Clemson can’t undo the Duke debacle, the late game collapse against Florida State, or the 2-2 start. It is what it is.
What Clemson can do is get better, build confidence, and don’t let the start entirely derail the season. While the playoffs are gone, there’s still an outside shot at the ACC Title game, a 10-win top 10 season, and a major bowl.
Saturday was a dangerous game at 4-0 Syracuse. How would Clemson respond? Would there still be a Florida State hangover?
Clemson took a 14-0 lead on Syracuse and took the crowd out of the game early. There were still some hiccups along the way as Syracuse closed the lead to 24-14 following a Clemson turnover late in the 2nd half, but this was generally a game Clemson largely controlled and that was in no small part to the play of QB Cade Klubnik.
Klubnik is progressing. There is no doubt about it. He had an efficient 263 yards in the air with 2 TDs and most importantly no turnovers. Saturday he completed some nice throws on the run. He stepped up in the pocket to complete passes when under pressure and made some timely runs out of pocket.
The Tigers still lack elite speed at wideout, but players like Tyler Brown, Beaux Collins, and Troy Stellato are getting open and making plays.
Clemson is starting to display a pretty good-looking passing game. That’s something we haven’t seen since Trevor Lawrence was playing QB for the Tigers.
To go along with one of the best defenses in the country, Klubnik’s progression is giving Clemson a chance to make something of this season.
The Syracuse game was a good rebound win after the tough FSU loss.
I believe they’ll take care of Wake Forest next week, and go into the BYE week 4-2.
It’s not where Clemson wanted to be, but they are showing they still have the potential to make some noise this season.
