RALEIGH, N.C. — NC State running backs coach Des Kitchings apologized to Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson after the Tigers’ 56-41 victory on Saturday at Carter-Finely Stadium. Kitchings pushed the Clemson quarterback on the side following an 11-yard run in the third quarter.

Watson told reporters after the game that someone on the sideline swung at him and then pushed him off. The Clemson quarterback walked away from the incident as you can see below.

https://vine.co/v/e35iOT9ZTuB

The play came with about three minutes to play in the third quarter following his 11-yard run on a second-and-five play from the Clemson 28. After the run, Kitchings, as you can see, clearly pushes Watson.

Watson ripped apart the NC State defense, tossing five touchdowns for 383 yards on 23 of 30 passing. He also rushed for 54 yards, including a 24-yard touchdown in the first quarter.

NC State head coach Dave Doeren said after the game he has not seen the incident, but he did know Kitchings apologized to both Watson and the Clemson coaches, and that everything was okay between the two.

Big load to bring down. NC State quarterback Jacoby Brissett is hard to bring down. Though Clemson sacked the 6-foot-4, 235-pound quarterback five times, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said they should have sacked him six more times.

But Brissett is hard to bring down.

“You’ve got to be careful the way you hit him, because he’ll make a player – a defensive lineman – look bad, because of how big he is, 240, plus the rib pads he had on, he’s probably 255-260 out there,” Clemson defensive end Shaq Lawson said. “We knew coming in, he’s a great quarterback, very athletic to bring down. We knew he was going to make some plays.”

Brissett was able to keep a few plays alive as he completed 24 of 41 passes for 254 yards and three touchdowns.

“He’s like a d-end out there playing quarterback, and fast,” Lawson said. “He’s like the best that big and can move. I played against him in AAU basketball back when he played for the Florida Rams. He was very athletic, so I knew he was a good.”

Brissett was a guard in those days, and Lawson played the 3 or 4 mostly.

“He was a guard. He was so good. He could have played both in college,” Lawson said. “That’s how good he was.”

Lawson played AAU with the Carolina Raptors.

Other news and notes:

• Clemson has won 11 in a row dating to last year, Clemson’s longest winning streak since the Tigers won 13 in a row between 1980-82.
• Clemson has won 17 of its last 18 games for the first time since the 1938-40 era when Banks McFadden starred for the Tigers.
• This was the 40^th win for Clemson’s 2015 senior class, tied for the second most in school history for a four-year period. This group is now 40-7. That .851 winning percentage is the best in school history. Two more wins and it will tie the record of 42 wins set by last year’s senior class.
• Clemson finished the month of October with a 5-0 record, just the fourth 5-0 month in school history. The other months it happened were October of 1977, October of 1981 and September of 2000.
• This was Clemson’s 55^th win over NC State, third among all Clemson opponents. Clemson has defeated NC State 11 of the last 12 meetings dating to the 2004 season. That includes five of the last six games played in Raleigh.
• Clemson is now 14-7 all-time on Halloween.
• Clemson has started 8-0 for the first time since 2011, but just the fifth time in school history. The other years Clemson started at least 8-0 are 1948 (11-0), 1981 (12-0) 2000 (8-0), and 2011 (8-0).
• Clemson has now won 34 straight games over teams unranked in either poll entering the game, and 36-0 against teams unranked by Associated Press entering the game.
• Swinney is now 69-26 in his career at Clemson, including 45-15 in games against ACC opponents (counting two appearances in ACC Championship games).  With today’s victory Swinney moved ahead of Danny Ford into second place on the ACC game victories list by Clemson coaches. Danny Ford was 44-14-1. Swinney is already ninth in ACC history in victories in ACC games with 45. Next on the list is former Maryland coach Jerry Claiborne, who had 46. Frank Howard is the Clemson career leader in that category with 66.
• Swinney is now 19-11 in ACC road games. Only Frank Beamer has more ACC road wins among active league coaches with 33.
• Coupled with last season’s 41-0 win, it was the first time since 1995 and 1996 that the Tigers posted 40 or more points against NC State in back-to-back games.
• The Tigers have scored 50 or more points in consecutive games, a first since games against Virginia and Georgia Tech in 2013.
• Clemson produced its fourth straight game with at least 500 total yards, only the second time that has happened in school history (2013).
• Clemson is now 70-0-1 (and 3-0 this season) in its history when passing and rushing for at least 200 yards as a team.
• Watson accounted for six touchdowns, tying his personal best he established against North Carolina in 2014. His five passing touchdowns were second-most in his career, trailing only the game against the Tar Heels.
• Watson rushed for a 24-yard score in the first quarter, his third straight game with a touchdown on the ground.
• Watson is now 12-1 as Clemson’s starting quarterback, the only player in Clemson history to win 12 of his first 13 as starting signal caller. He is 11-0 in games he has started and finished.
• Wayne Gallman rushed for 100 yards for the fifth time in Clemson’s last six games. The five 100-yard rushing games are the most in a season by a Tiger since Andre Ellington in 2011.
• Gallman’s seven rushing touchdowns are the most by a Tiger running back since Ellington’s eight in 2012.
• Deon Cain and Ray-Ray McCloud both caught their first career touchdowns. The Tigers have now had eight different players with a receiving touchdown in 2015.
• J. Goodson had a career-high three tackles for loss, including a sack. He finished with a team-best 10 tackles. Goodson caused the first fumble of his career in the first quarter on a sack that gave the Tigers possession in Wolfpack territory.