By Will Vandervort.
By Will Vandervort
Each week we take a look back at what the Clemson Tigers did right and what they did wrong on the gridiron as we grade the Tigers performance at every position in Saturday’s 52-27 victory over Ball State.
Quarterbacks
Grade: A
For only the second time in the last 34 years and only the seventh time in school history, Clemson had two quarterbacks throw for than 100 yards in a game. Tajh Boyd played less than 25 minutes Saturday, but when he was in there, he looked extremely sharp. Boyd completed 19 of 23 passes for 229 yards and three touchdowns. For a second straight week, Boyd’s decision making looked good as he was very efficient in running the offense. Backup Cole Stoudt looked good directing the offense at the end of the second quarter and through the third. He completed 12 of 18 passes for 123 yards, including a well thrown 22-yard touchdown pass to Martavis Bryant.
Running backs
Grade: B
It was a workman like day for the running backs, and a good one overall, but there was nothing that really stood out. No one rushed for over 100 yards, and that was probably planned because offensive coordinator Chad Morris worked a lot on his passing game. The highlight of the day came from reserve back Roderick McDowell, who juked a Ball State defender almost out of his shoes with a nifty 27-yard touchdown run just before the end of the first half. McDowell led all running backs with 59 yards on eight carries.
Wide receivers/ Tight ends
Grade: A
It was obvious the wide receivers and tight ends worked on catching the football in practice last week. After dropping six passes against Auburn, Clemson only had one drop in the Ball State game. Overall, 10 different wideouts or tight ends caught at least one pass with DeAndre Hopkins again leading the way with six catches for 105 yards and a record-tying three touchdown receptions. Charone Peake hauled in a career-high seven catches for 44 yards, while Adam Humphries had six catches for 49. The blocking down field was much better too, especially early when the Tigers attacked Ball State’s zone defense with screens and short passes in the flats.
Offensive line
Grade: A
Considering it was already down one starter (RT Timothy Gifford) and lost a second one (LG David Beasley) to a knee injury in the first quarter, Clemson’s offensive line had a solid day. Though Clemson worked on the passing game, the Tigers still managed to rush for 154 yards. The biggest statistic, however, was the fact the O-line did not surrender a sack on 44 pass attempts. After giving up three sacks to Auburn in the first quarter, the offensive line has allowed just one sack in the last seven quarters.
Defensive line
Grade: C
The defensive line can’t be charged with all of the 252 rushing yards allowed Saturday, but it is responsible for some. At times Ball State’s offensive line opened up some nice running lanes for its running backs, which made some plays once they got in space. With that said defensive tackle DeShawn Williams was credited with a sack and for assisting on a tackle for loss. They also did a better job pushing the pocket in passing situations. The short yardage defense was once again okay, but the defensive line did not show any real consistency throughout the course of the game.
Linebackers
Grade: C
Middle linebacker Stephone Anthony keeps displaying he has the ability to be a good linebacker. In Saturday’s win he was credited with nine tackles, one quarterback pressure and recorded his first career-interception. However, he also had several missed tackles, a few which led to long runs. Overall, like the defensive line, the linebackers showed flashes of being productive, but were once again inconsistent.
Secondary
Grade: B
From Week 1 to Week 2, the secondary showed improvement, which is all any coach, can ask for. There were still some missed tackles, but they held a pretty good passing team in Ball State to 128 yards, while not allowing a pass longer than 17 yards. However, safety Xavier Brewer took a bad angle on Ball State’s 54-yard touchdown run and Jonathan Meeks had a couple of missed tackles. But, guys like Travis Blanks, Bashaud Breeland (eight tackles) and Darius Robinson had explosive tackles in one-on-one situations and did not allow many yards after the catch on other plays. Robinson also recorded the Tigers’ second interception of the afternoon, which led to a touchdown.
Special Teams
Grade: B
The only thing that kept this unit from getting an “A” was Chandler Catanzaro’s missed extra point after Clemson’s first touchdown. Other than that, it’s hard to find anything else that was wrong. Spencer Benton kicked an ACC record 61-yard field goal and averaged 43 yards on two punts, dropping both inside the Ball State 20. He also had four touchbacks on kickoffs. Kickoff returns were also better as Bryant had a 29-yard return and Matt Porter a 27-yarder, while the only kickoff Ball State returned went for only 15 yards.
Coaching
Grade: A
Anytime a team racks up 526 yards of offense and scores 52 points, and by the way, has the game put away by halftime, coaching plays a big role. Head coach Dabo Swinney and his staff did a good job having the Tigers prepared to play Saturday. Though no one thought Clemson would lose the game, there were questions about how focused the team would be after such an emotional win over Auburn to start the season. There was no letdown at all. The offense looked sharp from the outset, while the defense forced back-to-back three-and-outs to start the game and later forced back-to-back turnovers which led to two touchdowns.