Antonio Williams says offensive explosion stems from confidence

Antonio Williams put together a multi-touchdown quarter against NC State.

Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Sunday, September 22 2024

CLEMSON - Redshirt sophomore receiver Antonio Williams notched a multi-touchdown effort with two receiving scores in the first quarter to help the Tigers jump out to a 28-0 lead in another dominant win, 59-35, over NC State Saturday.

Williams sees a confident Clemson offense.

“Last week versus App State, it was just our first time really doing it on the field. So, now we’ve seen it happen before, so we know it can be done. So now, we just got to go out every game and prove it,” Williams said. “I think we’re very confident right now. We’ve been gaining confidence all through the (summer), and it’s starting to translate onto the field, and we were disappointed in that first game. But now, our confidence is definitely growing.”

Junior quarterback Cade Klubnik had a 55-yard rushing touchdown on the opening drive to give the Tigers an early 7-0 lead before Williams scored the next two touchdowns. It also marks the first time in his career he has scored a touchdown in consecutive games, after scoring a 29-yard touchdown against Appalachian State in Clemson’s first home game en route to their 66-20 victory. The dramatic change in offensive production and explosive plays is something Williams attributes to Klubnik stepping up as a leader.

“He’s taking practice and putting it into the game, and he’s just developed into more of a leader,” Williams said. “Last year, I think he said himself that he was trying (to) be a leader, but he didn’t really feel like he was being heard. So now, everybody on the team respects him. So, I think that’s the biggest difference.”

The Tigers also generated two huge fumble recoveries in the first quarter. One of those set up a touchdown for Williams, while the other set up a 38-yard rushing touchdown from Phil Mafah. This highlights the importance of all three phases working together, which head coach Dabo Swinney often emphasizes.

“I think that’s huge,” Williams said. “Coach Swinney always talks about a triple-braided cord - offense, defense and special teams - and when we have all those three groups playing good, (we are) very hard to beat.”

In this victory, 10 different players caught a pass. So many players being involved in the passing game highlights the depth the Tigers have at wide receiver. Furthermore, it sets them up for the future, as numerous second- and third-team players on both sides of the ball got some playing time, some of them still going against NC State’s starters.

“We have the most (wide receiver) depth since I’ve been here. So, when one guy goes down, it’s next man up and that standard won’t change. Whoever’s out there, we expect the same plays to be made, and I think we showed that this week,” Williams said. “It’s very important for guys that (are) second- and third-term, just being in that atmosphere and getting the opportunity to make those plays (because the game) and practice (are) very different. So, those guys (gain) a lot of confidence for being out there. NC State still had their first-term out for a while, too. So, once we put in our second-team, they didn’t take out their guys -- kept their first-team in. So, it was good to see them get some reps.”

We mic'd up @a_williams2022's mom during the game yesterday and let's just say we picked a good game for it. 🐅🧡 pic.twitter.com/XOKHOf6NA6
— Clemson Football (@ClemsonFB) September 22, 2024