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Clemson vs. Syracuse: The Orange Dominate the Tigers 34-21

Welcome back everyone. Last week the Tigers lost a heartbreaker in Atlanta as Georgia Tech won on a last-second field goal. Having dropped out of the top 25, Clemson looked to get back on track against Syracuse today and came in as 17-point favorites in Death Valley. After watching today’s effort I wonder if they’ll be favorites against Furman, much less anyone else. The way they are playing, they shouldn’t be favorites against anybody. Syracuse came in with a plan and an attitude. The Tigers didn’t seem to have either. The final score was 34-21 and this Tiger team is in a serious funk.

The Orange got the ball first and on the second play ripped off a 32-yard run after missed tackles by the Tiger defense. A couple of plays later Syracuse QB Steve Angeli ran 8 yards up the middle. Clearly the Orange came in with a plan to go right after the heart of the Tiger defense. A few plays later, the Orange scored on a 12-yard TD pass to take a 7-0 lead with 11 minutes to go in the 1st quarter.

Syracuse recovered an onside kick and got the ball again at their 46. The Tigers forced 4th & 2 but the Orange converted it with a 15-yard pass down to the Tiger 31. Syracuse kept moving, hitting slant after slant down to the Tiger 5. The defense stiffened after that with a couple of blocked passes and the Orange had to settle for a 23-yard FG to increase their lead to 10-0 with 7:40 left in the quarter. After the touchback on the kickoff, Clemson took over at their 25. Antonio Williams had a couple of catches to move the chains and Adam Randall had a couple of nice runs to move into Orange territory. On 4th & 1, Peter Woods came in and got the Tigers a 1st down. On the next play Cade Klubnik hit Bryant Wesco Jr. for a 38-yard TD. After Nolan Hauser’s extra point kick, the score was 10-7 Syracuse with 3:21 to go in the 1st quarter.

The Orange started their drive at their 25 and moved into Clemson territory. Behind some good blocking they ran the ball effectively and got to the Clemson 9 yard line as the 1st quarter ended. One the 1st play of the 2nd quarter, the Orange ran right up the middle of the Tiger defense for the score. Four seconds into the 2nd quarter Syracuse led 17-7. After a kick out of bounds, Clemson got the ball at their 35. They moved into Orange territory but then the drive fizzled. The punt could have been downed at the 1 but the Tiger defender caught it and stepped into the end zone instead of deflecting it back into the field of play.

The Orange started their drive getting some yardage and helped by a very questionable roughing the passer penalty, but they put themselves in a big hole with a holding penalty. The Tigers appeared to have stopped them but another roughing penalty gave Syracuse another chance. with a 1st down at the Tiger 37. A couple of plays later they scored on a 22-yard TD pass. It was 24-7 Orange with 9 minutes left in the 1st half. The Tigers responded with what has become a typically inept drive and punted. The Orange took over at their 24.

Syracuse drove into Tiger territory and ended up at 4th & 6. The pooch punt was downed at the Tiger 9. The offense showed a bit of a spark with Klubnik finally throwing some accurate passes as they moved to the Orange 22. T.J. Moore caught a 19-yard pass and got to the 3. A few plays and penalties later Klubnik hit Randall for a 6-yard TD. Syracuse led 24-14 with about a minute left in the half.

The Orange moved out near midfield but ended up having to punt. Randall had a 39-yard to the Syracuse 41 with 5 seconds left in the half. The Tigers tried a hail mary but it fell incomplete as the clock expired.

After a 1.5 hour weather delay, the teams came back out and Randall ran the kickoff back to the 24. He started the drive with runs of 10, 13 and 10 yards on quick pitch sweeps. A short run and an incomplete pass put the Tigers at 3rd & 7 and a false start pushed them back to 3rd & 12. They couldn’t convert and had to punt. Syracuse started at their 11. A 59-yard pass put them at the Clemson 31. The defense recovered and forced a 49-yard FG attempt that sailed through the uprights to extend the Orange lead to 27-14 at 11:45 in the 3rd quarter.

Clemson had a good drive going but on 3rd & 1 Klubnik got stuffed on a designed run. They went for it on 4th but the pass fell incomplete. You have 3rd & 1 and then 4th and 1 with a running back averaging 9 yards per carry. A QB run and a pass are not the right call. Syracuse was unable to move the ball on their possession and punted. Clemson would start from their 14.

The Tiger offense responded exactly as we’ve come to expect recently: a dud. Syracuse started moving down the field but their starting QB suffered a lower leg injury and left the game. The Tiger defense forced a punt and gave the ball back to the offense at the Tiger 15. The offense came through with a fumble. They scored on the next play. It was 34-14 Syracuse with a couple of minutes left in the quarter.

Randall ran the kickoff back to the 30. They moved well into Orange territory and then the play calling got stupid again and they failed to convert on 4th down. Cade mad some bad plays on the drive and I was chuckling at the pre-season hype about his being a Heisman candidate. Too many throws were way off and his pre-snap reads were lacking to say the least. So far he has defined “senior slump”. The defense responded with a good series and forced a punt.

The Tiger offense had some good plays to move inside the Orange 10 using fast tempo. Klubnik hit Wesco for the score to make it 34-21 with 9 minutes left. The defense held firm and forced a punt.

The Tiger offense needed a good drive to attempt a comeback and they responded with another dud. Cade Klubnik is having an awful year, overthrowing receivers about as often he connects with them.

After 4 games, I think Tiger fans now know what they have: a team full of talent who can’t win games. A couple of weeks ago I wondered if the Tigers might be the 2025 version of 2024 FSU. I believe we are there. They are lacking in the execution of the fundamentals: blocking and tackling and don’t seem to have a fire in their bellies. I put that squarely on Dabo Sweeney. This team is underperforming big time and the buck stops with him. What do you think?