CLEMSON – The players and coaches in Tiger Town are emphasizing the value of putting a complete game together. Wide receiver Beaux Collins expressed his frustration with the difference from practice to game day. Head coach Dabo Swinney talked about the critical mistakes on multiple occasions.
It’s no surprise to hear that Clemson is 4-3 given the circumstances, so what gives? The Tigers can’t fix everything immediately, but here’s three things that will go a long way to finding solace with five games to play.
Create an identity up front
After the win over Wake Forest, it looked like Clemson turned the corner in the rushing game. After the bye week, those thoughts were sobered by 0.9 yards per carry and two nightmares at the goal line that would’ve flipped the result.
Veteran center Will Putnam talked about the yips, and it needs to be exorcised if the Tigers have any hope on offense. Going on the road to N.C. State presents a good opportunity to do so.
Keep the foot on the gas
Following a rapid start to the second half, Clemson was up 10 points in Hard Rock Stadium, then the Tigers began to lose control of the game. The one caveat hear is the absence of defensive end Xavier Thomas and the other injuries that were sustained.
Nonetheless, Clemson got complacent on both sides of the ball. The Hurricanes executed a 15-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that spanned over nine minutes. That ended up being backbreaking.
The Tigers’ final two drives of regulation totaled five yards and 1:20 of game time. There’s no bigger indictment about putting together a full game than that.
Unleash the passing game, especially the hot hand
Glimpses are the best way to describe what we’ve seen out of Clemson’s passing game. Every game, there tends to be one player that steps up as a receiver but it doesn’t sustain over multiple games.
Early on, it was Beaux Collins, then it was Tyler Brown and now it’s Jake Briningstool. Moral of the story is someone is going to have an advantageous matchup every week, it’s just a matter of exposing it.
Garrett Riley’s prowess as a play-caller should be used to it’s full potential and part of that is scheming your best players open. Whoever gets the hot hand in Raleigh, it’s time to make sure they stay hot.