On This Date: 1990 (10)Clemson- 59 Long Beach St- 0
Sep 1, 2022, 9:39 AM
09/01/1990 Clemson, SC
CLEMSON OPENS SEASON WITH SHUT-OUT; POURS IT ON LONG BEACH, ALLEN 59-0
Ken Pivernetz, Knight-Ridder Newspapers CHICAGO TRIBUNE
It was a new feeling for George Allen, but an all-too-familiar experience for Long Beach State on Saturday.
Allen`s long-awaited debut as head coach of the Long Beach 49ers resulted in the worst loss in school history.
Clemson, scoring 38 points as a result of Long Beach turnovers, rolled to a 59-0 victory before a crowd of 72,500.
The previous worst losses had been by 53 points last year at Hawaii and to UCLA in 1988.
''I don`t think that these types of games help the winner or the loser. It`s not fair to the kids,'' Allen said.
''This is a new experience for Coach George Allen to get beat 59-0. What I told the players is that we`ll take this out on somebody else.''
Long Beach was limited to five first downs and only 57 yards to show for 52 plays on offense.
Its deepest penetration was the Clemson 42 in the third quarter, where on third down quarterback Todd Studer was dropped for a 15-yard loss and fumbled away the football.
That was one of five turnovers by Allen`s young team, which had 36 players participating in their first Division I-A contest.
Long Beach`s initial mistake was turned into a 55-yard interception return for a touchdown by rover Arlington Nunn.
It was 28-0 at halftime, and 35-0 after the first play of the second half when Doug Thomas returned the kickoff 98 yards.
The Tigers divided 330 yards rushing among 11 different backs. Fullback Howard Hall led the way with 78 yards on 10 carries, including one TD.