Defense leads Clemson past Auburn

Clemson’s defense was expecting a tougher challenge against Auburn than it got in its opener against Kent State, but defensive coordinator Brent Venables’ unit put together the same dominant effort.

Clemson held Auburn to 117 total yards, 3 less than Kent State managed last week, as No. 3 Clemson earned a 14-6 victory in a slugfest.

“What a hard-fought, gritty game. Two good teams battling it out,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “It’s been a long time since we’ve punted the ball that many times and played conservative, but man, that’s about as good a defensive performance as I’ve seen in a long time.”

Auburn kicked a pair of field goals in the first half, one that was set up by a turnover deep in Clemson territory, to take an early 6-0 lead but didn’t score on its final nine drives.

Despite being outplayed for the majority of the first half, Clemson took a 7-6 lead into the locker room thanks to an impressive drive by quarterback Kelly Bryant and the offense late in the second quarter.

Clemson had a 12-play, 88-yard drive that was capped by a 3-yard touchdown run by Bryant to take a 7-6 lead at intermission.

“Offensively, we couldn't really get in rhythm the first part of the game,” Swinney said. “The last drive before the half was a thing of beauty. We got in a rhythm and got some tempo going.”

The lead increased to 14-6 on the first drive of the third quarter as Bryant led the offense on an eight-play, 79-yard touchdown drive. Bryant also had the finishing touch on this possession, breaking a pair of tackles and dashing to the end zone for a 27-yard score.

“To come right back out in the third quarter and go right back down the field, that really was the difference in the game,” Swinney said.

That was all the points Clemson needed as Dorian O’Daniel, Christian Wilkins, Austin Bryant and the rest of Clemson’s defense shut down Auburn’s offense.

O’Daniel finished with a career-high 14 tackles, while Bryant had four sacks and Wilkins had two. Clemson finished with 14 tackles for loss and 11 sacks.

Auburn managed 15 yards in the second half and crossed the 50 once on its final nine drives of the game.

Kelly Bryant was 19-for-29 passing for 181 yards and also led Clemson in rushing with 68 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Hunter Renfrow had nine catches and 62 yards for Clemson.

THREE POINTS

Star of the game: Austin Bryant – The junior defensive end had a coming out party with four sacks as Clemson’s defensive line dominated the game.

Play of the game: Auburn advanced to the Clemson 37 and was facing a fourth-and-3 when linebacker Tre Lamar knifed through the middle on a blitz and sacked Auburn QB Jarrett Stidham for a 14-yard loss

Stat of the game: 11 – Clemson’s defense managed 11 sacks.

OBSERVATIONS

Defense as advertised: Clemson’s defense believed it was ready to step up early in the season with the offense breaking in several new starters. It saved the day on Saturday. “We settled in and really just played dominant football defensively,” Swinney said.

Bryant did what he needed to: Kelly Bryant was far from spectacular, but he didn’t need to be. Clemson’s junior quarterback managed the game and didn’t turn the ball over while making enough plays.

NEXT

Who: No. 3 Clemson Tigers (2-0) at No. No. 17 Louisville Cardinals (2-0, 1-0 ACC)

When: 3:30 p.m. on Sept. 16

Where: Papa John’s Stadium; Louisville, Ky.

TV: TBA

Radio: 93.1 FM

This story was originally published September 9, 2017 at 10:31 PM with the headline "Defense leads Clemson past Auburn."