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It’s no surprise that Clemson beat NC State on Saturday. The Tigers may have lost 2 of the past 3 meetings against NC State in their annual Textile Bowl rivalry. But they haven’t lost to the Wolfpack at home since 2004.
Dabo Swinney’s 21st-ranked team didn’t just extend its streak against State at Death Valley to 10. It made a statement that will resonate throughout the ACC – and perhaps farther – by scoring early and often on the way to an emphatic 59-35 rout in its conference opener.
Quarterback Cade Klubnik threw for 209 yards and 3 touchdowns in just over a half of work and Phil Mafah posted his 2nd straight 100-plus yard effort in a victory that was even more lopsided than the final score makes it seem.
For the Wolfpack, who was beaten 51-10 by Tennessee 2 weeks ago, the loss continued a disappointing trend against power conference competition.
Here are 3 takeaways from the 800th victory in Clemson football history:
Tigers keep getting it done early
Coaches always talk about football being a 60-minute game. But for Clemson lately, the competitive portion of its games have been over by the end of the 1st quarter.
Two weeks ago against Appalachian State, the Tigers set a school record for the most points ever in a 1st quarter by putting 35 on the board en route to a 66-20 blowout of the Mountaineers. They nearly matched that mark Saturday by putting up 28 in the opening 15 minutes against State.
The offensive onslaught started early with Klubnik running 55 yards untouched through the usually stout Wolfpack defense for a touchdown on the game’s 4th play. Before the period was over, Klubnick hit Antonio Williams for a pair of scores – one for 31 yards and another for 2 – before Mafah added the coup de grace on a 38-yard run.
In its past 2 games, Clemson has outscored its opponents by a combined 63-0 in the 1st quarter. According to the ABC broadcast of the game, the Tigers are the 1st FBS team in the past 20 seasons to lead by 28 or more points after 1 period in consecutive games.
Another young gun shines
Cornerback Ashton Hampton didn’t arrive at Death Valley with the reputation or as many recruiting stars as linebacker Sammy Brown or big-play receivers Bryant Wesco and TJ Moore – the highest-rated players in Clemson’s star-studded 2024 freshman class.
But he began opening eyes from the moment he stepped on the field this summer. He still has to wait his turn to get extensive playing time in the Tigers’ veteran secondary. But he’s shown in limited action through the 1st 2 games why Swinney and defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin are so high on him.
Hampton made his loudest statement yet in the 3rd quarter Saturday when he stepped in front of a Wolfpack receiver, intercepted an underthrown pass and took it 53 yards down the near sideline for his 1st career touchdown. The former 3-star prospect is an intriguing young player for the Tigers. And not only because of his talent. Coming from Tallahassee, his recruitment represents a major victory for Clemson against ACC rival Florida State.
One bright spot on a dismal Wolfpack day
It’s hard to take anything positive from a game in which your team gives up 45 points by halftime and 59 total while getting beaten down in every phase of the game on the way to a 2nd straight lopsided loss to a power conference opponent.
But there was at least 1 thing the Wolfpack can be optimistic about as they limp home to Raleigh to lick their wounds. Despite being thrown into a hostile environment against an elite defense in his 1st career start, true freshman quarterback CJ Bailey acquitted himself well against the Tigers.
Bailey started because of an undisclosed injury to graduate transfer Grayson McCall, who was on the sideline in street clothes. The former 3-star prospect made some nice throws into tight windows and spread the ball around. He did lose a fumble on a blindside sack in the 1st half that was as much his offensive line’s fault as his and threw a pick-6 in the 2nd. But he definitely showed promise for the future, if not the rest of this season, by going 16-of-25 for 204 yards and 1 touchdown.
Award-winning columnist Brett Friedlander has covered the ACC and college basketball since the 1980s.
