3 biggest winners and 3 losers from Clemson's soul-crushing road loss at LSU

Now that the dust has settled a bit, let's try to glean anything positive out of Clemson's brutal beatdown at LSU in Week 1. While it is easy to pile on all that went wrong in Baton Rouge, maybe there is something Clemson can look to build on heading into Week 2's home opener vs. Georgia Southern? Yes, there is plenty of bad tape to go around, but let's find the good.

Let's be real. The only way Clemson will be able to regain control of this season's narrative is by putting one foot in front of the other. That starts by playing exponentially better against Georgia Southern in Week 2. However, there is still so much this team needs to clean up to get ready for ACC play in two weeks. North Carolina did not look like a total pushover in its Week 0 win over TCU in Dublin.

As far as Clemson's winners and losers from the LSU game, some were more obvious than others.

Winner: Ashton Hampton leaned on film study during early interception

The most positive takeaway from Clemson's brutally bad showing on Saturday night was the sound play of its star cornerback Ashton Hampton. He had the second highest PFF grade of anyone on the Clemson roster at 81 behind only linebacker Sammy Brown at 83. One of the few highlights from the game was Hampton's interception of Sam Leavitt in the first quarter. His student mentality shined.

During the telecast, ESPN made it a point to say that Hampton watched so much film of Leavitt and the Lane Kiffin offense to be in the right spot to make the timely pick. Nolan Hauser rewarded him for his efforts by nailing his 49-yard field goal attempt. It was only the fourth interception of his Clemson career, but the potential future first-round pick set the tone for LSU not to throw much in his direction.

If Hampton can look like this during ACC play, Clemson will begin to rattle off more wins than losses.

Loser: Dabo Swinney is losing the plot in record time with Clemson

It only took one half before most of the Clemson family started to turn on Dabo Swinney for good. Saturday night's humiliation at LSU was the epitome of a referendum of the Swinney era of Clemson football. Everything that he said would be different this year was clearly not on display for the Tigers in this one. LSU beat Clemson like a drum in seemingly every measure. It could be the end for him.

Not only did he largely skate around taking ownership of this loss, but the national media began to pile on him in record time. The Swinney era of Clemson football peaked from 2015 to 2020. He had two generational quarterbacks play for him in short order in Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence. Perhaps Brent Venables was truly the secret sauce for this program? The Clemson of old is no more.

Frankly, it is no longer a matter of if, but a matter of when this era of Clemson football shall be ending.

Winner: Corey Myrick hit his stride after transferring from Southern Miss

In continuation of Hampton's strong performance in the back end of the defense, newcomer Corey Myrick did not look like a Group of Six player for Clemson. The Southern Miss transfer came in and looked the part at safety. He tied Brown with a team high 10 tackles, six of which were solo. It may be in part Clemson's run defense being pedestrian, but Myrick looked solid in the last line of defense.

LSU may have thrown for 335 yards on 36 attempts in this game, but the ground game giving up 309 yards on 58 carries is easily the biggest concern for Clemson's defense. Tom Allen has so much to work on with his unit moving forward. However, his defensive backs were not among the biggest issues plaguing Clemson in this one. The additions of Myrick and Jerome Carter III have been strong.

Myrick holding his own in a challenging spot for the entire Clemson defense is something positive.

Loser: Christopher Vizzina was not ready for his big moment whatsoever

Although it is too early to say Clemson is in the midst of a quarterback controversy, Week 1 starter Christopher Vizzina did not look the part of a savvy veteran signal-caller. He completed 10-of-16 passes for 83 yards and an interception. The pick-six thrown to Jordan Ross was the momentum shifter for LSU that quickly put this game out of reach. Vizzina was not prepared to play in this game.

It did not help that he had no support in the running game. While a few of his passes thrown in Bryant Wesco Jr.'s direction looked serviceable enough to work in the ACC, LSU is a serious threat to make the College Football Playoff out of the SEC. Vizzina's backup in true freshman Tait Reynolds was not ready for this huge moment either, but we would have thought Vizzina's so-called poise would have emerged.

While Vizzina does speak with confidence at the podium, his weak play leaves so much to be desired.

Winner: Easton Ware filled in well for Collin Sadler, all things considered

It was anything but a banner day for Clemson's offensive line. The pass protection looked disjointed from the start. Its run blocking was even worse throughout. While Matt Luke's once-promising unit looked like a bunch of FCS stiffs for most of this game, we should give Easton Ware a shoutout for at least holding his own at right tackle. He had to come in and replace an injured Collin Sadler right away.

Yes, it was a baptism by fire for the entire Clemson front five. However, Ware was not the reason this team lost in the trenches. While PFF gave all five starters in this one along the Clemson offensive line a mediocre 49 grade, Ware had a longer way to go than the other five starters. Simply put, if Sadler proves to be an unreliable player for the Tigers moving forward, Chad Morris can trust Ware instead.

Luke's offensive line needs to come together fast, but Ware showed he could be part of the best five.

Loser: Brayden Jacobs did not play like Clemson's best offensive lineman

Without question, the most embarrassing play from Saturday night was Brayden Jacobs' whiff of a block on LSU linebacker Whit Weeks. A poorly-designed protection allowed LSU's All-American contender to sprint on through past Jacobs and guard Elyjah Thurmon. At least Thurmon was able to get in front of someone. Jacobs just stood there. So much for him being the leader of this front five...

The game may have already been getting out of hand when Weeks tackled running back Gideon Davidson for a loss. However, the running game was supposed to be much improved for the Tigers. Luke, Morris, and even Jacobs talked at nauseam about it all offseason long. Instead, Clemson only managed just 1.5 yards per carry. The Tigers were held yard-less on the ground until garbage time.

It was nearly impossible to distinguish who the best and worst offensive lineman was for Clemson.

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