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Tag: Clemson Tigers football

  • No. 11 Clemson tries to stay perfect in ACC play and against Louisville on Saturday night

    No. 11 Clemson tries to stay perfect in ACC play and against Louisville on Saturday night

    Louisville (5-3, 3-2 ACC) at No. 11 Clemson (6-1, 5-0), Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)

    BetMGM College Football Odds: Clemson by 10 by 2 1/2.

    Series record: Clemson leads 8-0.

    What’s at stake?

    Clemson has been on a tear since losing its opener to then-No. 1 Georgia, winning six in a row by lopsided margins. The Tigers must keep winning as one of four ACC teams still undefeated in league play to stay on track for a return to the championship game. Louisville had hoped to be in the mix, too, but has lost to ranked opponents in Miami and SMU to fall off the pace.

    Key matchup

    Louisville QB Tyler Shough vs. Clemson’s defensive line. The Tigers have taken advantage of opponents not nearly as offensively skilled as them to open big leads. That’s unlikely to happen with the Cardinals, who are averaging 460 yards and 36 points a game. Clemson needs to get pressure on Shough, the Texas Tech transfer who’s has four 300-yard passing games this season.

    Players to watch

    Louisville: RB Isaac Brown is a freshman who’s run for 649 yards, second only to Heisman Trophy winner and NFL MVP Lamar Jackson, who ran for 960 yards as a freshman in 2015. Brown’s yards are the most nationally among freshmen and his six TDs on the ground are tied for second.

    Clemson: LB Wade Woodaz leads the Tigers with 53 tackles and eight quarterback pressures. He’s also forced three fumbles and is tied for the top with freshman Sammy Brown with 6.5 tackles for loss this season.

    Facts & figures

    Clemson is looking to go 9-0 all-time against the Cardinals. … Louisville has about as balanced an offense as possible this season, running 244 times with 14 TDs and throwing it 246 times for 18 scores. … The Tigers have rushed for at least one touchdown in 57 straight home games, the longest such current streak in the country. … Shough, who is in his seventh year after stops at Oregon and the Red Raiders, has so far thrown for a career-high 2,348 yards and 20 touchdowns. … Clemson passer Cade Klubnik has also had a stellar year this season with a career-high 20 TD throws. … The Tigers have won their past 22 home games played at night. Their last loss was a 51-14 defeat at Death Valley to Florida State in 2013.

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  • Clemson looks to regain championship form after last season’s struggles, early schedule is stacked

    Clemson looks to regain championship form after last season’s struggles, early schedule is stacked

    CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Clemson coach Dabo Swinney told anybody who’d listen to buy stock in his team last fall after the Tigers won five straight games after early struggles.

    It won’t take long to see if Swinney’s latest bit of braggadocio has legs. For now, Swinney likes how his team has handled business heading into a season where they hope to once more contend for the Atlantic Coast Conference championship and the College Football Playoff.

    Swinney said his guys have shown chemistry, leadership and accountability to understand and not repeat the mistakes that got them off to a 4-4 start and eliminated their title hopes.

    “All those things, they all check the boxes,” Swinney said. “Now, we got to get out on the field, got to put the work in, get better and find a way to win some games on the field.”

    Clemson’s season will likely again be defined its first few weeks. The 14th-ranked Tigers open in Atlanta against No. 1 Georgia, the national champions in 2021 and 2022. Three weeks later, Clemson hosts No. 24 North Carolina State and two weeks after that the Tigers go to No. 10 Florida State.

    Win them all and Swinney looks like a genius chasing another national title. Lose them all and questions about Swinney’s stewardship will continue to grow, like a year ago when a call from “Tyler from Spartanburg” on Swinney’s radio show touched off a loud defense of his program and perhaps sparked the team’s closing rally.

    Swinney boiled it all down to poor decisions and turnovers that Clemson reduced during its last five wins. The Tigers were causing the mistakes down the stretch instead of making them and Swinney hopes that’s the way it will go early.

    Klubnik’s growth

    Quarterback Cade Klubnik was a focal point of miscues and poor choices in his first full season as a starter. Along with 12 interceptions, he had a costly fumble in an overtime loss to Florida State and failed on fourth down — trying to make something happen on his own — in an overtime loss at Miami.

    Klubnik thinks his second season as a starter and in offensive coordinator Garrett Riley’s system will play dividends.

    “Less interceptions, less sacks, being able to make big-time plays with either my legs or throwing the ball downfield,” he said.

    Deep core of receivers

    The buzz of the offseason has been about the influx of young receivers or injured players at that position coming back healthy. The result could be the deepest group of wideouts at Clemson since the days of Mike Williams, Tee Higgins and Justyn Ross had the school referred to as “Wide Receiver U.”

    Bryant Wesco and T.J. Moore are the newcomers, fast, strong and able to stretch the field. Adam Randall appears healed from a broken hand.

    Tyler Brown, a freshman who led the team in catches and receiving yards last year, had nagging injuries of his own through the season. And Antonio Williams, a freshman breakout player two years ago, played only five games due to ankle and foot injuries.

