Tigers lock down star Stanford receiver, bend but don't break in red zone

Avieon Terrell got to showcase his skill against a pro prospect in Elic Ayomanor of Stanford.

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Sep 29, 2024, 10:26 AM

CLEMSON - Sophomore cornerback Avieon Terrell helped shift momentum in Clemson’s favor in the Tigers’ decisive win over new ACC foe Stanford.

After the Cardinal got down to the Clemson seven line, Terrell made a critical interception in the endzone to set up a Tiger field goal, allowing them to take a 10-0 lead.

Stanford challenged the Tigers in the first quarter like no other team had this season. In fact, Clemson had not allowed a team to enter the red zone in the first quarter the entire season until Stanford did so in their second drive of the game. They made two red zone trips in the first quarter, both of them ending in interceptions.

“We know that quarterback (likes) to scramble a lot and most of his touchdowns (are) scramble touchdowns to (redshirt sophomore receiver Elic Ayomanor). So, I knew to stay on him, make the play,” Terrell said. “It helped a lot because they got into the red zone twice and we (got) the turnover twice.”

Ayomanor had a breakout season last year with 1,013 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns. In the first three games of this season, he had 17 receptions for 234 yards and a touchdown. However against the Tigers, despite being targeted 11 times, Ayomanor only had four receptions for 50 yards. He did score Stanford’s only first half points on a 19-yard touchdown. Terrell said the plan all week was to take him out of the game and the Tigers were mostly successful in that endeavor.

“That was the play all week, take (Ayomanor) out the game,” Terrell said. “So, I feel like we did that a little bit. But, we could have been better.”

In Clemson’s third game at home, they also got their third win of the season. Now, they will go on the road to face Florida State on Sat. Oct. 5 (7 p.m. / ESPN) in a matchup against their old quarterback, graduate D.J. Uiagalelei. After getting this victory, and facing a little adversity along the way, Terrell says the team has a lot of confidence going into this game.

“It felt good to get (our) third win at home before we go on the road, give us a lot of momentum,” Terrell said. “We (are) confident. It (feels) good … We’re communicating (and) I think that (helps) us a lot, just communicating on the field.”

Florida State was the favorite to win the conference going into the season. But, they only have one win this season - a 14-9 victory against California. In their most recent game, they were blown out by another new ACC member, SMU, 42-16. Uiagalelei threw three interceptions in that game for four games in a row with at least one interception.

However, this will be another important ACC matchup for Clemson. Miami remains defeated after an incredibly close call against Virginia Tech while Louisville dropped their first game of the season against Notre Dame. Seven ACC teams have an undefeated conference record, however, making every game crucial as the Tigers seek to return to Charlotte, win the ACC Championship and secure a spot in the new 12-team College Football Playoff.