Clemson Football Oppo Research: Appalachian State Mountaineers

In most seasons that Clemson Football opens with a tough opponent away from home, it is usually followed by a home game against an opponent which the Tigers would be favored by 20+ points. That probably won't be the case in 2024.

What: Appalachian State Mountaineers at Clemson Tigers

When: September 7th at 8:00 PM

Where: Clemson Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina

Series History: Clemson leads the all-time series 5-0-0. Their last meeting was in 2015 in Death Valley when Clemson won 41-10. That was the only game played between the programs since Appalachian State moved to the FBS in 2014.

Appalachian State 2023 Statistics

All stats per teamrankings.com against FBS competition only

Points per game: 32.3 (26th)

Yards per game: 449.8 (15th)

Points allowed per game: 27.2 (68th)

Yards allowed per game: 380.3 (60th)

Normally, Clemson fans can relax a little bit easier when the Tigers host a Group of Five program. This season is not normal.

The Tigers will follow up their huge opening game against national championship contender Georgia with a night game against Death Valley against the Mountaineers. Regardless of the outcome in Atlanta the weekend before, the environment will be charged and Tiger Nation will be eager to see first-hand what the team has in store for 2024.

On paper, the Tigers have the advantage on both sides of the ball but they definitely can jump to conclusions about their opponent.

App’s offense was very good last season. Quarterback Joey Aguilar returns to run an offense that ranked in the Top 20 in yards per game last season. Granted, that was against a Sun Belt schedule, but don’t forget that they pushed North Carolina (with Drake Maye) to two overtimes in Chapel Hill.

Aguilar will have most of his receiving group back, but there will be turnover at running back and on the offensive line.

If Clemson’s defense is as good as we expect them to be, the Tigers will have an advantage, but it won’t be overwhelming. The Mountaineers will attempt to take advantage of a talented but overall inexperienced Clemson secondary (which will start at least two, possibly three, true sophomores).

The defense for Appalachian State didn’t fare as well last season, but they do return eight starters and added a starting safety via the transfer portal. That said, Clemson’s offense will have an opportunity to put some points on the scoreboard.

This game should give us an early read on what the offensive line is capable of this season. The Mountaineers’ defensive line is experienced but physically disadvantaged against the larger Clemson O-line. Phil Mafah should be able to make consistent contributions with the ground game.

That should open the door for Cade Klubnik and his pass catchers. The App secondary will feature a senior and four juniors, but not all of them have had regular playing time during their careers. The senior, transfer Myles Farmer, hasn’t been a regular starter since 2022 at Nebraska and he spent a year at Syracuse since then.

To repeat: on paper, Clemson has the advantage in talent. It’s the intangibles that could trip up the Tigers here. It may sound weird to say this about a Week 2 matchup against a respected program like App State, but this is a trap game. It follows a huge opening game against a long-time rival. It precedes a bye week (two bye weeks in 2024) and a home matchup against ACC rival NC State, who is a popular pick to challenge for a spot in the ACC Tournament game.

Then there is that little thing Clemson has about games before the bye week where they tend to be flat. I don't think that should be a factor with a bye this early in the season, but you never know.