    All look healthy and productive.

    Defensive stand

    The Tigers had one of the country’s top defenses, allowing 288.2 yards a game, ranking eighth in the nation. Expect that to continue this season with Barrett Carter back at linebacker and a stacked line led by ends Peter Woods and T.J. Parker.

    Clemson will miss first-round NFL cornerback Nate Wiggins, but have sophomore safety Khalil Barnes leading the secondary.

    Kicking game

    Last year, Swinney called Jonathan Weitz at the beach to return to school when kicker Robert Gunn struggled. He is hopeful Gunn, who continued kicking off after Weitz returned, has put his field-goal struggles aside. The Tigers have added Nolan Hauser, a freshman considered the nation’s No. 1 kicking prospect.

    The schedule

    Besides facing three ranked teams in the first six weeks, the Tigers have a home game in October against Virginia and coach Tony Elliott, who was co-offensive coordinator on both of Swinney’s national title teams, a Nov. 2 game against Louisville and the regular-season closer against rival South Carolina at home Nov. 30.

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  • AP Top 25: Tide retakes No. 1 from UGA; Kansas snaps drought

    AP Top 25: Tide retakes No. 1 from UGA; Kansas snaps drought

    Alabama reclaimed No. 1 from Georgia in The Associated Press college football poll in one of the closest votes in the recent years, and six teams — including Kansas — made their season debut on Sunday.

    The Crimson Tide received 25 first-place votes and 1,523 points in the AP Top 25 presented by Regions Bank, two points more than the Bulldogs. Georgia received 28 first-place votes to become the first team since Alabama in November 2019 to have the most first-place votes but not be No. 1.

    The Tide was No. 2 behind LSU that year, with 21 first-place votes to the Tigers’ 17.

    The last time there was a two-point margin between Nos. 1 and 2 was Nov. 1, 2020, when Clemson was ahead of Alabama. There have been three other polls with a two-point margin at the top since 2007.

    Ohio State remained third, but the Buckeyes also gained some ground on the top two, getting 10 first-place votes.

    The Crimson Tide started the season at No. 1, but the defending national champion Bulldogs took the top spot away from their Southeastern Conference rivals after Week 2 when Alabama needed a late field goal to beat Texas.

    The Bulldogs remain unbeaten but needed a fourth-quarter rally to beat four-touchdown underdog Missouri on Saturday night. Earlier in the day, the Tide managed to pull away from Arkansas in the second half without Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young.

    Young sprained his throwing shoulder in the first half and missed most of the game in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

    No. 4 Michigan, No. 5 Clemson and No. 6 Southern California all won and held their places this week, though the Wolverines and Tigers are now separated by just three points.

    No. 7 Oklahoma State, followed by Tennessee, Mississippi and Penn State, round out the top 10.

    The rest of the AP Top 25 got a major overhaul after 10 ranked teams lost, five to unranked opponents. That cleared the way for seven teams to move into the rankings this week, most notably No. 19 Kansas.

    The Jayhawks are ranked for the first time since Oct. 18, 2009, which was the longest drought for a team currently in a Power Five conference.

    POLL POINTS

    The closest margin between Nos. 1 and 2 in AP poll history is zero. Oklahoma and Miami tied for No. 1 in the 2002 preseason poll, and Miami and Washington shared the top spot in mid-October 1992.

    The last time there was a one-point margin between the top two teams was 1992, when the Hurricanes and Huskies were separated by a point in the weeks before and after they were tied.

    With Kansas back in the rankings, the longest poll appearance drought belongs to Illinois, which was last ranked in 2011. And the Illini have positioned themselves to make the leap with a 4-1 start heading into their home game against Iowa next week.

    Next up on the list is Rutgers (2012), Oregon State (preseason 2013) and Vanderbilt (final 2013).

    IN

    The voters generally decided to start from scratch at the back half of the rankings, flipping seven teams.

    — No. 17 TCU is in the rankings for the first time since a brief stay in 2019 at 25th.

    — No. 18 UCLA is off to its first 5-0 start since 2013.

    — No. 19 Kansas stayed unbeaten by knocking off Iowa State. The Jayhawks last started 5-0 in that 2009 season, then proceeded to drop their next six games and fall to the bottom of major college football for more than a decade.

    Both Kansas schools are ranked for the first time since Oct. 14, 2007.

    — No. 22 Syracuse improved to 5-0 with an easy victory against Wagner and finally cracked the rankings. The Orange are ranked for the first time since early in the 2019 season.

    — No. 23 Mississippi State has been ranked for only one week (after the first regular-season game of 2020) since the end of 2018 season.

    Both Mississippi SEC schools are ranked for the first time since Nov. 11, 2015.

    — No. 24 Cincinnati. The Bearcats are the one team to enter the rankings this week that already had been in this season. Cincinnati fell out after a Week 1 loss at Arkansas and has won four straight since.

    — No. 25 LSU has its first ranking under coach Brian Kelly. The Tigers have won four straight, including two SEC games, since losing a heartbreaker to Florida State on Labor Day weekend.

