ACC Opener

Clemson opened its ACC schedule on Saturday by hosting the N.C. State Wolfpack. State, which had lost to South Carolina 34-0 to open the season, looked to be another easy victim for the Tigers. State posted an early lead after picking off Cullen Harper's pass on the first play of the game and returning it for a touchdown. The Tigers calmly mounted a touchdown drive on their next possession and assumed control of the game from there. The final score ended with a 27-9 Tiger victory. Notes from the game:

The Good

Wide receivers Aaron Kelly and Jacoby Ford played outstanding. Each player made several touch catches to keep drives alive for the offense. Kelly was the go-to-guy on third down conversions, breaking tackles and using sheer determination to get the first down. Ford scored the Tigers opening touchdown, driving two N.C. State defenders into the end zone from the two yard line for the score. Ford, along with RB C.J. Spiller showed a previously unseen willingness to go inside and take hits to get extra yardage, instead of dancing laterally and losing yards. The offensive line also finally asserted itself in the forth quarter, as the Tigers mounted a nine minute plus scoring drive to put the game away by running right down the middle of the field. The defense managed to not allow an offensive touchdown and harrassed State quarterbacks regularly throughout the game. Freshman Jarvis Jenkins, Daquan Bowers, and Stanley Hunter were particularly outstanding. The special teams also continues to be flawless, with strong kick coverage and return game. Placekicker Mark Buckholz also continued his perfect season, making two more field goals.

The Bad

The defensive play calling continues to be mind boggling. State repeatedly converted on third down and long as coordinator Vic Koening never blitzed and often rushed only three lineman. This gave the quarterback ample time to find an open receiver or run for the first down. The only other complaint could be the ACC for starting this game at noon in September. Conditions were extremely hot and humid with non-stop sunshine throughout the game. A large cloud that covered the sun briefly in the first half got the biggest applause from the home crowd. Schools simply should not be playing games in the South early in the afternoon in such temperatures. I'm amazed there aren't more cases of heat exhaustion and heat stress.

The Ugly

The officiating. Wow. Head referee Ron Cherry continues to be the bane of existence for good officiating everywhere. It's hard to say which was the worst call of the game. I would say it was the missed horse collar tackle on Jacoby Ford in the first quarter, but you could also argue it was the phantom personal foul called on Clemson early in the third. A touchdown catch by Jacoby Ford should also have been called down on the one yard line when his knee hit the turf. Not even instant replay helped Mr. Cherry get this call correct. A special shout out also goes to the N.C. State special teams which was far from special. The punter barely managed to outshank the placekicker and the Wolfpack squadered several scoring opportunities and repeatedly set up Clemson with good field postion.