Dwayne Allen says "Fat Boy" had a feast

Boyd had the most total offense and most passing yards by a Clemson player in the history of Death Valley (opened in 1942) Saturday.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Sun Sep 18 09:52:42 GMT-04:00 2011

CLEMSON – Fat Boy had a feast on Saturday.

Clemson quarterback Tajh BoydTajh Boyd
RS So. Quarterback
#10 6-1, 230
Hampton, VA
View Full Profile , known to tight end Dwayne AllenDwayne Allen
RS Jr. Tight End
#83 6-3, 245
Fayetteville, NC
View Full Profile and other of his Clemson teammates as Fat Boy, had a breakout game on Saturday against No. 21 Auburn, throwing for 386 yards and four touchdowns, and Allen said afterward that he was happy for his quarterback.

“Fat Boy feasted,” Allen said. “Fat Boy was so calm in the pocket today. Talk about a leader. I looked back at Fat Boy and he was smiling the whole day. That is a good sight to see. When your quarterback is confident, that gets everyone else excited.”

Allen said the moniker comes from a weigh-in session the team had a year ago.

“He and Jamie HarperJamie Harper
Running Back
#8 6-0, 235
Jacksonville, FL
View Full Profile were at the weigh-in and they were both like over 240 pounds,” Allen said. “Tajh had that 240 on his 6-2 frame – and 6-2 is being generous – and Jamie Harper was like 250, so we started calling both of them Fat Boy. But he also proved today he can run it a little bit.”

Boyd said he doesn’t mind the name-calling as long as team keeps winning.

“They just like to make fun of me because I eat,” he said. “It’s not like I look like [former Kentucky QB] Jared Lorenzen or anything. I know I don’t have any six-pack abs or anything, but I don’t look like that.”

Boyd’s 386-yard effort was the second-best in Clemson history, and offensive coordinator Chad Morris praised the Virginia native for getting better each week.

"He just keeps getting better and better. He keeps maturing right in front of our eyes,” Morris said. “You go from week one to week two, he got better, and then from week two to week three. He knew when to pull the football down to run it. I just keep seeing him get better and better as it goes. And we challenged Tajh this week just as we did with the offensive line.

“We challenged him to take ownership, take ownership in this football team and this offense. He and I had a long talk about it. He did a great job. It's a big win, but it's a big win for him as a quarterback here. He knows how important it is to be the quarterback at Clemson. It is an honor and Tajh knows and understands that."

Boyd said his job is made easier because of the wealth of playmakers on the Clemson offense.

“We have got players that make plays, and I just have to put the ball in their hands,” Boyd said. “It was our duty to go out there and score today. I know that I just have to manage the game and let them make plays. Today, I tried to make some plays with my feet to keep the defense honest.”

Boyd said once the Clemson offense began to roll, he had no doubt his Tigers were going to win the game.

“No doubt. No doubt at all,” he said. “This offense is so explosive, and we can score at any time. Just like on that first drive of the second half – Sammy [Watkins] goes out on a little slip route and he takes it in and scores. We might be down but we are never out. I knew on the second drive of the game that we would be able to throw it a little bit.”