CLEMSON — Through two quarters, the Clemson offense had trouble staying on the field, and the defense could not seem to get off of it, as North Carolina has a 17-6 lead heading into halftime.

A long drive to end the first half could have totally changed the complexion of this thing, but the Tigers eventually had to settle for a chip shot field goal.

The Heels have made it look fairly easy, averaging well over five yards per play, while Clemson has mustered 117 yards of offense, while going three-and out-three times, and fumbling on the second play of another series. The Tigers started just 1-of-5 on third down, before converting three on that final drive of the half. More than 60 of their total yards also came on that drive.

Tough First Start

Things have not gone well for Tait Reynolds in his first start, although he is FAR from the only issue. The freshman has passed for only 76 yards in the first half. He has been the victim of one drop that likely would have gone for big yards, while he’s also been off-target on some throws.

He seemed to start to find his footing a little bit late in the half on the Tigers’ final offensive possession, but the drive would ultimately stall inside the Tar Heels’ five.

If things are going to get any better, the offense has to find a way to average more than 2.6 yards per carry it generated in the first half.

Still No Fire

Chad Morris was right. There’s just not much juice with this team. Scanning the sideline early in the second quarter and UNC up 17-3, Clemson already looked like a beaten team. At times, it’s not all that hard to read body language, and that combined with the expression on some of these players’ faces just did not leave a good impression.

However, that final drive seemed to have injected some life into the place. We will see if it holds.

Soft Up Gut

When your defense is soft up the middle, it impacts every other level, and this Clemson defense is extremely soft up the gut. The defensive tackles have just been getting worked over throughout the first two quarters. On certain third-down situations, Tom Allen has even chosen to go with four defensive ends up front in an effort to create more disruption. Even that has not worked.

North Carolina has had very little trouble moving the ball, with the Heels averaging right at six yards per carry on the ground. Even quarterback Billy Edwards Jr., who isn’t known to be the most agile runner, has gashed this defense a couple of times.

Horrid Tackling

The defense was one of the worst tackling teams in the country coming into this game, and that trend has continued into the first half today. We have seen multiple tackles missed at or behind the line of scrimmage, as well as some in the open field.

Strong Kicking Game

Nolan Hauser continues his strong start to the season. The junior kicker hit a 49-yarder midway through the first quarter and a chip-shot late in the half, making him a perfect 8-for-8 on field goal attempts this season.

On the flip side, Chris Johnson Jr. probably should have fair caught the opening kickoff. With a freshman quarterback making his first career start, why not take the ball at the 25-yard line, rather than attempt to return a kick several yards deep into the end zone. After a block-in-the-back penalty, Reynolds and the offense started at their own 6, and quickly went three-and-out, setting up the Heels’ first touchdown.

Johnson has brought a couple of others out and has 57 return yards, including a 23-yarder.