CLEMSON —North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye had one of the worst games of his college career the last time he faced off against a Clemson defense.
The Tigers sacked Maye four times, pressured him eight more times and intercepted him twice in a 39-10 victory in last year’s ACC Championship Game in Charlotte. One of Maye’s interceptions was returned 98 yards for a touchdown by cornerback Nate Wiggins.
“We felt if we could apply pressure to him, we could affect the game a lot, just speeding up his reads and his progressions,” Clemson defensive end Justin Mascoll said. “I think we handled the tempo and those things very well and we handled the run game very well.
“Really, it was just having him contained and not letting him out of the pocket too much.”
Clemson will have to do the same on Saturday if they want to beat the Tar Heels for a sixth straight time. No surprise, Maye leads the ACC in passing yards (3,145), yards per game (314.5), completions (231) and passer rating (157.4).
“One thing I will say about him, he is a competitor. He is a dude,” Mascoll said. “He makes plays with his feet. There are guys running after him and it looks like they got him wrapped up and he is still throwing the ball, completing it and getting touchdowns and making big plays.
“He is an exciting guy to watch, and I can’t wait to play against him on Saturday.”
No. 22 North Carolina (8-2, 4-2 ACC) at Clemson (6-4, 3-4 ACC)
Kickoff: Saturday, Nov. 18, 3:30 p.m.
Location: Memorial Stadium, Clemson, S.C.
TV: ABC
Spread: Clemson -7.5
Over/Under: 59.5
Series: Clemson leads 39-19-1
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
The Tigers are trying to ride the momentum of two straight victories and help their bowl positioning, while the Tar Heels still have dreams of advancing to the ACC Championship Game. UNC needs a Louisville loss at Miami on Saturday (Noon) and then needs to win at Clemson and at NC State to punch its ticket to Charlotte.
KEY MATCHUP
North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton has rushed for 1,236 yards this season, which leads the ACC and ranks second in the country in rushing yards. He has done most of that over the last five games, in which he has rushed for at least 112 yards in each game. Hampton has 775 yards and six touchdowns in the last five games combined and is averaging 6.6 yards per carry.
The Clemson defense has had its moments when it comes to stopping the run this season, but it has also had a few games in which it struggled. Miami ran for a season-high 211 yards with a lot of it coming in the second half when the game was on the line back on Oct. 21. The Tigers also allowed 199 yards to Duke and 183 to Notre Dame on the ground. However, Clemson has four games in which it held the opposition under 100 rushing yards, including 22 to Florida State. As a whole the Tigers ranked 20th nationally, allowing 109.3 yards per game. Opponents are averaging 3.45 yards per rush. Last week, Clemson held Georgia Tech to 117 rushing yards, which was 85 yards below its average at that point.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
After missing the first four games of the year due to waiver issues from the NCAA, UNC wide receiver Tez Walker is averaging 5.83 receptions, 100 yards and one touchdown per game. He has 35 catches for 600 yards and six touchdowns in six games this year.
Clemson linebacker Jeremaih Trotter is having an All-American season. The middle backer leads the Tigers with 71 tackles. He also has a team best 13 tackles for loss and a team high 4.5 sacks. He ranks second on the team with five passes broken up and second with 12 quarterback pressures. By the way, he is also tied for the team lead with two interceptions, including one he returned for a touchdown.
THIS AND THAT
Clemson is 12-2 against UNC in Death Valley since 1982. The Tigers have won four straight home games against the Tar Heels. The last time North Carolina beat Clemson at Memorial Stadium was in 2001. Drake Mayes’ dad, Mark Maye, started against Clemson at Memorial Stadium in 1986, a 38-10 Clemson victory. This is the first time Mack Brown has brought a UNC team into Death Valley since 1997. Brown’s Tar Heel teams are 1-4 all-time at Clemson. Brown’s lone win came in 1997 (17-10), which happened to be the last time a ranked UNC team played an unranked Clemson team in Death Valley.
FINAL ANALYSIS
In their last three games against Power 5 opponents, the Tar Heels allowed 228 rushing yards to Virginia, 348 yards to Georgia Tech and 179 yards to Duke. Clemson has found something that is working in the run game, rushing for 176 yards against Notre Dame and 260 yards against Georgia Tech. That is a formula for success for the Tigers. Look for Clemson to try to ground-and-pound the Tar Heels defense and limit the number of times Maye and company actually touch the football.
PREDICTION
Clemson 42, North Carolina 27