PFF grades for Clemson vs. The Citadel, playing time breakdown going into rivalry showdown

Bryant Wesco notched another strong PFF grade.

by Brandon Rink - Staff Writer - Nov 25, 2024, 10:03 AM

Taking a deeper look at who played and what kind of performance they put on the board out of the 51-14 win over The Citadel.

Clemson-The Citadel breakdown

The number by a player's name initially is the game's snap count. The snaps are all offensive and defensive snaps and do not count special teams. Snap totals for scholarship players and depth chart members are listed in the feature.

(PFF grades tend to run lower than school grades, so high 80 grades are on the high end, and it's a harsher grade below 60 or so. They are not an end-all, be-all, but one tool to evaluate the game.)

Offense

QB: Cade Klubnik 30 snaps (725 on the season), Christopher Vizzina 28 (85), Trent Pearman 3 (17), Paul Tyson NS (4).

PFF grade notes: Not too much to note given the reduced playing time and competition, but Klubnik graded in the middle of the pack of his season (73.4). He had more turnover-worthy plays (2) than big-time throws (1) for the first time this season (Klubnik had seven of those kind of games in starts from 2022-23). Vizzina played a career-high in snaps behind Clemson’s makeshift O-line and had a quiet day performance-wise passing, showing off most with his legs on a 35-yard run with one missed tackle forced (He had Clemson’s fourth-best run grade on the game, 65.9).

RB: Jay Haynes 16 (117), Keith Adams Jr. 14 (73), Phil Mafah 13 (584), David Eziomume 10 (26; three games of four for redshirt), Jarvis Green 6 (15).

PFF grade notes: Given his most career chances, Haynes took them and ran up some yards, grading an offense-best 76.2 as a runner, including a 70-yard TD run and three total rushes of 10+ yards. Adams Jr. and Eziomume also saw double-digit snaps and notched a missed tackle and a 10+ yard run each.

WR: Antonio Williams 25 (525), Cole Turner 25 (247), T.J. Moore 23 (388), Adam Randall 23 (220), Misun Kelley 20 (76), Bryant Wesco 19 (314), Hampton Earle 14 (42), Noble Johnson 12 (50), Tyler Brown* NS (70).

PFF grade notes: Williams continued a monster redshirt sophomore campaign with five catches for 72 yards and two touchdowns for a game-best 89.8 grade, bringing him to double-digit scores this season (10). With a more base look, Williams lined up in the slot for 100% of his snaps for the first time this season, but that was a trend the previous week at Pitt also (93.5% in the slot compared to 55% vs. Virginia Tech). Two more standout receiver game grades came from the freshman star Wesco (76; three catches for 75 yards and a TD) and walk-on Jackson Crosby (80.6; 21-yard catch).

TE: Josh Sapp 21 (107), Olsen Patt-Henry 19 (229), Christian Bentancur 9 (17; three games), Markus Dixon 3 (29), Jake Briningstool* NS (544).

PFF grade notes: With Briningstool held out (hamstring), Patt-Henry made his first career start and he made way for some more tight end playing time down the roster with the game in hand. Bentancur played in his third game this season and caught his first career pass, for seven yards.

OL: Harris Sewell 51 (455), Trent Howard 51 (178), Ryan Linthicum 49 (768), Blake Miller 31 (730), Walker Parks 28 (560), Chapman Pendergrass 22 (39), Tristan Leigh* NS (547), Marcus Tate* NS (466), Ronan O'Connell NS (7; three games), Mason Wade NS (29; three games).

PFF grade notes: Miller graded out best on the makeshift group (81.4; 83.4 in run blocking), and Sewell (75.5; 86.1 as pass blocker) and Parks (75.3) had good marks as well. Howard was up and down with the best grade as a pass blocker (86.6) and the worst in the OL group as a run blocker (45.8). With double-digit snaps, Pendergrass and Nathan Brooks notched 100% efficiency against opposing pass rushes, along with Howard and Sewell.

True freshmen Wade and O’Connell were held out, so they can play against South Carolina and still count this as a redshirt season. Tate dressed out but didn’t play in hopes for a healthier return against South Carolina as well. It will be interesting to see the mix of trust in players coming back from injury and the continuity built from having largely the same starting group for the last two games.

PFF unit performance grades: Offense - 74.5; Passing - 61.6; Pass blocking - 83.1; Receiving - 66.9; Running - 78.6; Run blocking - 65.3

Defense

DL: Jahiem Lawson 30 (319), Cade Denhoff 28 (233), Payton Page 21 (422), A.J. Hoffler 21 (204), Champ Thompson 21 (41; two games), Peter Woods 20 (234), Tré Williams 18 (265), Stephiylan Green 18 (260), T.J. Parker 16 (432), Hevin Brown-Shuler 16 (49; at redshirt count for games), Darien Mayo 12 (33; three games), Vic Burley 10 (84), Armon Mason 8 (93), Zaire Patterson 6 (26), Caden Story 5 (56), DeMonte Capehart* NS (198).

PFF grade notes: A 57-yard pick-six will earn you the top day for Clemson players grades-wise, with Page notching a career-best 90.6 (his second-best was vs. South Carolina last year with an 89.9). Some more grade standouts here for reserves: Jaheim Scott (90 in three snaps), Mayo (85.7), Mason (84), Levi Matthews (76 in four snaps) and Burley (75.1).

LB: Sammy Brown 48 (258), Barrett Carter 39 (612), Jamal Anderson 36 (78), Dee Crayton 22 (154), Drew Woodaz 7 (14; two games), C.J. Kubah-Taylor 6 (7; two games), Wade Woodaz* NS (481).

PFF grade notes: Kubah-Taylor impressed in his limited playing time (77.6 grade), and with his big brother held out again, Drew Woodaz played in his second game this season as well and notched one stop. With a career-high in snaps, Brown tallied a solid grade (70) with six stops.

DB: Kylon Griffin 46 (332), Ashton Hampton 43 (292), Khalil Barnes 36 (592), Avieon Terrell 33 (590), Ricardo Jones 32 (146), Jeadyn Lukus 29 (469), Rob Billings 16 (31), Ronan Hanafin 14 (87), Tyler Venables* 10 (160), Kylen Webb 10 (25), Corian Gipson 8 (14; three games), Sherrod Covil 7 (123), Branden Strozier 5 (73), Tavoy Feagin 2 (11; two games), Noah Dixon ST (6; two games), Joe Wilkinson ST (3; two games), R.J. Mickens* NS (525), Shelton Lewis* NS (175).

PFF grade notes: Along with Page’s pick-six, Terrell’s chase-down strip was memorable Saturday, and he graded best in the secondary (85.5) with just one target and no catches allowed. In a reserve role this week, Lukus also graded well (75.2). Reserve safety Rob Billings earned the distinction of getting tagged on The Citadel’s TD of 66 yards, to a 39.5 grade on the day.