syracuse was called for two personal fouls, including a late hit on Phil Mafah.

Ngata’s 19-yard touchdown catch marked the first time that a Clemson receiver other than Justyn Ross has hauled in a touchdown reception this season.

Clemson’s drive was jumpstarted by a Tyler Venables interception, which came deep in the Tigers’ own territory.

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Grading Clemson’s offense through the first half of the season

Clemson won’t officially hit the halfway point on its 12-game regular season until after its game at Syracuse next week, but it’s close enough. With an open date to take a step back and evaluate where the Tigers are as a team, TCI is handing out …

Let’s hand out some grades for each position on offense through five games:

Quarterback

D.J. Uiagalelei entered this season with plenty of hype taking over the offense after Trevor Lawrence, the No. 1 overall draft pick. It came not only from the fact Uiagalelei was a former five-star recruit himself but also because of his breakout performances against Boston College and Notre Dame in his spot starts last season. But the first half of this season has served as a jarring reminder that he’s still a young player figuring things out just seven starts into his college career.

In terms of pure arm talent, Uiagalelei may be the best Clemson has ever had during the Dabo Swinney era. There’s not a throw on the field the 6-foot-5, 247-pounder can’t make, but consistently finding the mark on those throws has been another story. That doesn’t mean he hasn’t been efficient at times (65% completion rate in wins over South Carolina and Georgia Tech), but Uiagalelei is last in the ACC — and 105th nationally — with a completion percentage of 54.3% largely because of a lack of accuracy and touch on the intermediate-to-deep throws. To be fair, the lack of a consistent running game has kept the pressure on Uiagalelei on the receivers to constantly produce, but Clemson ran the ball as well as it has all season last week against Boston College, resulting in more man coverage on the outside. But Uiagalelei misfired on every deep shot and left some points on the field.

Uiagalelei has gradually been used more in the running game and has provided a spark there (21 carries for 113 yards the last two games combined). But as Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said, Uiagalelei simply has to start connecting with his receivers down the field when those opportunities are there if the offense is going to do its part in keeping Clemson in the ACC title race going forward. Grade: C

Running back

Not only are the Tigers feeling the impact of Travis Etienne’s loss, but there’s attrition that’s affecting the backfield as well. There’s not a back on the roster with the same kind of skill set as Etienne, and the one that might be the closest, true freshman Will Shipley, is out for the time being. Meanwhile, Clemson’s most experienced back, Lyn-J Dixon, isn’t around anymore either after choosing to leave the program three games into the season.

That’s left sophomore Kobe Pace and another true freshman, Phil Mafah, as the primary backs. Darien Rencher and Michel Dukes are also around, but they haven’t been used much outside of the South Carolina State game. The blocking in front of them has been iffy, but the youth has shown up with some missed holes and cutbacks. The pass protection has been solid for the most part, though, and Pace had a career game with 125 yards on 18 carries against Boston College. Mafah also had 58 yards on just eight carries in his collegiate debut, an encouraging sign for a running game that needs to get going. Grade: C+

Receivers and tight ends

Justyn Ross hasn’t made every play (there was that drop in overtime against North Carolina Stated before that strange last play), but Clemson’s top wideout has been solid in his return from spinal fusion surgery. He leads the Tigers with 23 receptions, three of those going for scores. And a healthy Joseph Ngata has flashed all of that potential coaches have been talking about in the former five-star recruit. Ngata has been the Tigers’ most explosive pass-catcher at 19.6 yards per reception.

But nobody else still on the roster has caught a touchdown this season. Tight end Davis Allen is Clemson’s third-leading receiver, and the Tigers haven’t utilized their tight ends a ton in the passing game. Braden Galloway, known more as Clemson’s receiving tight end, has just four catches for 14 yards, and he’s now dealing with concussion. Receivers Frank Ladson (groin) and E.J. Williams (hand/knee) are also dealing with injuries. Blocking on the perimeter has been spotty, too.

Uiagalelei’s inaccuracy at times has played a factor. So has the way defenses have played the Tigers. But Clemson has struggled to get other receivers involved, something that needs to change going forward. Grade: B-

Offensive line

Tackles Jordan McFadden and Walker Parks have been solid on the edges, but it’s been a rough go for Clemson’s retooled group as a whole through five games. With two new starters joining three returning starters — two of which (McFadden and Matt Bockhorst) are transitioning to different positions than they played last season — Clemson has yet to settle on a five it’s comfortable with. The Tigers have already tried three different starting combinations up front, but missed assignments and a lack of push in the running game have plagued the unit.

