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 Thursday’s 42-13 victory over Wake Forest.
Quarterbacks
Grade: A
Tajh Boyd threw for a school record 428 yards on 27 of 38 passes with no interceptions. He also gained 63 yards rushing and threw five touchdowns to five different receivers. The only negatives to Boyd’s game was the fact he hung on to the football maybe a second longer than he should or wide receiver Sammy Watkins would have two more scores to go with the 61-yard grab he had in the second quarter. Boyd also should be charged with two of the three sacks allowed as he held on to the football too long.
Running backs
Grade: B
The numbers were not great for Clemson running backs, but the reason for the “B” on the grade was due to the blocking of Andre Ellington. Time and time again Thursday night he picked up the correct blitz and allowed Boyd time to find his open targets on the field. Ellington finished the night with 61 yards on 15 carries, while also catching two passes for five yards.
Wide receivers/ Tight ends
Grade: A
Watkins set a school record with 202 yards on eight catches. He had receptions of 57, 61 and 50 yards with the 61 coming on a catch-and-run that gave Clemson a 14-0 lead on the first play of the second quarter. In all, 11 different Tigers caught at least one pass. DeAndre Hopkins caught six passes for 64 yards and scored his 10th touchdown of the season. Martavis Bryant returned to the field and caught three passes for 82 yards.
Offensive line
Grade: C+
Wake Forest was determined not to let Clemson beat them with the running game so Boyd and Watkins made them pay for that. The offensive line did a much better job of protecting Boyd as I said earlier, two of the three sacks allowed are charged to Boyd for holding on to the ball too long. But in the end, the Tigers did struggle to run the football.
Defensive line
Grade: A
Where has this been all year? Clemson recorded five sacks in a game since the season-opener against North Texas in 2010. Three of the five sacks came from the defensive end positions as Vic Beasley had two and Malliciah Goodman the other, while also recording several hurries and knockdowns to add to those totals. Freshman D.J. Reader, who was playing close to his hometown of Greensboro, N.C., was again affective in getting in the backfield and causing issues.
Linebackers
Grade: A
Tig Willard seemed to be everywhere, especially in the first half when he was chasing down running backs on screen passes, sacking the quarterback and making plays behind the line of scrimmage. Middle linebacker Spencer Shuey also had another good game calling plays—though he was called for a late hit on Wake quarterback Tanner Price. Willard and Stephone Anthony record the Tigers other two sacks.
Secondary
Grade: A
Considering the circumstances and the fact Wake Forest still passed for only 239 yards on 45 attempts, that says something about this unit’s heart and desire to succeed. Wake completed no pass longer than 27 yards all night. The Tigers entered the game down three corners—Martin Jenkins, Bashaud Breeland and Darius Robinson—and then lost a fourth in Garry Peters who suffered an injury in the third quarter. But with that said, the corners forced two fumbles, recovering one. Freshman Cortez Davis was credited with a stripped fumble.
Special Teams
Grade: C
Chandler Catanzaro missed his first field goal of the season, and ironically it came against the same team he last missed a field goal on. Catanzaro made a school-record 20 field goals in a row, dating back to last November. In all fairness, Catanzaro isn’t to blame all by himself. Boyd took a sack of 17 yards which made the kick more difficult than it should have been. Spencer Benton and Bradley Pinion struggled with their punts as the two averaged just 35.5 yards on six punts. The Clemson kick and punt coverage teams did a solid job, allowing two kicks to be returned for a combined 29 yards and only one punt for one yard.
Coaching
Grade: A
Dabo Swinney, Chad Morris, Brent Venables and the rest of the coaching staff had the Tigers ready to play. The Tigers scored 35 point on seven first half possessions, while the defense limited Wake to 290 yards the entire night, including 51 yards rushing. The Tigers, for the most part, looked strong in all three phases of the game and that is a direct reflection of the coaching staff.