The No. 10 Clemson Tigers currently lead the Virginia Cavaliers by a score of 17-10. Here are some takeaways from Memorial Stadium:
Penalties, penalties, and more penalties
The officiating crew was vocal in the first half, with vital penalties causing the Tigers to lose some key moments early on.
The first was in the red zone on Clemson’s first drive, and Cade Klubnik found T.J. Moore for a short score. The play was called back, however, due to an ineligible receiver downfield.
On defense, an illegal substitution and an offsides penalty on a 4th down gave Virginia a successful second drive. In the Cavaliers’ favor, a face mask call that was called on a sack put Virginia in the red zone, where the team would tie the game with a field goal.
That call is up for interpretation, as the camera crew at Memorial Stadium pointed out a Virginia hold on Clemson’s T.J. Parker, which received loud boos from the packed-out Death Valley.
Klubnik’s iffy start
The Clemson quarterback has gone through the ebbs and flows of the contest in the first two quarters between making mistakes and making smart plays.
The first drive was promising, hitting T.J. Moore on a 22-yard play and extending a play by evading Cavalier defenders and finding Cole Turner in the middle of the field for a 31-yard reception. However, changing a designed quarterback run to a pass left offensive linemen over the line of scrimmage, which was penalized.
A drive later, Klubnik threw it into a see of Virginia defenders, and Kam Robinson made him pay. Virginia would score of its offensive drive later on.
He bounced back, however, making key throws to cap off a 11-play, 80-yard drive, but perhaps missed the biggest throw of the drive. Tight end Jake Briningstool was open in the end zone, and the junior missed him high.
Preventing the extension of plays
The Virginia offense has found success due to the extending of plays by quarterback Anthony Colandrea.
Whether a scramble or a designed quarterback run, the sophomore recorded 29 yards on the ground, including a 20-yard rushing on 3rd-and-17 in Clemson territory to continue the drive. He would throw a touchdown pass a few plays later to Dakota Twitty to put Clemson trailing in the game.
It would be the first time the Tigers would be behind at home this season.
Adjustments were made, and Colandrea has not been as lethal as he was in the first quarter and early in the second, but watching his legs will be something for defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin to keep an eye on at the break.