Clemson ranks 117th nationally in total offense and 83rd in rushing at 146 yards per game, a number that was below 127 on average before last week. The line had perhaps its best performance against Boston College, paving the way for 231 rushing yards and 438 total yards. With Will Putnam injured, the Tigers found maybe their best interior combination with Bockhorst moving back to guard and Hunter Rayburn repping at center.

Bockhorst could go back to left guard (where he played last season) when Putnam returns to the starting lineup on the right side, something Swinney is hopeful will happen when the Tigers return to action at Syracuse. There’s some time to evaluate that with that game not being played until Oct. 15, but the line improved its grade with its latest performance. Grade: C-

Overall

With some new players at key positions, Clemson’s offense has looked borderline dysfunctional at times, performing far below the standard set by many of the Tigers’ offenses over the last decade. Was Boston College a turning-the-corner moment? The offensive line needs to settle on its best five, the running game needs more consistency and Uiagalelei and his receivers need to make plays when they’re there through the air. There’s loads of talent and potential. Now it’s a matter of putting it all together. Grade: C

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Where has the explosion gone in Clemson’s offense?

Clemson’s offense has grown accustomed in recent years to going big, but the Tigers haven’t looked anything like their normal self on that side of the ball so far this season. A closer look at the stats sheds some light on why. No. 7 Clemson (2-1, …

Clemson’s offense has grown accustomed in recent years to going big, but the Tigers haven’t looked anything like their normal self on that side of the ball so far this season.

A closer look at the stats sheds some light on why.

No. 7 Clemson (2-1, 1-0 ACC) has been one of the more explosive teams in the country over the last three seasons, averaging more than 40 points and 500 yards with Trevor Lawrence running the show. Through the first three games of this one, the Tigers are on pace for their lowest offensive production since 2017 when they averaged 33.3 points and 429.6 yards.

This year’s offense would kill for those numbers.

Clemson is averaging the fewest yards (322.7 per game) and scoring the second-fewest points in the ACC (22 per game) in large part because the chunk plays have been virtually non-existent. Out of the 14 teams in its league, nobody has fewer plays of at least 10 yards (32) and plays of at least 20 yards (eight) than Clemson, which is averaging just 4.8 yards per play.

That’s down from the 6.7 yards the Tigers averaged on each snap last season. Other areas Clemson has seen a precipitous dropoff from last season? 4.02 yards per rush (down from 4.49), 9.43 yards per completion (down from 12.8) and just 5.6 yards per pass attempt (down from 8.5), the latter being the lowest in the league.

It’s all played a part in the Tigers’ offense reaching the end zone just nine times so far, putting them on pace for 36 touchdowns over a full 12-game regular season. For comparison’s sake, that’s a little more than half of the 62 last year’s offense produced in the same number of games.

And the Tigers have had to work for most of those. Only five of Clemson’s scoring drives have been fewer than nine plays, and four of those came against FCS foe South Carolina State in the Tigers’ only comfortable win to this point. On one of those, they had to cover just 11 yards after a 51-yard punt return by Will Taylor set the offense up with a short field late in the first quarter.

Clemson’s average scoring drive against FBS competition this season has lasted 10 plays. The Tigers’ longest play to this point? A 38-yard completion to Joseph Ngata, which was a short pass he turned into a big gainer after the catch. Clemson’s longest run? 15 yards.

Yet there are a few reasons the Tigers aren’t panicking just yet.

“I can assure you we don’t stink,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “We’re going to be all right.”

Much like that 2017 season — Clemson’s first time dealing with life after Deshaun Watson and Wayne Gallman — the Tigers are starting over with personnel at key positions. D.J. Uiagalelei is going through his first full season as Lawrence’s successor at quarterback while the Tigers’ youth movement at running back has gotten even younger. Clemson started the season with senior Lyn-J Dixon, sophomore Kobe Pace and prized freshman Will Shipley as its collective replacement for Travis Etienne, the ACC’s all-time touchdown leader, but Dixon is headed to the transfer portal after having a limited role in the offense through three games.

Swinney confirmed Shipley will get his first career start Saturday at North Carolina State, but even when teams have dared Clemson to run the ball, there hasn’t been much room for Uiagalelei or the backs to operate behind an offensive line that’s been retooled. The group features two new starters, including true freshman Marcus Tate at left guard, and two other players (Matt Bockhorst going from guard to center and Jordan McFadden flipping from right tackle to left) repping at different positions than last season.

Even with Georgia Tech routinely choosing to drop most of its defenders into coverage last week, Clemson ran the ball just effectively enough to help the Tigers eke out a 14-8 win. Clemson ran it 41 times but averaged just 3.9 yards on those carries.

