That was the offense Clemson fans have come to know and love since Chad Morris introduced the hurry-up, no-huddle brand in 2011.
The Tigers rolled up 336 yards through the air and 201 on the en route to a 43-24 win against Georgia Tech on Saturday.
Deshaun Watson completed 21 of 30 passes for 265 yards with two touchdown passes and an interception.
Wayne Gallman had two scores and 115 yards, making it three-straight games he’s eclipsed the century mark.
Eight different receivers caught passes, including Jordan Leggett, who was the recipient of Watson’s two scoring throws.
Co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott, who helped engineer Clemson’s impressive performance, spoke up for the linemen.
“Those guys don’t get enough credit. They’ve been challenged. They’ve been questioned from day one, about this football team, probably the most questioned position group on the team,” he said. “All they’ve done is come out and just four out of the five games, rushing for over 200 yards. Wayne’s gone three games in a row with 100 yards rushing. They take pride in that.
“Again, good defensive front, one sack that they gave up. Obviously, have some things to work on there, but they’re just working. We talk about the skill guys and all the statistics, but I’m happy for that offensive line that they’re able to experience the balance of running and throwing it, because of the work that they put in.”
All three quarterbacks on the depth chart were inserted into the game. So were the five scholarship running backs. Seven wide receivers caught a pass.
If it was a perfect world, Elliott and co-offensive coordinator Jeff Scott could involve that many players on game day.
That’s important for the long-term health of the team.
“It’s really, really good. Because, now, they get the taste of success, so they’re hungrier, so your competition level is greater throughout the week (at practice),” Elliott said. “That’s what we’re going to need to get to a point to where we’re consistent with everybody battling.
“As an offense, it just lets your game flow. You’re able to just call the offense and it doesn’t matter who’s out there. You’re not worried about if it’s a young guy, old guy. They’re in the right spot and making the right plays. Then, it just helps their confidence. We’re going to need everybody down the stretch.”
More post-game thoughts from Elliott:
On opening up the playbook…
“That was big. That’s something that we said last week. We knew we were going to have to do our part to help the defense and what we could do to help the defense versus that style of offense, it’s to go out and get ahead, take them out of their element. You’re going to be limited on possessions, probably going to account for about three or four less in a game than you normally would in a game, so it was imperative that we go out and get off to a hot start. That’s two games in a row that we’ve been able to come out and score on that first drive.”
On Watson’s play vs. Georgia Tech…
“There’s times, obviously, we still have designed runs for him. But he was able to sit in the pocket and not feel the pressure, and deliver the ball down field. He was accurate. We did drop a couple of balls, probably some calls I could do better, to help him out. But I thought he did a really good job of managing the game, taking the runs when they were available to him, but finding the guys and knowing, from a defensive structure, where the open guy was going to be, and he found them pretty much all night.”
On Deon Cain…
“We’ve known all along that he was a play-maker. He’s starting to get a better understanding of the system, so it’s not just situation plays that you’re putting him in. You can throw him out there and you can get into a rhythm of a series and have him out there, let him go make a play when it’s available, as opposed to try and just run him on in a specific situation.”
On Jordan Leggett…
“If you go back a couple of years when he first got here, he was a young guy, just immature. I’m so proud of the leadership and he’s playing with toughness. It’s good to be able to reward him, because they’ve got a hard job, those tight ends, because they’ve got to be fullbacks. They really have to do a lot of the dirty work. He’s really a match-up problem for people. It’s good that the last couple of games we’ve been able to get the ball in his hands. He’s really emerging as a play-maker for us.”
On Zac Brooks…
“You’re not going to find a better young man than Zac Brooks. Through all the injuries and adversity, he’s persevered. To see him have success — need to give him the ball a little bit more, because it seems that every time he touches it he has a big play. But it’s just big for him. Big for his confidence. His leadership that he brings to the room is just tremendous. Happy for all those guys, to get in there and have an opportunity.”
On the No. 2 running back…
“That’s a situation that’s going to be week-to-week. I really want to challenge those guys and have them ready to go. (Brooks) finished the week and was the No. 2 guy. He was the first man up. Hopefully, if he can do like Wayne and continue to separate, then he’ll have that spot. We’re still challenging all of those guys, because they’re all dynamic. They’re all good players. Giving everybody an opportunity, week in and week out, to compete for that spot.”