On This Date: 1989 (7)Clemson- 31 Maryland- 7

Sep 23, 2021, 3:20 PM

9/23/1989
Clemson, SC

No Power Loss: No. 7 Clemson Runs Over Maryland 31-7 As SC Digs Out From Hugo

This was not a good day for the Maryland football team. Seventh-ranked Clemson -- spurred by a blocked punt that sucked the electricity from the Terrapins as Hurricane Hugo did to this state -- scored three second-quarter touchdowns en route to a 31-7 Atlantic Coast Conference victory in front of 77,000 fans at Memorial Stadium.

Terry Allen rushed for 97 yards and scored once to lead Clemson, 4-0, to victory in its Atlantic Coast Conference opener.

'This is probably the second-best game we've played, but we still have a long ways to go,' Clemson Coach Danny Ford said. 'It's nice to be where we are right now, but we'll see another good quarterback next week and another after that and so on each week.

'Everybody is gunning for us every Saturday, so we better be ready.'

Belton blocked his first kick with 11:11 left in the first half, with Maryland punting from its own 32-yard line. The ball was blown dead at the 7-yard line and Clemson scored three plays later on Allen's 2-yard run with 10:26 left in the half to go ahead 17-7.

'The blocked punt was probably the turning point of the game,' Ford said. 'I think that blocked punt changed the momentum because I thought we were a little flat when the game first started.'

Maryland, 1-3 and 0-2 in the ACC, was limited to 205 total yards, as starting quaterback Neil O'Donnell went out of the game with a bruised hand with 6:03 left in the first half.

'They have a great defense, great team speed. Look at their backs and linebackers -- they all run so well,' Maryland Coach Joe Krivak said. 'I thought it would have been ridiculous to play Neal in the second half. We will have to X-ray him later.'

Clemson's Wesley McFadden, who finished with 48 yards rushing, scored two touchdowns in the first half, his first coming on a 6-yard run with 12:18 left in the first half to put Clemson up 10-7.

McFadden scored his second touchdown of the half with 3:16 left on a 12-yard run, capping a 9-play, 69-yard drive and put the Tigers ahead 24-7 at halftime.

Joe Henderson added 42 yards rushing and scored Clemson's final touchdown with 51 seconds left in the third quarter on a 6-yard run, capping a 12-play, 59-yard drive.

Chris Gardocki opened the Clemson scoring with a 47-yard field goal with 7:21 left in the first quarter.

Maryland took a 7-3 lead on its next possession on a 2-yard run by Ricky Johnson with a 4:01 left in the first quarter.

'We dropped more balls out there today than we had all years,' Krivak said. 'They have a lot to do with that. They're always pressuring. The holes don't remain open for long.'

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Best Is The Standard

I was on Clemson's JV Cheerleading squad and at that time we stood on the visitor's side in front of the North Stands, right where the opposing teams entered the field. We would move around that end of the field but that is where we were for the 1st quarter. Anyway, the team runs out and Maryland's QB Neil O'Donnell comes out later. As he is running on to the field, I happened to have a balloon in my hands. On an impulse, I handed it off to him like a football. And he took it! He kept running but looked down in his hands and looked completely aggravated and was like, "WTH" and threw it aside. Anyway he went on to have a terrible game as you can see from this post. I think it was because I ruined his concentration from the outset. I mentioned this on Tigernet before when he played QB for the Steelers in the Super Bowl.

That is an honest to goodness true story and I'd love to have video of when Maryland entered to field that day if anyone has it. The only thing I can't remember if it was when they entered the field for warmups or for the start of the game. If it was just for warm ups then there is probably no video of this.

Thank you jtiger1 for these posts. I always love reading them.

On This Date: 1989 (7)Clemson- 31 Maryland- 7

Re: On This Date: 1989 (7)Clemson- 31 Maryland- 7

I like to think I played a role in Clemson's win that day...

Re: I like to think I played a role in Clemson's win that day...

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