The lack of push up front has been a result of mental errors among the younger players at times just as much as anything physical. Missed assignments have left some defenders unaccounted for and ended plays before they ever really got a chance to get started.

Those are correctable mistakes, and the expectation is for those miscues to lessen in frequency as the line and backs get more experience working in unison.

“I think the explosives will come over time as we continue to find that cohesion up front, and the backs can improve as well with some of their tracking and their discipline,” offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said. “Shipley’s a freshman. Kobe’s not a freshman, but he hasn’t played a ton. So it’s going to take a little bit of time for all of those nuances to come together, but once it does, I’m excited about what the potential could be.”

The lack of explosive plays in the passing game have been the most jarring given that’s what carried Clemson’s offense last season even when the running game was average (75th nationally a season ago). A healthy Joseph Ngata, Frank Ladson Jr. and E.J. Williams are all back as is star wideout Justyn Ross after missing last season, making for a receiving corps that Swinney has referred to as perhaps the most talented group he’s had during his tenure as Clemson’s head coach.

But the defenses Clemson has faced so far have had something to do with dictating the Tigers’ offensive game plans. Clemson wanted to emphasize the running game anyway against S.C. State, but the Bulldogs encouraged that by backing off. Determined not to get pummeled through the air again, Georgia Tech exaggerated it even more last week after the Tigers ripped off chunk play after chunk play on their way to dropping 73 points on the Yellow Jackets’ home field in last year’s matchup.

And then there was the opener against Georgia, the nation’s top run defense two years running that made Clemson one-dimensional and rarely gave the Tigers an opportunity to push the ball down the field.

“I don’t think you’re going to see many people have a bunch of explosives against Georgia, No. 1,” Swinney said. “South Carolina State played everybody deep, and we just ran the ball. Took a couple of plays, played a couple quarters and called it a day. And we played a team last week that dropped eight and said run the ball. That’s what we did. And it was completely opposite of what they had shown and what we prepared for. Those are our three games. That’s what we’ve got.”

Still, there have been some chances missed in the passing game, even if they weren’t necessarily home-run hitters. Clemson has tried the intermediate-to-deep part of the middle of the field as well as a few back-shoulder throws on the outside, but those are the ones Uiagalelei, who’s completing 59% of his passes, has been the most inaccurate with to this point. He had his most efficient game against Tech by completing 18 of 25 passes for 126 yards, but Elliott and Swinney pointed out three of his seven incompletions were simply misses down the field, including a back-shoulder attempt that hit the back of Ngata’s shoe.

“Then we have a bang 8 throw on third down. We have a corner route on third-and-5,” Elliott said. “We’re having some opportunities.”

While Uiagalelei wouldn’t put all of those kinds of misfires on a lack of fundamentals — “some of it is I just flat out missed it,” he acknowledged — Elliott said he and quarterbacks coach Brandon Streeter continue to emphasize footwork and balance on the longer throws with their young signal caller, which can be easier for quarterbacks like Uagalelei who have plus arm strength to let fall by the wayside.

Similar to the running game, though, Elliott said he’s confident it’s only a matter of time before some of the shot plays in the passing game start hitting as Uiagalelei, his receivers and his offensive line grow more comfortable with each other and play through the learning curve. Connecting on just one of those throws, he believes, could become contagious.

“We’ve got to find a way, especially with the down-the-field throws. We haven’t connected on one of those yet,” Elliott said. “I think once we do, then obviously D.J.’s confidence is going to grow in that. The receivers’ confidence is going to grow in that.”

Clemson’s first true road test of the season will come against a defense that’s been just as good as any of the others at keeping things in front of it. N.C. State, which has allowed just seven points in two home games, are only yielding 2.7 yards per rush and 5.4 yards per play.

It’s as good a time as any for some of those splash plays to start showing back up for the Tigers.

Football season has finally arrived. Time to represent your Tigers and show your stripes!

The good, the bad and the ugly from Clemson’s win over S.C. State

Clemson had an easy go of it Saturday in a 49-3 rout of South Carolina State. While it may have been a stress-free night for the Tigers, it wasn’t always a perfect one. Here’s the good, the bad and the ugly that transpired for the home team inside …

The good

Clemson flipped the script on the running game. After netting just 2 yards against Georgia — and rarely even giving the Bulldogs a look on the ground with just nine carries among the running backs — the Tigers made it a point to work on the ground game early and often against South Carolina State.

