Clemson vs. NC State: Game Grades, Analysis for the Tigers

It was a wild and crazy game, but the Clemson Tigers escaped Carter-Finley Stadium with a 56-41 win over the North Carolina State Wolfpack. It was a big day for both quarterbacks, as Clemson's Deshaun Watson and N.C. State's Jacoby Brissett combined for 10 total touchdowns. 

Watson was 23-of-30 passing for 383 yards and five passing touchdowns. He also added 54 yards and a score on the ground. Brissett threw for 254 yards and three touchdowns, and he added another score on the ground. His elusiveness was on full display Saturday, as he often evaded Clemson tacklers and kept plays alive. 

The first half started off with a frenzy of points, as the score was 16-13 after the first quarter. The two teams traded quarterback touchdown runs to start things off, but it was the 100-yard kickoff return by Nyheim Hines that put N.C. State up, 13-7, early on. The two teams both scored touchdowns right before the half, and it was the Tigers that held the 26-20 lead at the intermission. 

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Clemson jumped up by 20 points late in the third quarter, but N.C. State fought hard and never went away. The Tigers defense was pushed to its limits today—giving up 389 yards of total offense—but it made the big plays it needed to late in the game to preserve the lead. 

N.C. State's offense gave Clemson all it wanted today, but the defense failed to come up with many stops. The Wolfpack allowed 623 yards of total offense and gave up way too many chunk plays in the second half. 

It was the balanced attack offensively that stood out the most from the Tigers, as they passed for 383 yards and rushed for 240 yards. Running back Wayne Gallman rushed for 172 yards and averaged 5.5 yards per carry. 

For the Wolfpack, they will travel to Boston College next Saturday as they attempt to move to 2-2 in ACC play. The Tigers have the big showdown with Florida State in a week that will likely decide the ACC Atlantic, so they have to regroup and refocus quickly.

You can find the complete box score for this game here, per NCAA.com. 

Positional Unit	First-Half Grade	Final Grade
Passing Offense	A-	A+
Rushing Offense	A	A+
Pass Defense	B-	C+
Run Defense	C	B-
Special Teams	C	B-
Coaching	A	A

Passing Offense

The Tigers found a ton of success through the air in this game. Watson threw for 186 yards in the first half, and he had some big passing touchdowns in the second half as well. He averaged 12.8 yards per completion and was almost perfect throwing down the field. He had touchdown passes of 42, 57, 40, 35, and 36 yards. 

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N.C. State struggled to stop the run early on, but after adjustments were made, the Tigers were able to find success on deep passes. Watson completed passes to eight different receivers in this game, so the passing attack was balanced. 

Rushing Offense

One of the season's biggest surprises has been the Tigers' ability to consistently run the ball. The offensive line was dominant a week ago versus Miami, and it did not disappoint in this one. Gallman had 74 yards at the half and finished with 172 yards and a touchdown on the ground. It was a masterful effort from this group that totaled 240 rushing yards as a team and averaged 4.8 yards per carry. 

Watson was also dangerous in the running game, going for 54 yards and a touchdown. His ability to run the ball has kept defenses on their heels and opened up holes for Gallman and Zac Brooks. 

Pass Defense

Brissett ended up with good numbers through the air—254 yards and three touchdowns—but the Tigers secondary came up with plays when they had to. N.C. State had some chunk plays through the air, but overall, it wasn't a terrible performance from this group. 

Cornerback Cordrea Tankersley was in a good position on one touchdown reception, and he came up with a big play on fourth down in the fourth quarter to help preserve the 56-41 lead. 

Run Defense

It was probably the worst performance from the defense in regards to stopping the run, but N.C. State still only came away with 135 yards on the ground. There were a couple of long rushing plays—a 41-yarder by Matt Dayes and a 66-yarder by Jaylen Samuels—but the Tigers also had their share of negative stops. 

The two long plays drove the overall total yards up, but the Tigers will have to shore up on the little mistakes before Florida State comes to town. 

Special Teams 

There were two sides to the play of the special teams on Saturday, so we give the performance here a B-minus. Greg Huegel was a perfect 3-of-3 on his field-goal attempts, but there were also some glaring issues with this unit.

The Wolfpack had two big kickoff returns, with one going 100 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter. The Tigers also missed on two extra-point attempts, but the solid field-goal kicking evens it out here. 

Coaching 

The offensive play-calling was excellent on Saturday. We have seen improvements with each game from co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott, and it was another solid day at the office on Saturday. It was clear that the Tigers once again wanted to control the line of scrimmage with the running game, but Elliott also called a number of deep passes that gave a perfect balance to the offensive attack. 

The defense allowed some big plays, but it wasn't really anything schematic. Defensive coordinator Brent Venables called a good game and brought pressure at the right times, but it was missed tackles and poor angles that hurt this unit.