I wasn't able to watch the game because I was in the bleachers of Yankee Stadium watching Masahiro Tanaka jam his Japanese cock down the throats of the Boston Red Sox, but Clemson destroyed Kent State in just the manner I'd like to see in week one. Given that Death Valley and Yankee Stadium are 1 and 1a on my list of favorite places in the world, I wouldn't say I was jealous of the folks on hand to watch Clemson begin their title defense, but if I swapped locations with someone I wouldn't be angry at all either.
For all intents and purposes, Kelly Bryant looked like he can handle being QB1 for the Clemson Tigers, which is obviously a great sign. And if he falters at some point at least the Tigers were able to get Zerrick Cooper and Hunter Johnson some game action too. Remember when Clemson had to replace legend Tajh Boyd 3 years ago and Dabo gave the job to the "experienced" Cole Stoudt? Yeah everyone knew Deshaun Watson had more talent but Dabo was loyal to the guy who waited in the wings. It didn't turn out great since Cole Stoudt is a certified ASS quarterback and Deshaun would step in by week 3. This situation is similar except in the fact that Kelly Bryant is immensely more talented than Cole Stoudt, and I don't think anyone is gonna be comparing Hunter Johnson to Deshaun Watson any time soon despite being a 5 star QB recruit. I think I'd be comfortable trotting out KB, Zerrick or Hunter on any given Saturday but KB had two years behind Deshaun and I'd say sticking with him for now is a good call.
The talent around KB was on full display as well. The team had over 300 yards in the air as well as around 350 yards on the ground. I imagine against a more formidable foe, Dabo and the OCs will try and stick with one or two running backs for most of the game but basically everyone who got a carry on Saturday ran well which is a great problem to have. I'd love for Tevian Feaster and Travis Etienne emerge as the main backs but CJ Fuller and Adam Choice aren't slouches I suppose. Deon Cain showed off his big play explosiveness with a 61 yard touchdown catch, and the Tigers' new tight end Milan Richard had a great game as well, making some big plays. Speaking of explosiveness, Kelly Bryant showed off his own running ability with a fucking smooooooth scramble for over 40 yards.
As far as the defense goes, they only allowed 120 yards and 3 points. They only allowed 1 passing yard (LOL) but that's because Kent State only attempted 5 passes. I imagine as Clemson starts to face real teams with some more traditional offenses, they'll be giving up more passing yards than rushing as that front 4 is STACKED and the secondary has a few more question marks.
All around, it was a great week one for the defending national champion Clemson Tigers, and I can't wait until 7pm this Saturday to watch them take on Auburn in the Valley. Check out some highlights below from week one.
No comments:
Post a Comment