Clemson Football vs Louisville: 5 Players to Watch
Sep 12, 2015; Clemson, SC, USA; A view of the goal line marker during the first half of the game between the Clemson Tigers and the Appalachian State Mountaineers at Clemson Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports
Mitch Hyatt
I know you probably guessed it, but the most important player of the game is Mitch Hyatt. The Clemson offensive line has to improve immensely from last week’s performance against Appalachian State. The need is magnified even more for two reasons: 1) Deshaun Watson’s health 2) Louisville loves to blitz.
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That being said, Mitch Hyatt will be in charge of protecting Deshaun Watson’s blindside. Now, I know you’ve heard about this all off season, but this is the moment he has prepared for. Wofford and App State were simply glorified scrimmages in order to get Hyatt playing time and game experience.
This is the real deal. Louisville will bring seven, eight guys at some point and Hyatt, albeit, the entire offensive line has to read the defense and pick up blockers. Their job is to give Watson time to find the open man and to open up running lanes for Wayne Gallman and company.
Mitch Hyatt will get to show us just how good he really is Thursday. We can’t truly judge him based off of the first two games, but we will know after Louisville. How does he respond in the face of adversity? When he gets beat, does he come back on the next play? Is he able to keep Deshaun Watson from getting creamed? How will the offensive line, as a whole perform?
These questions, Clemson football fans, may decide the outcome of the game. We need Mitch Hyatt and the entire offensive line to step up in this one and it will be the one area that I will be keeping my eye on all night long.