Studs & Duds from the victory over Virginia for Clemson football
The Clemson football team came away with a 41-23 victory over the Virginia Cavaliers Saturday evening in Death Valley to remain undefeated on the season.
Though the Tigers continued their winning ways, there were certainly times where this game seemed frustrating to Clemson football fans.
Here’s a look at some studs and duds from the victory over Virginia.
Studs
Travis Etienne getting it done
You’ve got to give credit where credit is due. Travis Etienne didn’t have much help from his blockers and he was simply still getting the job done.
He shed tacklers, he made plays with his legs and he came up big when the Tigers needed him to. Etienne continues to prove why he’s the most explosive playmaker in the nation and it’s becoming more and more apparent that no single defense is going to be able to stop him from making an impact in some way or another.
Virginia was able to slow him down in the running game, but Etienne was killer in the screen and underneath passing game. He’s so versatile and that’s why he will be one of the top running backs taken in next year’s draft.
Andrew Booth Jr.‘s one-handed interception
Say what you want to about the defense- and we will later in this post- but Andrew Booth’s one-handed interception is one of the most beautiful defensive plays I’ve ever seen.
He put himself in perfect position and went and came down with the ball in a fashion that looked similar to something we’d see Randy Moss or Odell Beckham Jr. do in their primes.
Booth proved Saturday night why he was a 5-star and played what easily was the best game of his career to this point.
More Studs
Trevor Lawrence continues to impress
Trevor Lawrence had a couple of miscues, but all-in-all it was a good night for the Clemson quarterback.
Lawrence continues to find the open man and isn’t forcing anything. He’s getting more and more confident as the weeks grow and is looking like a bona fide NFL quarterback.
Amari Rodgers dominating at the WR position
Amari Rodgers is taking a step forward this season and that could be seen Saturday night. He finished with six catches for 72 yards and two touchdowns. The 27-yard TD pass to Rodgers from Lawrence was a thing of beauty. It was a perfect ball, followed by a perfect catch for the score.
B.T. Potter remains perfect on the season
How about B.T. Potter continuing to get the job done? It’s frustrating when we see Clemson football have to settle for a field goal, but it’s even more frustrating when the field goal is missed. Potter has been perfect on the season and looks like a different kicker. He has one of the most powerful legs we’ve ever seen and his accuracy has been off-the-charts so far.
The linebackers were flying around
James Skalski was named the National Defensive Player of the Week and we saw him, Baylon Spector and Mike Jones Jr. all flying around and making plays. The defense had some dark spots that we’ll talk about, but this linebacker core is coming together nicely.
Duds
The offensive line performance for the majority of the night
Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the game Saturday night was the offensive line performance for the majority of the night.
The Tigers didn’t get any kind of a push up-front in the running game and there were far too many times where Trevor Lawrence was hurried, forced out of the pocket or sacked by the Virginia pass-rush. You’ve got to give credit to the Cavaliers for disguising their blitzes, but the truth of the matter is that the offensive line was just outplayed for most of the night.
Defense failing to contain Brennan Armstrong
Brennan Armstrong may not be Steve Young, but he’s much better than most want to give him credit.
Armstrong was elusive and the Tigers simply couldn’t take him down. He escaped the pocket and did an excellent job finding the first down marker time and time again.
Lack of a pass-rush for much of the evening
Clemson also didn’t use much of an exotic blitz package. The defensive line didn’t create much pressure for most of the night and the lack of a pass-rush was something surprising I thought we wouldn’t see.
More Duds
Clemson offense was forced into way too many 3rd and long situations
The offense converted on several, but there were just way too many 3rd and long situations Saturday. You can’t win a championship if you’re backed up behind the line on third down. It just doesn’t happen.
Drops & Overthrows
Trevor Lawrence had a couple of overthrows and even a couple of his completions were overthrown, and he was also the victim of a couple of bad drops. It’s not much of a concern moving forward- at least I don’t think so- but it is something to note.
The secondary had some miscues, especially in zone coverage
It wasn’t just Armstrong’s ability to run that was deadly for the Clemson football defense, he was extremely accurate and continued to find holes in the Tiger secondary. Clemson has to shore up that defensive backfield before D’Eriq King comes to town or it could be a long night.
The Tigers didn’t close out the game as most would’ve liked
Overall, the biggest ‘dud’ of the night was the fact that the team simply didn’t close out the game when it had the opportunity. There were several times where the offense had a chance to move down the field, score and take complete command of the game, but they didn’t.
The Clemson football team will take on the Miami Hurricanes Saturday evening in Death Valley in a game that will be televised nationally on ABC.