Four in a Row and 4 and 0

For the first time ever Clemson has defeated Ga Tech four times in a row.  And for the fourth year in a row Clemson is 4 and 0.  Not bad.  I can remember when we always played Ga Tech in Atlanta – they wouldn’t come up to Clemson.  And I remember that we just could not beat them down there.  They had too much team speed.  They would run that sweep with three or four blockers leading the way and gain 8 or 10 yards or more just about every time.

Well, those days are over.  We now have a stadium almost twice as big as Bobby Dodd Stadium, so they can now afford to make the two-hour drive to Clemson every other year; and we now have the better athletes, the better system, and the better program.  I said it last year, I said it on my post last week, and I say it now – if Ga Tech cannot throw the ball effectively, they can’t beat Clemson.  And I’ll say now that until and unless Paul Johnson recruits quarterbacks who can throw the ball effectively and changes his system, he won’t beat Clemson, period.  But I don’t think Paul Johnson will be at Ga Tech long enough to accomplish that, even if he were so inclined.

I’ll admit that I was a little concerned as Ga Tech moved the ball downfield on their first drive, but as so often occurs with their triple option system, they put the ball on the ground, and our defense dominated from then on.  We held them to less than half of their rushing average, and they were only able to complete three passes for a total of 57 yards.  We beat them the same way we beat them the past three years: our defensive line penetrated and/or ate up their blockers and our linebackers and safeties made the tackles.  How about the game JD Davis had – he made 10 tackles, including 8 solo tackles, a tackle for loss, and a sack.  Tre Lamar made 4 tackles, as did Xavier Thomas and Niles Pinkney.  Christian Wilkins had a sack and two tackles for loss, in addition to all the disruption he caused.

And now the question becomes are we still a two-quarterback team or have we settled on one?  Trevor Lawrence definitely made a statement in this game that he is our most effective quarterback, but I don’t think we’ve seen the last of Kelly Bryant, nor should we have.  I think we’ll still see a two-quarterback system, but with Lawrence getting  a few more snaps than Bryant.   Of course, if we get serious pressure from any team remaining on our schedule, that could change.   I’ve also said before, on more than one occasion, that we need to get the ball to Number 9 more often.  For the second game in a row, he gained over 100 yards (122), but he only touched the ball 12 times (11 rushes and 1 receiving).  Four games into the season he’s averaging well over 8 yards per carry.  Feaster also had a solid game, rushing for 75 yards on 8 carries for a 9.4 yard average.

I think anyone who saw this game will agree that it wasn’t nearly as close as the score would indicate.  We took 72 players to Atlanta, and every one of them saw considerable playing time.  Ga Tech’s first score came after a fluke interception deep in our territory on a screen pass intended for Etienne, where one of our offensive linemen moved into the path of the ball as Lawrence released it, and the ball bounced off his back into the arms of a Tech lineman.  I like the fact that when we have a game under control, Dabo will leave his reserves in even when they are giving up points.   He’s never shown an inclination to run up the score on an inferior opponent to impress the pundits.  Let’s just hope and trust that the evaluation committee recognizes that when it comes time to pick the final four.  I think they will.

So now let’s go on and abuse Syracuse.

GO TIGERS!!!!