CLEMSON — Bryant Wesco’s first 100-yard receiving game of the season played a big role in eighth-ranked Clemson’s comeback win over Troy.

After finding themselves in a 16-0 hole midway through the second quarter, Wesco was responsible for two of the offense’s three touchdowns as the Tigers scored 27 unanswered points to win 27-16.

After the ineffectiveness of the first half, Wesco said the message at halftime was fairly simple.

“They were just saying we got to respond,” Wesco said after the win. “Things don’t always go your way. Just going out there with a next play mentality and a next half mentality. Just going out there and playing.”

Wesco reeled in seven catches for 118 yards, including the two second-half touchdowns. The sophomore maintained that the biggest difference over the final two quarters was the execution and the ball security.

“Just the execution was missing, that was about the only thing,” Wesco said about the first half struggles. “We started executing the plays and started taking care of the ball. We made a few tweaks here and there, but we just started catching the ball, putting drives together and getting some momentum. That was about it.”

After the receivers were responsible for multiple drops in the loss to LSU in the season opener, Wesco was determined not to have a repeat performance. He caught all seven balls thrown his way.

“We just had to go out there and make plays, so that was one of the focuses of this week that coach Swinney challenged us on,” Wesco said. “Just making those plays that a receiver needs to make in order to be elite, be a first-rounder, and help the team win.”

As for his 26-yard touchdown reception that gave Clemson its first lead early in the third quarter, Wesco credited the offensive line and quarterback Cade Klubnik.

“Great protection and a great ball from the quarterback,” Wesco said. “I just did my job. Ran a great route and the quarterback threw a great ball.”

His second touchdown catch was a thing of beauty. Klubnik lofted a high-arching pass that landed right in Wesco’s hands for a 34-yard scoring strike, putting the Tigers up 27-16 early in the fourth quarter.

“That ball was up there, but it was a great ball,” Wesco said. “I just ran up under it, caught it and tried to hold onto it because I know the DB is going to try and rack it. I just kept on holding on to it as hard as I could.”

Photo by Bart Boatwright