CLEMSON — Clemson’s defense got a goal line stand in the first quarter and then forced a missed field goal following two turnovers in a 17-12 victory over Wake Forest Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
The defense held the Demon Deacons to 239 total yards, while producing four sacks and eight tackles for loss, along with one fumble.
The Tigers finally got things going in the second half, as running back Will Shipley ran for one touchdown and Jonathan Weitz kicked a 25-yard field goal.
Quarterback Cade Klubnik ran seven yards for a second-quarter touchdown. The sophomore also ran for 48 yards on 12 carries. Shipley finished with 97 yards on 19 attempts.
The story of the afternoon, however, was the play of the Clemson defense, which stymied the Demon Deacons for most of the day. After the offense turned the ball over inside its 10-yard line in the first quarter, the Tiger defense got a goal line stand. They then forced a field attempt after Wake got the football at the Clemson 30-yard line just before the end of the half following a Tyler Brown fumble.
However, Wake missed the 39-yard field goal attempt and Clemson held on to its 7-3 lead at the break.
The impressive part of the defense’s play was the fact the Tigers were without starting cornerbacks Sheridan Jones and Nate Wiggins and safety Jalyn Phillips, who was injured in the first quarter.
Wake quarterback Mitch Griffis finished the afternoon 15-of-25 for 137 yards and no touchdowns. The secondary was charged with just one pass interference penalty.
THE TAKEAWAY
Clemson struggled to run the football for most of the afternoon. Once again, primarily due to the inconsistent play at right guard, the running game got off to a slow start.
The Tigers had just 40 rushing yards in the first half. With Walker Parks out for the season at right guard, Mitchell Mayes and Harris Sewell struggled to get things done in his absence.
Once again, Clemson was ineffective in short yardage situations. These were same problems that plagued the offense against Florida State and Syracuse.
Clemson did run the football better in the second half—running for 167 yards—but its struggles in the run game continue to set the offense back. The Tigers finished the game with 207 yards on the ground.
Wake Forest (3-2, 0-2 ACC) finished with 102 rushing yards.
IMPLICATIONS
Clemson picks up its second straight win and now heads into the bye week with a 4-2 record and are now 2-2 in the ACC.
MVP
The Clemson defensive line. They dominated the line of scrimmage as Wake averaged just 2.6 yards per carry.
TIDBITS
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney tied Frank Howard with the most wins in school history with Saturday’s win. Howard compiled a 165-118-12 record in 30 seasons at Clemson from 1940-69. Swinney, who became the Clemson head coach halfway through the 2008 season, is now 165-41 in his 15-plus seasons at Clemson… Swinney also gained his 101 first conference win to pass Howard all-time in that category… With the win, Swinney is now 15-0 against Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons have not beat the Tigers since 2008, Tommy Bowden’s last game as head coach.
UP NEXT
Clemson will be off next Saturday but will return to the gridiron on Oct. 21 when it plays at Miami. Kickoff time has not been announced.
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