Clemson vs. NC State Prediction: Can the Tigers smack the Pack?

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High noon in Death Valley? Sign me up.

Clemson returns from a week off to take on NC State in the Textile Bowl Saturday in Death Valley. NC State stands 2-1 but struggled in wins over Louisiana Tech and Western Carolina and had its doors blown off by Tennessee in Charlotte.

Clemson rebounded from a loss to Georgia to defeat Appalachian St. 66-20 two weeks ago.

NO. 21/19 CLEMSON (1-1, 0-0 ACC) vs. UR/RV NC STATE (2-1, 0-0 ACC)

WHEN: SATURDAY, SEPT. 21, NOON ET
WHERE: MEMORIAL STADIUM (81,500), CLEMSON, S.C.
TELEVISION: ABC (Sean McDonough, Greg McElroy, Molly McGrath)
RADIO: Clemson Athletic Network (Don Munson, Tim Bourret, Reggie Merriweather)
SATELLITE RADIO: SiriusXM 82

CLEMSON/NC STATE SERIES HISTORY:

- OVERALL: Clemson leads series, 60-30-1
- HOME: Clemson leads series, 30-11-1
- ROAD: Clemson leads series, 22-18
- NEUTRAL: Clemson leads series, 8-1
- LAST MEETING: Oct. 28, 2023 (24-17, L)
- STREAK: NC State, Won 1

NOTABLE

*Clemson enters the game with an all-time program record of 799-473-45. A win Saturday would make Clemson the 14th FBS program (and first ACC program) ever to win 800 games.

*Saturday's game will be the 1,318th game in Clemson Football history. To date, Clemson's fastest stretch of 100 victories between each milestone came when it needed only 134 games to move from 400 all-time wins to 500. If Clemson were to win on Saturday, the Tigers would have needed only 118 games to move from 700 all-time wins to 800.

*Clemson is seeking its 17th win in a 20-game span in its series with NC State. Clemson’s eight-game winning streak from 2012-19 was the longest winning streak by either team in series history.

*Clemson is attempting to extend the longest home winning streak in series history by winning a 10th straight home game against NC State at Memorial Stadium, dating to 2004. The last time NC State won in Clemson was in 2002 in a game branded by ESPN as “College Football Thursday Night presented by Circuit City.”

*Clemson has suffered only 44 losses under Head Coach Dabo Swinney. Clemson has had 31 previous opportunities to avenge its most recent loss against an opponent, going 21-10 in those contests. Including NC State, there are 13 opponents against which Swinney’s squads are awaiting a rematch since Clemson’s last loss in the series: Nebraska, TCU, USF, West Virginia, LSU, Ohio State, Pitt, Tennessee, Duke, Florida State, Miami (Fla.) and Georgia.

*The 2024 season marks Clemson’s 72nd year of membership in the ACC, dating back to the conference’s first year of play in 1953. In its previous 71 seasons of ACC membership, Clemson has posted a 44-26-1 record in conference openers. Clemson has won eight of its last nine ACC openers. Clemson’s eight-year winning streak in conference openers from 2015-22 was Clemson’s longest such streak in school history. Swinney is 10-5 in ACC openers at Clemson, with four of the five losses coming on the road.

*By virtue of the 2024 calendar affording double open dates, Saturday’s game follows the first of Clemson’s two regular-season open dates in 2024. The 2024 season marks Clemson’s fifth year with multiple open dates since 2013, joining the 2013, 2014, 2019 and 2020 seasons. Clemson has played 64 regular season games following open dates since 1953 and has a 43-21 mark in those contests and a 14-3 record in those games since 2011. Clemson is 16-4 under Dabo Swinney in games immediately following regular season open dates.

A LOOK AT NC STATE

NC State will start true freshman CJ Bailey against the Tigers, his first collegiate start, and he doesn’t have history on his side. I enlisted the help of the legendary Tim Bourret in figuring out how many freshman quarterbacks have won in Death Valley. Since 2000, there have been just four – Darian Durant of UNC, Chris Rix of FSU, Tyrod Taylor of Virginia Tech, and Jameis Winston of FSU. Taylor was the only true freshman of that bunch, and none of those were first starts. Past that, you had to go back to Shawn Jones of Georgia Tech (1989) and Ben Bennett of Duke (1980).

However, NC State head coach Dave Doeren has been coy about erstwhile starting quarterback Grayson McCall’s injury. The Clemson coaching staff has prepared for both, and it wouldn’t surprise anyone to see McCall on the field at some point. Prior to his injury last week, McCall was 50-of-75 for 476 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions.

Kevin KC Concepion is the gamebreaker on the State offense, and he has 22 receptions for 199 yards and three scores. Jordan Waters leads the rushing attack but has just 156 yards on the season. The NC State defense ranks 83rd nationally and has given up over six yards per play in two of the three games (Western Carolina and Tennessee).

A LOOK AT CLEMSON

The Tigers set records for points scored and yards gained in a half against App State two weeks ago, and Cade Klubnik set career highs in passing yards and touchdowns, and tight end Jake Briningstool and wide receiver Bryant Wesco Jr. recorded at least 100 receiving yards each. Running back Phil Mafah broke loose for an 83-yard scoring run and the offensive line not only didn’t give up any sacks, the Mountaineers barely generated pressure.

And that might be the key to which Clemson offense we see this week – NC State has registered just four sacks this season but will more than likely send plenty of pressure Klubnik’s way. The 3-3-5 defense has given the Tigers trouble over the years, and if the Tigers want to experience the same type of success they enjoyed against App State, they have to stay aggressive, use the entire field, and push the ball down the field. As we learned – the offense works when you stretch the field. When you don’t stretch the field and every route is five yards or less, the offense doesn’t work.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN

Tennessee was balanced in its win over the Pack, with 211 yards through the air and 249 on the ground. The Pack did intercept Tennessee twice but failed to generate significant pressure. Expect Clemson to run Phil Mafah but still take shots down the field. I have no idea what to expect from Bailey, but I am reminded of the FSU game in 2017.

The Seminoles started gangly freshman James Blackman against the Tigers, and he struggled through a 13-for-32 day and linebacker Tre Lamar almost broke Blackman in half.

NC State is good enough to cause problems, and if the Tigers’ offense reverts to the one we’ve seen the last three seasons, it’s going to be another slogfest. If we see the Clemson offense we saw two weeks ago, the Tigers run away with it and cover the spread.

FINAL SCORE: CLEMSON 34, NC STATE 13

TigerNet picks

David Hood - TigerNet senior writer - 34-13 Clemson
Mickey Plyler - The Roar 105.5 morning show host - 38-16 Clemson
Nikki Hood - Staff writer - 42-20 Clemson
Brandon Rink - Associate editor - 30-13 Clemson
Tony Crumpton - Associate editor - 28-10 Clemson
Ryan Kantor - Contributing Writer - 35-14 Clemson
Ariana Pensy - Intern - 34-17 Clemson
Merrell Mann - Photographer - 38-17 Clemson
Brooks Thomason - Intern - 31-10 Clemson
Grayson Mann - Staff writer - 31-10 Clemson

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