Clemson QB Tajh Boyd States His Heisman Case in Blowout of North Carolina

Is it too early to start calling Clemson quarterback Tajh Boyd this year’s Cam Newton?

While Boyd may not have the national notoriety that Newton had when he became the breakout star of college football last season, the first-year starter is having a similar type of impact for Clemson this year.

Boyd has been one of the main reasons that the Tigers have gone from unranked afterthought to national title contender.

The supremely athletic sophomore signal-caller has guided Clemson to an 8-0 record and a Top 10 national ranking. After his electric performance against North Carolina this afternoon, it may be time to start discussing him as a legitimate Heisman contender.

Boyd had his best performance of the season against the Tar Heels today, throwing for 367 yards and hitting five touchdown strikes in a 59-38 rout.

The sensational showing bumps Boyd’s numbers up to over 2,300 passing yards and 24 touchdowns passes for the season.

Once looked at as an unproven question mark in the offseason, the former 5-star recruit has lived up to his high school billing after finally being handed the keys to the Clemson offense.

Auburn, Florida State and Virginia Tech have all felt his wrath this season, and now he can add North Carolina to his list of victims.

So far, it’s been Clemson’s freshman sensation Sammy Watkins who has been getting most of the Heisman publicity for the Tigers, but after today’s game, Boyd deserves to be right there with him in the conversation.

It’s debatable who has benefited from the other more, but one thing’s for sure, with those two dynamic playmakers in the fold, it’s time to start taking this Clemson team seriously.

The Tigers have slowly worked their way up the rankings after knocking off three ranked teams in a row, and now they sit at No. 7 in the BCS standings with a realistic chance of running the table this season.

We’ll have to see if Boyd and his Tigers can keep the momentum going next week when they visit Atlanta to take on Georgia Tech, a match-up that could be a preview of the ACC championship game.

Clemson still has three tricky road games remaining on its schedule, but even if the Tigers falter down the stretch, you still have to appreciate the run that Boyd and the boys in orange have put together this season.