Talk about two teams badly in need of a win.
When Clemson and North Carolina face off on Saturday, one of these teams will finally have a win against a Power-4 opponent. So far, the two are a combined 0-5 against P4 competition.
Considering the way the first four games have played out for both teams, it’s hard to decide which one needs the win more. I would argue Clemson, seeing how this was supposed to be a College Football Playoff team, and as bad as things are with the 1-3 start, a loss on Saturday likely sends this thing spiraling out of control.
As bad as the Tigers have looked at times, the Tar Heels have looked even worse. The passing game has struggled mightily with transfer Gio Lopez at quarterback, and the rushing attack hasn’t been much better.
This SHOULD be a get-right game for Clemson, particularly when you factor in that the team is coming off a bye. The hope, both internally and externally, is that the week off allowed for a bit of a reset.
Everyone has come under fire. From Dabo Swinney to all of the assistants on the staff, down to the players. And the criticism has been earned.
Now this team gets a shot at taking a first step towards turning this thing around, and North Carolina is a team that Clemson should beat. The Tigers are two-touchdown favorites, not that it mattered two weeks ago when Clemson was an even bigger favorite against Syracuse.
However, the Heels have been pretty abysmal in Bill Belichick’s first season. Last time out, UCF smacked the Heels pretty good, beating them 34-9. North Carolina managed just 217 yards of total offense that day. In a 20-3 win over Charlotte, they barely eclipsed the 300-yard mark, and in a blowout loss to TCU, the Horned Frogs limited North Carolina to just 222 yards.
To be frank, the Tar Heels’ offense has been more discombobulated than Clemson’s, and that’s saying something. One thing that can’t happen is allowing UNC to go straight down the field and score on its opening possession, something that’s happened far too often this season. With two weeks to prep, you’d think the Tigers’ defense would be able to scheme up something against an offense that has been so ineffective.
Belichick’s team has been better on the defensive side of the ball, and if Clemson is going to come away with a win, it’s going to have to score some points, something that has been hard to do to this point. You can bet Belichick and his staff spent a lot of time studying film of Cade Klubnik’s struggles and have found some ways to expose them.
That means Klubnik absolutely has to be better than he’s been so far. He’s got to see the field better, and he’s got to cut down on some of the turnovers. He’s already thrown four picks after throwing just six all of last season.
The key on that side of the ball, though, is Clemson getting the running game established. I know I say it ahead of every game, and I will keep on shouting it from the rooftop until it happens. That includes getting at least one of those younger backs, David Eziomume or Gideon Davidson, involved. The two have combined for just six carries. Although seeing how Randall isn’t getting enough carries most weeks, it’s hard to get the other guys some. That needs to change. The Tar Heels are allowing 136.5 rushing yards per game and 3.7 yards per carry.
After the loss to Syracuse, I said I was not picking this Clemson team to win another game until they actually proved they could win one, but I am going to backtrack on that. If they were playing almost any other team, I’d be picking against them.
Don’t misunderstand, I don’t think there has been some magic fix to all the problems that have ailed this team — I just think the Heels are that bad. It will probably be ugly. Both teams have been prone to turning it over. And it might very well be more about the Heels finding a way to lose more than the Tigers finding a way to win.
Clemson 23 North Carolina 17