Labor Day Nightmare: No. 9 Tigers fall to Blue Devils

Clemson fell to Duke 28-7 Monday night.

by Nikki Hood - Staff Writer - Mon Sep 04 23:31:50 GMT-04:00 2023

DURHAM, NC – Call this one the Labor Day Nightmare at Wallace Wade Stadium.

Clemson spent much of fall camp talking about National Championships and playing 15 games, but right now, the focus has to be on simply winning a game after a sloppy, lackluster effort against Duke Monday night.

The offense sputtered and looked like a version of 2022 for most of the first half, but two blocked kicks and three fumbles inside the redzone sealed the Tigers' fate and a 28-7 Duke win to open the new football season.

It was the biggest loss to Duke since 1936, when the Blue Devils defeated the Tigers 25-0.

Going back to last season, Clemson has lost three of its last four games – South Carolina, Tennessee, and now Duke, which hasn’t happened since 2011 when the Tigers lost to NC State and South Carolina before beating Virginia Tech in the ACC Championship Game and falling to West Virginia in the Orange Bowl.

Clemson had 422 total yards of offense - 171 yards through the air and 215 rushing yards.

Quarterback Cade Klubnik completed 27-of-43 passes for 209 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. On the ground, Will Shipley had 17 carries for 114 yards, and Phil Mafah added 65 yards on 11 carries. Shipley caught Clemson’s only touchdown of the night. Antonio Williams was Clemson’s leading receiver with seven catches for 56 yards.

Duke quarterback Riley Leonard completed 17-of-33 passes for 135 yards and a score. He was also the Blue Devil’s leading rusher, with eight carries for 98 yards.

After a 52-yard punt by Aiden Swanson and a 27-yard return, the Blue Devils' first drive began on their own 39-yard line. Riley’s second pass of the night connected with Nicky Dalmolin for a 16-yard gain. Two plays later, Riley found Sahmir Hagans for a 19-yard gain to Clemson’s four-yard line. Clemson’s defense stuffed the run and forced two errant passes, forcing Duke to settle for a 22-yard field goal from Todd Pelino and a 3-0 lead with 9:19 to play in the opening quarter. The drive covered 57 yards in 10 plays.

Duke’s defense forced a three-and-out that gave the Blue Devils the ball on their own 35-yard line. After a quick first down, Leonard tossed the ball of Jaquez Moore out of the backfield, who ran right past Barrett Carter for a 28-yard pickup to the 26-yard line. Clemson’s defense only allowed four more yards, forcing Duke to try another field goal. Pelino connected from 42 yards for a 6-0 Duke lead with 14:19 to play before halftime.

After Clemson’s offense went three-and-out again, the ‘overrated’ cheers began raining down from the Duke student section. Aidan Swanson booted a 46-yard punt that was muffed by Jalon Calhoun and recovered by Wade Woodaz on the 18-yard line.

Four plays later, Klubnik hit Will Shipley for a two-yard touchdown and a 7-6 Clemson lead with 10:09 to play before intermission. It was the first receiving touchdown of Shipley’s career.

The teams traded possessions for much of the second quarter, but Duke drove deep into Clemson territory as time was winding down in the first half. Clemson’s defense saved the day once again as Jeremiah Trotter, Jr. forced a fumble that was picked up by Andrew Mukuba to preserve the Tigers’ 7-6 halftime lead.

Duke got the ball to start the second half and took it right to Clemson’s defense. On the fifth play of the drive, Leonard escaped the grasp of Justin Mascoll and Xavier Thomas and eluded Tiger defenders for 44 yards to the endzone for the Blue Devils’ first touchdown of the game and a 13-7 lead at the 12:40 mark of the third quarter.

Clemson drove down to Duke’s one-yard line after a 49-yard run by Phil Mafah, but a false start on Blake Miller and a play that saw Klubnik fall down behind the line of scrimmage forced the Tigers to attempt a 23-yard field goal that was once again blocked.

The Tigers finally found a little rhythm on offense, driving to the Duke 10-yard line. On first and goal, Klubnik and Shipley fumbled the handoff to give the ball back to the Blue Devils.

For the third consecutive possession, Clemson drove into the redzone – this time to the one and Mafah fumbled the ball that was scooped up by Anthony Nelson, who raced to the Clemson 33 before he was knocked out of bounds by Klubnik. Seven plays later, Moore raced nine yards to the endzone. The Blue Devils completed the two-point conversion for a 21-7 lead over Clemson with 10:33 remaining.

Duke added a touchdown with 3:15 to play after Klubnik threw an interception near midfield to extend its lead to 28-7.

Clemson opens its home slate next Saturday, hosting Charleston Southern at 2:15 p.m.

Clemson-Duke box