Clemson football is back in action this Saturday at 8pm facing Sun Belt Conference power, Appalachian State Mountaineers in Death Valley.
Alright Clemson fans, that was a rough week on the message boards, on social media and probably in church as well. At least it was for me. Everywhere I went I heard other people telling me how bad Clemson was, and Dabo was getting fired, benching wide receivers after one play. It was tiring reading and listening to it all. I’m glad that weeks are only 7 days long so the Tigers can scrub the 31 point loss to Georgia and move forward.
The Clemson football team did not show a ton to get excited about offensively. I thought the defense was really good early, and then Georgia made the necessary adjustments to make the second half a one-sided affair. Thankfully there’s 11 more regular season games to play and change the narrative and the tenor of the season.
This week’s opponent is no push-over. They have “slayed the giant” in the past, and pushed North Carolina to the edge last season alone.
Here is your preview of Clemson’s Week 2 Opponent, the App State Mountaineers.
Appalachian State Mountaineers (1-0)
Head Coach: Shawn Clark (6th Season at App State)
Location: Death Valley, Clemson, SC
Time: 8:00PM EST
Offense
Offensive Coordinator – Frank Ponce
In his first year back (of his third stint in Boone), Ponce’s offense averaged 33.2 points per game. His scheme is a really well balanced offense, and if we have to say one over the other, he tends to throw more than run. But the offense still averaged 170+ yards a game in ‘23.
The Mountaineers won their season opener against ETSU by a score of 38-10. Here is a look at the projected offensive starters along with their statistics from their week 1 victory.
| Position | Name (#) | Year | Week 1 Statistics |
| Quarterback | Joey Aguilar (4) | Senior | 23/37 326 yds. 2 TDs; 5 rushes, 19 yds. 2 TDs |
| Running Back | Kanye Roberts (14) | Sophomore | 3 catches, 37 yds; 9 rushes, 35 yds |
| Running Back | Anderson Castle (1) | Junior | 2 catches, 20 yds; 9 rushes. 28 yds |
| Wide Receiver | Makai Jackson (15) | Junior | 2 catches, 24 yds.; 1 rush, 47 yds, TD |
| Wide Receiver | Christian Horn (13) | Senior | 3 catches, 89 yds, TD |
| Slot Receiver | Kaedin Robinson (2) | Senior | 8 catches, 103 yds; 1 rush, 13 yards. |
| Tight End | Eli Wilson (87) | Senior | 3 catches, 43 yds, TD |
| Left Tackle | Markell Samuel (72) | Junior | |
| Left Guard | Griffin Scroggs (74) | Sophomore | |
| Center | Jack Hollifield (68) | Junior | |
| Right Guard | Thornton Gentry (70) | Junior | |
| Right Tackle | Thomas Shrader (67) | Junior |
One of the big gripes from Clemson fans was not putting the ball in the playmakers hands more. App State puts the ball in their playmakers hands. Lots of motions and screens, and also not afraid to go deep. Expect the middle of the field to be where Aguilar wants to try to exploit. Georgia motioned to get Barrett Carter in pass coverage rather than able to blitz all day. Figure Ponce will want to do the same thing.
Defense
Defensive Coordinator: Scot Sloan
Sloan returns to Boone after a stint with the U.S. Military Academy (Army). Last season App State gave up 178.6 yards per game against the run, and 200.9 yards per game against the pass. In the opener, Sloan’s defense gave up 183 yards on the ground and only 122 yards passing to ETSU.
Here is a look at the projected starters along with their statistics from their week 1 victory:
| Position | Name (#) | Year | Week 1 Statistics |
| Defensive End | Shawn Collins (12) | Junior | 2 tackles |
| Nose Tackle | Joshua Donald (91) | Junior | 2 tackles |
| Defensive End | Michael Fletcher (5) | Senior | |
| Outside Linebacker | Nate Johnson (90) | Sophomore | 5 tackles |
| Inside Linebacker | Kyle Arnholt (56) | Junior | 10 tackles |
| Inside Linebacker | Caden Sullivan (26) | Junior | 6 tackles |
| STAR Linebacker | Avarion Cole (11) | Junior | 3 tackles, 1 TFL |
| Cornerback | Trenton Alan Yowe (0) | Junior | 3 tackles |
| Cornerback | Ethan Johnson (2) | Junior | 2 tackles |
| Strong Safety | Jordan Favors (7) | Junior | |
| Free Safety | Ronald Clarke (27) | Senior | 5 tackles |
Special Teams
Here are looks at the projected starers on Special Teams for the Mountaineers.
| Position | Name (#) | Year | Week 1 Statistics |
| Kicker | Michael Hughes (99) | Senior | 1-1; long of 32 yds |
| Punter | Mitchell Lake (49) | Sophomore | 3 punts; 39.0 avg. |
| Kick Returner | Kanye Roberts (14) | Sophomore | 49 return yards |
| Punt Returner | Kaedin Robinson (2) | Senior |
Summary
Clemson is licking its wounds from a vicious attack by the dawgs a week ago. The narrative is out that the Tigers must come out this weekend and make a statement. This is a tougher game than most fans want to believe it will be. Las Vegas has the Tigers a 17.5 points favorites. For reference, Florida State was the same point favorite against Boston College.
I do believe we will see a much better performance from the Tigers on offense. The defense just has to be itself to win.
