Clemson pulls away from Georgia Tech in second half of Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game

ATLANTA — It didn’t start out pretty, but No. 4 Clemson’s football team did what it had to do as it pulled away from Georgia Tech in the second half to win 41-10 in Monday night’s version of the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game.

For quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, it was redemption from last season’s opening-game disappointment as he went 19 of 32 for 209 yards, while also running for 28 yards.

“It was a fun night and I’m extremely proud of our guys,” said Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney. “We had a couple of patches where we struggled a little bit. (But) I loved how we responded. Defensively, we set the tone.”

Both teams struggled in the early going, only mustering four total first downs in the first quarter. Georgia Tech’s Jeff Sims (23 of 36, 164 yards) threw an interception on the game’s first play and Uiagalelei put the ball on the ground after a 10-yard rush on Clemson’s second drive.

The first significant blow landed when Clemson’s Carson Donnelly blocked a punt with the ball being returned to the 5 by Brandon Spector. Clemson failed to muscle it into the end zone using Grayson grad Phil Mafah (8 rushes, 28 yards) on the next two plays. However, Will Shipley (10 rushes, 42 yards) took the fourth-down handoff in from the 1 to give the Tigers a 7-0 lead with 9:53 to go in the second quarter.

The Yellow Jackets looked to get something going on their next drive, gaining three first downs and moving the ball into Clemson territory. A 16-yard completion from Sims to Nate McCollum (6 catches, 55 yards) moved the ball down to the 32. However, the drive stalled there and Jude Kelley was short on his 50-yard field goal attempt to keep the game at 7-0.

Clemson proceeded to go 67 yards in eight plays, using a 26-yard pass from Uiagalelei to Beaux Collins (3 catches, 54 yards) to move the ball to Tech’s 34. A 14-yard screen pass to Shipley continued to move the Tigers down the field with Uiagalelei finding Collins four plays later for a 6-yard touchdown pass to give the Tigers a 14-0 lead with 3:52 to go before halftime.

“There is nobody in America that had more eyes on him tonight than DJ,” Swinney said.

Georgia Tech finally got on the board on its last drive of the first half, stringing together an eight-play drive. A 15-yard completion to McCollum and 16-yard completion to EJ Jenkins moved the ball to the Clemson 33. After a rush of seven yards by Sims moved the ball to the 28, Kelley knocked a 45-yard field goal through the uprights to bring the Jackets to within 14-3.

The Jackets continued that momentum to begin the second half beginning on their own 43. A 10-yard completion on fourth down from Sims to Malik Rutherford moved the ball down to the Clemson 27. Three plays later, Sims found Jenkins wide open on the right side for a 13-yard touchdown, trimming Clemson’s lead to 14-10 with 9:47 to go in the third quarter.

Clemson responded on its next drive with a 29-yard field goal by B.T. Potter to put Clemson up 17-10, but it was a targeting penalty on Tech’s Charlie Thomas that dealt the big blow as he was the Jackets’ leading tackler at the time with nine stops.

The loss showed on the Tigers’ next drive as they sliced through the Tech defense, gaining five-plus yards on eight of the nine plays on the drive. A 10-yard run by Shipley and a 16-yard completion to Davis Allen moved the ball to the Tech 42. Clemson continued to roll up the yards until Uiagalelei kept the ball and ran it in from the 9, pushing Clemson’s lead to 24-10 with 1:18 to go in the third.

“The game slowed down (in the second half),” Uiagalelei said. “We moved the ball when we needed to. Overall, it felt great.”

Clemson continued its aggressive nature in the fourth quarter. A 32-yard field goal by Potter extended the lead to 27-10 before Clemson’s special teams blocked another punt, this time by Wade Woodaz to give the ball back to the Tigers on the 10. Three plays later, Shipley scored his second touchdown on the night, this time from the 3 to put the Tigers up 34-10 with 6:27 to go in the game.

The Tigers added their final touchdown late in the fourth quarter when backup quarterback Cade Klubnik found Will Taylor for a 3-yard touchdown pass.

“That was a great job by Cade,” Uiagalelei said. “He was poised out there and looked great.”

Clemson 0 14 10 17 — 41

Georgia Tech 0 3 7 0 — 10

SECOND QUARTER

Clemson: Will Shipley 1 run (B.T. Potter kick) 9:53

Clemson: Beaux Collins 6 pass from DJ Uiagalelei (Potter kick) 3:52

Georgia Tech: Jude Kelley 45 field goal 1:15

THIRD QUARTER

Georgia Tech: E.J. Jenkins 13 pass from Jeff Sims (Kelley kick) 9:47

Clemson: Potter 29 field goal 5:41

Clemson: Uiagalelei 9 run (Potter kick) 1:18

FOURTH QUARTER

Clemson: Potter 32 field goal 8:45

Clemson: Shipley 3 run (Potter kick) 6:27

Clemson: Will Taylor 3 pass from Cade Klubnik (Robert Gunn kick) 1:35