Clemson blasts Georgia Tech: Final Score, Analysis, Stats
The Clemson Tigers blasted the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the season opener. Thursday night. Here’s the final score, stats, and analysis from the win.
It didn’t take very long for Clemson to take control of the season-opening match up against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
The Tigers scored early, often, and even with some sloppy play, came away with a 52-14 victory.
Following a muffed punt, Clemson took over with good field position and followed it up with a Trevor Lawrence rushing touchdown. Lawrence did an excellent job reading the defense and calling an audible to change to the play.
On the ensuing drive, Travis Etienne busted off a 90-yard scamper for a touchdown and all of a sudden, the Tigers were up 14-0. Though there was sloppy play from the offense, including two interceptions by Trevor Lawrence, the defense came away with needed stops and didn’t break.
Clemson went into halftime up 28 points and continued to pour it on with an impressive rushing attack in the second half.
Box Score:
Stat Leaders via ESPN:
Passing– Trevor Lawrence 13-of-23 for 168 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT; Chase Brice
Rushing– Travis Etienne 12 carries for 205 yards, 3 TDs; Lyn-J Dixon 8 carries for 64 yards, 1 TD.
Receiving– Tee Higgins 4 receptions for 98 yards, 1 TD.
Clemson finished with 632 yards of total offense and the defense forced four turnovers compared to the offense’s three.
Analysis:
On the offensive side of the ball, the passing game just seemed out of sorts. That tends to happen early in the season, but it’s clear that the Tigers will get that sorted out. Trevor Lawrence tried to do too much at times, but still made some impressive throws.
The rushing game was dominant. Clemson relied on the duo of Travis Etienne and Lyn-J Dixon to move the ball and they did with relative ease.
On defense, you have to be impressed with what the Tigers were able to do. Despite losing all of those starters from last year, this unit looked poised and did a good job limiting Georgia Tech. The biggest issue with the defense had to do with missed tackles. In many cases, guys were in position and just didn’t wrap up or tried to arm tackle instead of stepping up and finishing. That will be a simple fix from film analysis.
dark. Next. Are the Tigers rebuilding or reloading on defense?
Overall, Clemson played a ton of guys and that experience will be invaluable for them moving forward.