Clemson blanks The Citadel: Final Score, Box Score, Stats, Analysis
Clemson blanks The Citadel in home-opener
The No. 1-ranked Clemson Tigers came out Saturday afternoon in their home-opener and took care of business against The Citadel Bulldogs.
More than 18,000 Clemson football fans were in Death Valley to witness the Tigers put up 49 points in the first half and blank The Citadel, on their way to a 49-0 victory.
The Tigers got the scoring started off on their first drive of the game when Trevor Lawrence found Frank Ladson Jr. for a 17-yard touchdown. On the ensuing drive, Lawrence would hit Amari Rodgers on a 44-yard touchdown pass and then follow that up by calling his own number on the next drive with a two-yard touchdown.
James Skalski would score the final touchdown of the first quarter on a 17-yard scoop-and-score.
Clemson freshman QB D.J. Uiagalelei scored two rushing touchdowns in the second quarter and Ladson Jr. scored his second touchdown of the game on a 54-yard pass from Lawrence.
Box Score, Stats & Analysis from Clemson’s home-opening win over The Citadel
Passing: Trevor Lawrence 8-of-9 for 168 yards, 3 TDs. 98.8 QB rating; D.J. Uiagalelei 8-of-11 for 76 yards, 87 QB rating.
Rushing: Travis Etienne 8 carries for 68 yards (8.5 YPC); Darien Rencher 4 carries for 28 yards; Lawrence 1 rushing TD; Uiagalelei 2 rushing TDs.
Receiving: Frank Ladson Jr. 3 receptions for 87 yards, 2 TDs; E.J. Williams 3 receptions for 58 yards; Amari Rodgers 1 reception for 44 yards, 1 TD; Cornell Powell 2 receptions for 25 yards.
In total, Clemson gave up just 162 yards of total offense and the Tigers finished the afternoon with 405 yards of total offense. Both teams fumbled once and the Tigers held The Citadel- a rushing team- to just 1.8 yards per carry.
Analysis:
The takeaway from this game is pretty simple: The Tigers have the talent to be National Champions.
There’s no doubt that this team has the talent to win every game on its schedule no matter the opponent. The starting offense scored every single time it was on the field.
The defense- both starters and depth pieces- completely stoned The Citadel outside just a couple of big plays all evening long.
Perhaps the biggest takeaway from this game is the amount of development still needed at the depth positions offensively. While Uiagalelei showed promise and talent, there’s definitely still room for him to grow. The same can be said about Taisun Phommachanh.
Both offensive line units struggle to get much of a push in the running game, but the second-string group especially has work to do.
Next. Notre Dame, SEC & Big Ten should be thanking Clemson. dark
However, I’ll say without a doubt that it’s a good problem to have when we’re harping on the need for the second-string offensive line to improve.