Clemson vs. Georgia Tech Prediction: Tigers attempt to swat the Bees again |
Will the Tigers make it eight in a row over the Bees? We find out Monday night in primetime.
Clemson will kick off its 127th football season in school history on Labor Day as the Tigers travel to the home of the NFL's Atlanta Falcons for a prime-time ACC matchup with the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which is set for an 8 p.m. broadcast start (ESPN). NO. 4/4 CLEMSON (0-0, 0-0 ACC) at GEORGIA TECH (0-0, 0-0 ACC) WHEN:MONDAY, SEPT. 5, 8 P.M. CLEMSON/GEORGIA TECH SERIES HISTORY OVERALL: Clemson trails series, 34-51-2 NOTABLE *Clemson enters the 2022 campaign riding a streak of 11 consecutive 10-win seasons, including the 2021 campaign in which Clemson battled through injuries and a 4-3 start to finish 10-3 and ranked No. 14 in the final AP Poll. In addition to winning at least 10 games in each of the last 11 seasons, Clemson has also won at least one postseason game (conference championship game, bowl game and/or national championship game) in each of those campaigns, tied with the 1985-95 Florida State Seminoles for the longest such streak on record. *Clemson is playing its 26th Monday game all-time but only its 10th regular season Monday game in school history. *Clemson is attempting to improve to 15-11 all-time in Monday games, which would include a 7-3 record in Monday regular season games. *Clemson is playing its first Monday night game since a 24-18 Labor Day win vs. Florida State in the 2007 season opener. *Clemson is attempting to improve to 95-24-8 all-time in season openers and give the Tigers victories in 12 of their last 14 season debuts. *Clemson attempting to earn its 35th all-time victory against Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech is one of 11 schools against whom Clemson has earned at least 30 all-time victories (South Carolina, Wake Forest, North Carolina State, Furman, Virginia, North Carolina, Duke, Maryland, Presbyterian and The Citadel). *Clemson attempting to win its eighth consecutive game against Georgia Tech, dating to a 43-24 home win in 2015. It would extend Clemson’s longest winning streak in the all-time series and double its second-longest winning streaks in series history (four-game winning streaks across the 1898-1903 seasons and the 1993-96 campaigns). *Clemson is attempting to win a fourth straight road game against Georgia Tech for the first time in series history. Prior to the current three-game winning streak against the Yellow Jackets in Atlanta, Clemson won consecutive games at Georgia Tech four other times in school history (1902-03, 1906-07, 1986-88, 2001- 03). - Clemson attempting to record its 16th all-time road win against Georgia Tech. CLEMSON OFFENSE VS. GT DEFENSE In last season’s low-scoring affair, the Jackets came out in a 3-3-5 look, dared Clemson to throw the ball down the field, and stifled the run game for a while. The Tigers wound up scoring just 14 points in the 14-8 win. Expect Georgia Tech to come out in their 4-2-5 base with different looks. All eyes will be on quarterback DJ Uiagalelei. He completed 208-of-374 passes for 2,246 yards with nine touchdowns and 10 interceptions while adding 308 yards and four scores on the ground last season. We heard good things about Uiagalelei throughout the spring and fall, but all we have to go on is the limited sample in the spring game. If he struggles again, waiting in the wings is freshman Cade Klubnik. Will Shipley led the ground game with 149 carries for 739 yards and 11 scores, but he’s only one part of a three-headed monster. Kobe Pace (104 carries, 641 yards, six TD) and Phil Mafah (68 carries, 292 yards, three TD) are also in the mix. At receiver, Joseph Ngata (23 catches, 438 yards, TD) and Beaux Collins (31 grabs, 407 yards, three TD) are the top two returning receivers for the program. Tight end Davis Allen (28 catches, 208 yards, three TD) is going to be a factor in the passing game as well, but Jake Briningstool is set to make an impact as well. Georgia Tech was abysmal on defense last season and ranked just 12th in the ACC last season in total defense and 13th in scoring defense. They have decent linebacker play with Ayinde Eley and Charlie Thomas, and Myles Sims and Kenny Bennett are veteran players in the secondary. But can they generate a pass rush and affect the quarterback? Can the front four stop the run? ADVANTAGE: CLEMSON WHEN GEORGIA TECH HAS THE BALL Jeff Sims is the man under center for the Jackets, and he’s dangerous with both his arm and his legs. What he doesn’t have is a fantastic supporting cast. The Jackets’ best offensive player last season was Jahmyr Gibbs, and he’s now at Alabama. Tech had to go the transfer route to replace Gibbs and brought in Louisville transfer Hassan Hall. However, Dontae Smith carried the ball 68 times for 378 yards and four touchdowns, while averaging 5.6 yards per carry a year ago and is poised for a breakout season. He’s one to watch in the Jacket backfield. Clemson fans will recognize South Carolina transfer wide receiver EJ Jenkins, who stands 6-7. However, the offensive line (which includes Clemson transfer Paul Tchio) is going to be a work in progress. The Jackets have one returning full-time starter, right tackle Jordan Williams. Guard Paula Vaipulu started a few games last season, but the Jackets will run out a group that is short on experience at the collegiate level. At right tackle, the Jackets are going to send out a redshirt freshman to take on Justin Mascoll and KJ Henry, and again, this isn’t a good matchup. As for the Tigers, defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin has one of the most talented groups in the country, including a defensive line that has NFL talent all over the board. ADVANTAGE: CLEMSON SPECIAL TEAMS The Tigers are in good shape at kicker with BT Potter, who hit 21-of-26 field goals last season. Gavin Stewart made 11-of-15 for Tech last season, and hits over 60-percent of his kickoffs into the endzone. At punter, Clemson is going with lefty Aidan Swanson, while Tech has David Shanahan, who averaged a little over 41 yards per punt last season. The Jackets best kick returner from a year ago is at Bama, while the Tigers have the dangerous Will Taylor back to see what damage he can cause. Potter is the difference-maker here. ADVANTAGE: CLEMSON WHAT WILL HAPPEN It’s the first game of the season and anything can happen. The Jackets are looking to use this game as a springboard into a season that features a difficult schedule. But when it comes down to it, the Tigers just appear to have the edge on both lines of scrimmage. If Uiagalelei just takes what’s there and the running backs find a few creases, this one won’t be close. As I’ve written a few times, it’s just not a good matchup for Tech. FINAL SCORE: CLEMSON 38, GEORGIA TECH 13 More TigerNet picks
WHERE: MERCEDES-BENZ STADIUM, ATLANTA, GA.
TELEVISION: ESPN (Dave Pasch, Dusty Dvoracek, Tom Luginbill
RADIO: Clemson Athletic Network (Don Munson, Tim Bourret, Reggie Merriweather)
RADIO: Touchdown Radio Network (Taylor Zarzour, Gino Torretta)
SATELLITE RADIO: Sirius 84, XM 84, Internet/App 84
HOME: Clemson leads series, 17-6
ROAD: Clemson trails series, 15-44-2
NEUTRAL: Clemson leads, 2-1
LAST MEETING: Sept. 18, 2021 (14-8, W)
STREAK: Clemson, Won 7
Mickey Plyler - The Roar 105.5 morning show host - 33-9 Clemson
Nikki Hood - Staff writer - 41-7 Clemson
Brandon Rink - Associate editor - 33-10 Clemson
Tony Crumpton - Associate editor - 35-13 Clemson
Pigskin Prophet - 34-7 Clemson
Ryan Kantor - Contributing Writer - Clemson 39-6
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