CLEMSON – Though it’s obvious its offense still has some work to do, Clemson’s defense is doing just fine.

The Tigers held Charleston Southern to 76 total yards, while recording their first shutout since a 30-0 win at South Carolina in 2021. Clemson downed the Buccaneers 37-0 Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

The 76 total yards allowed by Clemson were the fewest by a Clemson defense since S.C. State had 44 yards in 2016.

Clemson (4-2) had four sacks and finished the afternoon with a season-high 13 tackles for loss.

Chris Johnson Jr., scored two touchdowns in leading the offense, while Gideon Davidson ran for a team-high 59 yards and a TD.

The Tigers finished the game with 438 total yards.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• CSU twice had opportunities to score in the first half. However, kicker Matt Rolader missed wide left on a 50-yard field goal attempt in the first quarter. In the second quarter, a bad snap botched another field goal opportunity.
• The Buccaneers (3-4) had another opportunity to get on the scoreboard in the fourth quarter following Mylan Bowen’s 45-yard interception return to the Clemson 30. However, back-to-back sacks by defensive tackle Vic Burley on third down and defensive end Caden Story on fourth down, gave the Tigers the ball back at their own 48.
• Clemson got on the scoreboard with a 41-yard Nolan Hauser field goal in the first quarter and followed that with a six-yard Chris Johnson TD run with 5:17 to play in th first quarter.
• The offense, especially the first-team offense, struggled in the passing game. Quarterback Tait Reynolds completed 17 of 26 passes for 127 yards. He and wide receivers T.J. Moore and Bryant Wesco struggled to connect down the field. The offensive line also struggled to hold blocks and missed things at time, as CSU constantly harassed Reynolds in the backfield. Reynolds scrambled seven times for 40 yards.
• Backup quarterback Trent Pearman also had a bad day at the office. He threw two interceptions, including one in the end zone that prevented a potential scoring drive.
• Clemson had a Naeem Burroughs TD called back due to a holding penalty. An offsides penalty later negated a blocked punt by the Tigers that would have set them up inside the CSU 10.
• With Clemson up 34-0 and driving, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney took Tait Reynolds out of the game and talked to him on the sideline while Trent Pearman came in and threw a 23-yard pass to tight end Christian Bentancur. Reynolds ultimately came back in the game, but the drive ended on downs at the CSU 3-yard line.
• Davidson’s second quarter TD was—a 7-yard run—marked the fourth consecutive game the Clemson running back scored a TD for the Tigers. This TD gave the Tigers a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter.
• After Johnson scored his second TD of the day, Charleston Southern’s Quay Kindell fumbled the ensuing kickoff on a C.J. Kubah-Taylor hit. Kylon Griffin picked up the loose ball and rumbled 13 yards for the TD. That gave Clemson a 31-0 lead with 5:21 to play in the first half.
• Clemson kicker Nolan Hauser made a 59-yard field goal with 47 seconds left before halftime to give Clemson a 34-0 halftime lead. The junior’s 59-yard kick was the second longest in Clemson history – bested only by Spencer Benton’s 61-yard field goal on Sept. 8, 2012 against Ball State.
• Hauser was three-for-three on field goals on Saturday. He connected from 41, 59 and 44 yards. He is 15-for-16 on the season, including 6 of 7 from 40-49 and 2-for-2 on 50-plus kicks.
• The Tigers 37 points were the most Clemson has scored in a game since scoring 42 points against Furman last season. The Tigers snapped a span of seven games when they did not score at least 30 points.

UP NEXT

Clemson hosts Virginia Tech next Saturday at either 7 or 7:30 p.m. Time will be announced later this evening.