The Georgia Tech defense opened up like the parting of the Red Sea. All Deshaun Watson saw was a lot off green grass and the Yellow Jackets’ end zone.

It was late in the first quarter with Clemson already up 3-0 when on third-and-one from the Yellow Jackets’ 21-yard line the Tigers’ star quarterback saw the end zone.

At that point it was the perfect start to what was a homecoming of sorts for the Gainesville, Ga. native. Growing up in the shadows of Atlanta, Watson was excited to play Georgia Tech. Just a couple months earlier, he was throwing a laser to Charone Peake for a touchdown “Between the Hedges” in Athens and now he was doing what he wanted to against his hometown college.

Not only was it the opportunity to play in front of friends and family, but it was also his first game back after missing three straight games due to a broken right index finger against Louisville. Through the first 12 minutes of the first quarter, Watson had totaled 40 yards rushing on seven carries, while throwing for another 27 on 5 of 7 passing.

Watson was about to walk into the end zone to give Clemson a 10-0 lead when his perfect day came to an end. While cutting back to a wide open middle of the field, Watson’s left knee buckled and down he went. He laid there on the Georgia Tech 14-yard line grabbing his left knee. His day was over, and so were the Tigers.

“You know, after he went out, he was pretty much their running game early on, and when he went out, they didn’t have the success running the ball,” Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson said.

Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson tore the ACL in his left knee in the first quarter of last year’s game against Georgia Tech in Atlanta. The Tigers rushed for just 68 yards the rest of the game after he went out.

Clemson did not have success doing anything after Watson left the game. Backup quarterback Cole Stoudt was not prepared to play. Three plays after Watson left, with what turned out to be a torn ACL, from the Tech nine Stoudt threw a horrible pass to Jordan Leggett which Jamal Golden picked off and took 85 yards for a touchdown.

Stoudt ended the afternoon completing just as many passes to Georgia Tech as he did his own teammates, going went 3-for-11 for 19 yards with three interceptions. He threw a second pick-six late in the third quarter when Clemson had a chance to cut the Tech lead to six points. Instead Chris Milton’s 62-yard interception return sealed the 28-6 victory for the Yellow Jackets.

“We were blazing out of the gates,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said. “We were moving the ball up and down the field and were off to a great start. The next thing we know, we have (thrown) two pick-sixes.”

Now it all comes full circle on Saturday in Death Valley as sixth-ranked Clemson hosts the Yellow Jackets in Death Valley for a 3:30 p.m. kick.

The Tigers (4-0, 1-0 ACC) are undefeated and right in the middle of the College Football Playoff race following last week’s win over then No. 6 Notre Dame. They are running the ball on just about anyone, regardless if it is Watson or fellow Atlanta standout Wayne Gallman. Clemson has rushed for over 200 yards in each of their last two games, including 212 against Notre Dame’s formidable front-seven. It was the same front seven that shutdown Georgia Tech’s triple option attack a few weeks back.

Clemson rushed for 202 yards against Louisville before that.

Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson rushed for a career-high 93 yards and one touchdown in last week’s 24-22 victory over then No. 6 Notre Dame.

“We’ve shown we can do whatever we need to do to win,” Swinney said. “The biggest question mark coming into the season was our offensive line. Our ability to run the football through these first four games has been impressive. That was the one question mark in the beginning of the season.

“Wayne Gallman has gone back-to-back 100-yard games.  None of the five linemen last Saturday night were returning starters from 2014 and we have a true freshman at left tackle. What we did against Notre Dame in the trenches was excellent. Our quarterback has had back-to-back huge games running the football.”

Watson had 54 rushing yards against on 12 carries against Louisville, and followed that up with 93 yards on 16 carries against Notre Dame, including a 21-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter. He also broke off a 38-yard run to start the game.

“He’s a huge part of their running game,” Johnson said. “He’s a very dangerous runner, and the Gallman kid is a hard runner.”

But the Tigers want to throw the ball, too. That’s something they have not been able to do this season for several reasons. Last week’s heavy rains limited the play calling in the passing game in the second half, and Louisville kept everyone deep and challenged Clemson to beat them with the running game, which it did.

Watson is completing 68.7 percent of his passes for 725 yards and nine touchdowns to four interceptions.

“The one thing that I am not worried about is our ability to throw and catch the football,” Swinney said. “We just haven’t really had the opportunity yet to demonstrate our full potential. As we go through the season, that will show. Right now, we just haven’t had to get into a whole lot of that. Deshaun is doing great and has played well.”

Watson says he looks forward to playing against his hometown school, again this week, but that’s where it ends. He says it not about bouncing back and having something to prove after being injured in this very same game last year.

He is not worried about throwing the ball 40 times or running it 20 more. It doesn’t have to be a perfect performance. He just wants to play well enough to help his team win another game on Saturday.

“I just have to play my game and have fun with it,” Watson said. “That goes for every athlete really. It is hard to be perfect. That’s what everyone tries to be when they come out on Saturdays, but it is hard to do that. There are always things you can fix, correct and learn from.”