After a successful season opener on the road at Wake Forest over the weekend, the top ranked Tigers now turn their attention towards The Citadel Bulldogs. While it may be an overmatched FCS opponent, there are still things to keep an eye on in Death Valley this weekend.
The Bulldogs opened their season last weekend against former Clemson co-offensive coordinator Jeff Scott’s USF Bulls. They were able to put up a respectable fight but were just undermanned in a 27-6 loss.
There were some bright spots for The Citadel though. They were able to bottle up the South Florida passing attack, holding Bulls quarterback Jordan McCloud (brother of Ray Ray McCloud) to 11-16 and just 68 yards. In total they allowed just 102 yards through the air.
However, stopping the run was an entirely different matter. South Florida was able to rush for more than 300 yards and averaged more than seven yards per carry. That does not bode well for them this weekend facing a Clemson offense that seems to be dead set on making the running game a priority this season.
On offense, the Bulldogs option attack picked up 200 rushing yards in the contest but only were able to average 3.7 yards per carry. Fifth year senior quarterback Brandon Rainey wasn’t any better, hitting on just 4 of his 18 passes for 84 yards, with one interception.
Let’s be honest, this should be nothing more than a glorified scrimmage. If there is one thing to really keep an eye on it will be how some of the younger players on the defensive side of the ball for Clemson respond to playing against the triple option for the first time at this level.
Another thing to look for is how some of the younger players further down the depth chart have developed from week one to week two. Overall, the youngsters looked good last week, but there were some areas in which they could improve.