Not only did Clemson stick with it — 21 rushing attempts in the first half alone — but the Tigers also ripped off some chunk plays en route to 242 rushing yards. Lyn-J Dixon got it started with a 16-yard scamper on Clemson’s first offensive snap, and the Tigers ended up averaging 6.7 yards per carry (it was well over 7 until late in the second half when reserves were getting most of the reps), a sign of backs running behind an offensive line moving people at the point of attack. Freshman Will Shipley led the charge with 80 yards on eight carries and his first two career touchdowns, but eight different Tigers got at least one carry, including D.J. Uiagalelei, who had his number called on a handful of power quarterback runs and scored twice.

And while much of the attention was on how the offense would respond after last week’s poor showing, the defense quietly turned in another suffocating effort on a night when substitutions were early and often. Clemson forced seven three-and-outs. Only once did South Carolina State have a drive longer than six plays, and that was late in the third quarter against mostly reserves.

The Tigers have allowed two fields and just a hair above 4 yards per play through two games, and that includes playing a top-5 opponent. The unit certainly looks like it will be among the nation’s elite again this fall.

The bad

Uiagalelei played a little more than a half in the blowout win, completing 14 passes for 171 yards and a score in a much better showing than Week 1. But there was still some inconsistency against an inferior opponent.

Uiagalelei completed less than 60% of this passes (58.3) for the second straight week despite not being under nearly as much duress (no sacks) as he was against Georgia (seven sacks). He threw high of a wide-open Justyn Ross in the end zone while rolling to his right, and he missed the same way with his accuracy later in the first half when Ajou Ajou had to extend to try to catch a screen pass, which was intercepted.

Offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said those are fundamental fixes that don’t concern him long-term with the young quarterback.

“I think some of those were the throws on the run, which are hard to make, especially when the receiver is moving away from the quarterback and he’s moving off the launch point,” Elliott said. “So nothing to worry about. But you’ve got to go out there and continue to play. And, through experience, those things will sharpen up.”

There’s also the curious case of Dixon, the Tigers’ most experienced running back. The senior figured to have his biggest role yet in Clemson’s offense following Travis Etienne’s departure, but Dixon was held out of the first half against Georgia for what Swinney called team rules and then disappeared for long stretches after that long opening run Saturday.

He had just four touches the rest of the way, one of which was a 14-yard touchdown catch late in the third quarter. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney referred afterward to Dixon being in running backs coach C.J. Spiller’s doghouse and said Dixon “just needs to grow up,” which drew a response from Dixon on social media Sunday morning.

Elliott said Spiller has autonomy on deciding which running backs get in the game and for how long, so it’s clear something’s up. But Clemson could use a lot more of Dixon, who’s averaging 8.5 yards so far this season when he does touch the ball.

The ugly

There wasn’t a lot that didn’t go right for Clemson on Saturday — the Tigers even cut down on their penalties (seven to five) — but turnovers were a glaring issue. Clemson coughed it up three times, and had Joseph Ngata not been able to recover his own fumble on the Tigers’ opening possession of the second half, it could’ve been four.

Clemson finished minus-2 in the turnover battle. It was an uncharacteristically sloppy night for a team that averaged just 1.2 turnovers a game last season, though the Tigers are breaking in a new quarterback and some new running backs. Uiagalelei’s errant interception was also the only turnover committed by the first-team offense as Clemson got more than 100 players into the game.

Chalk it up to a bad night in the department for now, but the Tigers don’t need it to become a trend.

Football season has finally arrived. Time to represent your Tigers and show your stripes!

The 411 on Clemson’s runaway win over South Carolina State

Clemson bounced back from its Week 1 loss to Georgia with an emphatic 49-3 win over South Carolina State on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Here are four sequences that went a long way toward deciding the game, a turning point and a telling stat from …

Clemson didn’t waste any time scoring its first touchdown of the season. The Tigers took the opening kickoff and marched 72 yards on nine plays with most of those coming on the ground. The Tigers ran the ball on four of their first five plays and covered 56 yards on the drive with the running game. Quarterback D.J. Uiagalalei scored on a 4-yard keeper to cap the scoring drive, setting the tone for the rest of the night.
After a quick three-and-out forced by Clemson’s defense on South Carolina State’s first possession, the Tigers used some different options to quickly find the end zone again with a seven-play, 67-yard drive. Justyn Ross made a long catch early in the possession and found himself all alone in the end zone, but Uiagalelei overthrew him. But the Tigers brought in freshman Will Taylor at quarterback in the red zone to give the Bulldogs’ defense a different look and eventually reached paydirt on Will Shipley’s 7-yard scamper to push their lead to 14-0.
Another three-and-out for South Carolina State late in the first quarter forced the Bulldogs to punt yet again. Dyson Roberts sent a 40-yard kick to Will Taylor at Clemson’s 33, but the freshman flipped the field with a nifty 51-yard return along the sideline. The Tigers took over at South Carolina’s State 11 following a penalty on the Bulldogs at the end of the play, and Uiagalelei extended Clemson’s lead to 28-0 on the next play with an 11-yard scoring toss to Ross, his first touchdown grab of the season.
After the teams traded turnovers midway through the second quarter, Clemson maintained possession on its seventh drive and pieced together its longest scoring march at the time after starting at its own 16. The Tigers needed just nine plays to cover the 84 yards thanks in large part to a 38-yard catch and run by Joseph Ngata that moved Clemson into the red zone. Four plays later, Uiagalelei capped Clemson’s fifth scoring drive of the half with a 5-yard keeper to put Clemson well in control, 35-0, with 6 minutes, 43 seconds left before halftime.