    OUT

    Among the seven teams to drop out of the AP Top 25, five of them will be unranked for the first time this season: Oklahoma, Baylor, Arkansas, Texas A&M and Pittsburgh.

    Florida State and Minnesota had brief stays in the AP Top 25. The Seminoles and Gophers were teams on the rise for a week and then both lost at home.

    CONFERENCE CALL

    SEC — 7 (Nos. 1, 2, 8, 9, 13, 23, 25).

    Pac-12 — 5 (Nos. 6, 11, 12, 18, 21).

    ACC — 4 (Nos. 5, 15, 16, 22).

    Big 12 — 4 (Nos. 7, 17, 19, 20).

    Big Ten — 3 (Nos. 3, 4, 10).

    American — 1 (No. 24).

    Independent — 1 (No. 16).

    RANKED vs. RANKED

    No. 25 LSU at No. 8 Tennessee.

    No. 17 TCU at No. 19 Kansas.

    No. 11 Utah at No. 18 UCLA.

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    Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at http://www.appodcasts.com

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  • No. 5 Clemson tops No. 10 NC State 30-20 in ACC showdown

    No. 5 Clemson tops No. 10 NC State 30-20 in ACC showdown

    CLEMSON, S.C. — DJ Uiagalelei ran for two touchdowns and threw for a third as No. 5 Clemson won its 11th consecutive game, its 37th straight at home and took control of the ACC Atlantic with a 30-20 victory over No. 10 North Carolina State on Saturday night.

    The Tigers (3-0 ACC) started 5-0 for the seventh time in eight years and completed a two-week stretch where they bested the two teams thought most likely to block their return atop the division — first with a 51-45 OT win at No. 22 Wake Forest last Saturday and now the Wolfpack (4-1, 0-1) at Death Valley.

    Uiagalelei ignited the Tigers right before and right after the half to build a lead that N.C. State, playing in its first-ever Top 10 matchup, couldn’t overcome.

    Uiagalelei finished a 75-yard scoring drive by stretching the ball over the goal for a 1-yard score to move in front 13-10. Then, after Clemson’s defense forced a three-and-out with a pair of sacks on Wolfpack quarterback Devin Leary, Uiagalelei cashed in again with 7-yard touchdown throw to tight end Jake Briningstool.

    “Lost the turnover margin, lost the line of scrimmage, you don’t win many games like that,” Wolfpack coach Dave Doeren said.

    Clemson’s defense did the rest, holding the potent Wolfpack to just a field goal over the first 29 minutes of the second half in building a 17-point lead. The Tigers also picked off Leary and recovered a fumble when N.C. State went for it on 4th-and-13 down 10 with less than nine minutes left.

    Clemson, which hasn’t lost at home since November 2016, matched Florida State’s ACC mark of 37 straight at home set from 1992-2001. The Tigers’ 11 in a row since last season in the longest current streak in the FBS.

    “We’re definitely not there yet,” Clemson defensive end K.J. Henry said. “But I can say the mindset for four quarters definitely showed up tonight.”

    Clemson also holds tiebreakers in the division over the Demon Deacons and Wolfpack.

    Clemson and N.C. State came in with two of the highest-scoring offenses in the ACC and figured to trade trips to the end zone throughout. Instead, it was a struggled for each to find points in the first 30 minutes.

    The Wolfpack and preseason ACC player of the year Devin Leary broke through first with a 2-yard TD to tight end Cedd Seabrough late in the second quarter to go up 10-6 with less than two minutes left in the half.

    That’s when Uiagalelei got things going with his scoring run to send the Tigers into the break ahead 13-10 instead of trailing. He sealed the win with a 9-yard touchdown run with 3:04 left. Uiagalelei completed 21 of 30 passes for 209 yards and ran for a team-high 73 yards.

    Leary was 28 of 47 passing for 245 yards and an interception. He also rushed for a 4-yard TD with less than a minute left as the Wolfpack finished with their fewest points this season.

    THE TAKEAWAY

    North Carolina State: The Wolfpack have plenty of talented players, but got rattled in that time right around halftime to allow Clemson’s two touchdowns. NC State now has to cross its fingers that the Tigers lose twice in their final five ACC games.

    Clemson: The Tigers have had to prove their offense was legit all season and, while they didn’t pile up the points like in their first four games, they made enough plays to show themselves once again as the ACC’s top contender.

    BRESEE OUT

    Starting defensive tackle Bryan Bresee missed his second game of the past three after dealing with a non-football medical condition that Clemson said involved blood tests and observation. Bresee and his family are still mourning 15-year-old Ella Bresee, who died of brain cancer last month and has been an inspiration to her brother’s team with the phrase, “Ella Strong.” Bryan Bresee got good news about the tests late this week and his condition won’t have a long-term impact, Clemson said.

    UP NEXT

    North Carolina plays No. 23 Florida State at home next Saturday.

    Clemson goes to Boston College next Saturday night.

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