Turning point

It’s hard to pick a momentum-shifting moment in this one given Clemson never really relinquished it against an inferior opponent, but the Tigers kept their collective foot on South Carolina State’s neck with a fast second-half start. After Ngata recovered his own fumble on the Tigers’ first offensive play of the third quarter, the Tigers found the end zone yet again seven plays later on Shipley’s 13-yard touchdown run to make it 42-3, a score that officially ended the day for Uiagalelei and some of Clemson’s other first-teamers.

Telling stat: 242

That’s how many rushing yards Clemson racked up, a stark contrast from what happened a week earlier. Yes, the level of competition wasn’t great, but the Tigers ran it 21 times in the first half alone — 12 more than their backs combined for all game against Georgia — while four different backs got touches before halftime, an indication of just how committed Dabo Swinney and offensive coordinator Tony Elliott were to working on the ground game. Clemson didn’t really have to be balanced to beat a team it was simply superior to physically, but after that 2-yard showing against Georgia, it’s a morale booster for the running game, something the Tigers will need in order to stay multi-dimensional against ACC foes starting next week with Georgia Tech.

Football season has finally arrived. Time to represent your Tigers and show your stripes!

Uiagalelei does it again

D.J. Uiagalelei continued the onslaught of South Carolina State with a five yard touchdown run to give sixth-ranked Clemson a 35-0 lead with 6:43 to play in the first half. The scoring drive covered 84 yards in six plays and 2:22. The drive started …

The drive started with back-to-back explosive plays including a 30-yard run by Will Shipley on the opening play and a 38 yard completion from Uiagalelei to Joseph Ngata that gave the Tigers the ball at the Bulldogs’ 16 yard line.

Three plays later Uiagalelei capped off the drive with his second rushing touchdown of the afternoon.

The scoring drive covered 72 yards in nine plays and 3:22 before Uiagalelei powered in for the score. The Tigers ran the ball six times on the series with four different rushers in Lyn-J Dixon, Kobe Pace, Will Shipley and Uiagalelei.

Football season has finally arrived. Time to represent your Tigers and show your stripes!

When times were tough, Ngata drew inspiration from Ross

It’s been a long road to get here for Clemson’s Joseph Ngata. Following a stellar freshman campaign in the orange and purple, Ngata struggled with a slew of injuries in his sophomore season last year, but the receiver came out guns blazing in the Tiger’s season opener against the Bulldogs, setting career-highs with six receptions and 110 receiving yards to earn team offensive player of the week honors.

“He’s good,” head coach Dabo Swinney said about Ngata. “He hadn’t really played since his freshman year. He had a few plays here and there last year, that was about it. That’s what I saw his freshman year backing up Tee [Higgins] and I’m like, ‘Man, this guy’s about to be a dang superstar,’ and then last year was what it was.”

“He came in early part of camp and tweaked his hamstring again and missed some practice, but the last probably 12 days of practice before the Georgia game, he was awesome. I mean, practicing, every rep was a game rep and so he just carried it right to the game field. It was great to see and great for his confidence. He made some huge plays for us.”

Looking back on his struggles last season, Ngata is thankful for the lessons he learned off the field that will now transfer over into his success on the field.

“It was a big struggle, but nevertheless, I can’t complain. It just taught me a lot. Taught me to be patient, taught me to work harder, and it was a good lesson.”

For Ngata, having a teammate with an attitude and work ethic like Justyn Ross, whose injury could have been career-ending, gave the wide receiver a lot of hope and is where he drew his inspiration during his injury rehab to not only get back on the field, but to do so in a big way.

“It was very frustrating,” Ngata said. “I would say, the one person that gave me a lot of inspiration throughout last year was Justyn. Just seeing Justyn’s situation, knowing that he might not be able to play ever again just gave me a little hope.”

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