Clemson at Wake Forest live updates: Tigers win 12th straight over Demon Deacs
Clemson defeated Wake Forest 37-13 in both teams’ 2020 ACC season opener.
▪ GAME RECAP: A very different football season begins with familiar result: Clemson dominates Wake
▪ QB UPDATE: Heisman hopeful Trevor Lawrence dominant in season opener at Wake Forest
▪ STAR FRESHMEN: Bresee, Murphy signed with Clemson as nation’s top recruits, delivered in 2020 opener
Final: Clemson 37, Wake Forest 13
Led by Trevor Lawrence and Etienne on offense and a stout defensive performance, the No. 1 Tigers never trailed on the road at Wake Forest, winning their first game of the 2020 season.
Griffis TD: Clemson 37, Wake Forest 13
Freshman Mitch Griffis, Wake’s third quarterback of the game, threw his first career touchdown with 2:34 left in the contest. It was the Demon Deacons’ first TD against Clemson since 2017.
Sciba FG: Clemson 37, Wake Forest 6
After hitting the right upright and missing on his last field-goal attempt, Nick Sciba redeemed himself with a 42-yard kick late in the fourth quarter. Sciba also missed a kick in the first half, which was blocked by Clemson
Uiagalelei makes debut
Freshman quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei got the nod as the backup to Trevor Lawrence Saturday night at Wake Forest.
Uiagalelei, who battled with redshirt freshman Taisun Phommachanh for the backup job, entered midway through the third quarter with Clemson leading Wake Forest 37-7. He completed his first pass on his second play.
Potter FG: Clemson 37, Wake Forest 3
B.T. Potter made his third field goal of the night, this time from a more manageable 29 yards. On the play before, Lawrence nearly threw his second touchdown of the night as the ball went in and out of the hands of a diving Frank Ladson in the end zone.
Etienne TD: Clemson 34, Wake Forest 3
Star running back Travis Etienne scored his 57th career rushing touchdown on a two-yard run to cap a six-play, 75-yard drive. Etienne passed the 100-rushing yard plateau for the 18th time in his career, breaking the mark set by Wayne Gallman.
QB Trevor Lawrence has now passed for 309 yards in the game.
Sciba FG: Clemson 27, Wake Forest 3
Held scoreless through the first half, the Deacons received the ball to begin the third-quarter and orchestrated a seven-play, 54-yard drive that ended in a 39-yard field goal by SC native Nick Sciba.
Skalski suits up for second half
Clemson linebacker James Skalski is back on the field after missing the first half of Saturday’s game. Skalski was suspended for the first half against Wake Forest after being ejected for targeting in the national title game against LSU.
The senior captain made a tackle for loss on Wake Forest’s first series after entering the game.
Potter FG: Clemson 27, Wake Forest 0
The Tigers capped off an explosive first half with a 52-yard field goal from B.T. Potter in the waning seconds of the second quarter. It was longest field goal for Potter’s career.
Trevor Lawrence threw for 261 yards in the first half and coach Dabo Swinney was asked by ABC’s Allison Williams how much his star QB would play in the second half. Fans might get a chance to see highly-touted freshman QB D.J. Uiagalelei make his Clemson debut.
“I don’t know. We’ve got a long way to go,” Swinney said.
Lawrence TD pass: Clemson 24, Wake Forest 0
After scoring twice on the ground, Lawrence connected for his first aerial touchdown of the season — with an unlikely target.
Redshirt senior tight end J.C. Chalk snuck past the Wake Forest secondary for the first touchdown catch of his career. He caught just 13 passes all of last year. It was first time since 2018 that a Clemson tight end has caught a TD pass.
Murphy, Bresee delivering in Clemson debut
Dabo Swinney talked up Clemson’s freshmen defensive linemen throughout fall camp. The highly-touted prospects made their presence felt early on Saturday night at Wake Forest.
Freshman defensive tackle Bryan Bresee, the No. 1 ranked player in the country for the class of 2020, recorded half a sack on Wake Forest’s first possession of the game. In the second quarter, freshman defensive end Myles Murphy recorded his first career sack. Murphy was rated as the No. 7 overall player by 247Sports.
Potter FG: Clemson 17, Wake Forest 0
After Wake Forest missed a field-goal attempt, the Tigers responded with three points of their own, expanding their lead to 17-0 with 10:54 left in the second quarter. B.T. Potter connected on a 42-yard kick to cap off the drive.
Lawrence TD: Clemson 14, Wake Forest 0
For the second straight drive, Trevor Lawrence scored a touchdown with his legs, keeping the football for a one-yard rush. Star running back Travis Etienne laid most of the groundwork on the drive, including a 29-yard rush on a third-down draw play that brought Clemson inside Wake Forest’s five-yard line.
It is first time in Lawrence’s career he has rushed for two TDs in a game.
Lawrence TD: Clemson 7, Wake Forest 0
Trevor Lawrence scored the first Tigers touchdown of the 2020 season on a two-yard keeper. After a three-and-out in the game’s first drive, Lawrence connected on three passes for 55 yards with top receiver Amari Rodgers on this drive.
Fans in the stands
There were fans allowed at Truist Field because of coronavirus crowd guidelines still in effect from N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper.
But Wake Forest allowed 50 parents of Demon Deacon senior players to attend the game. Tickets were on first-come, first served basis.
Clemson players out
The Tigers announced Saturday evening that starting cornerbacks Derion Kendrick and Mario Goodrich will not play against the Demon Deacons. Starting defensive end Justin Foster is also out for the game.
Clemson did not reveal specifics on why each player is out, as the Tigers have changed the way they are doing injury reports in 2020 due to COVID-19. Clemson is only announcing players as “available” or “not available” this year.
Clemson helmet stickers
The Clemson football team will wear stickers on their helmets against Wake Forest as part of their efforts to spotlight social justice. Phrases include “Black lives matter,” “equality,” “love” and “put a stop to racism.” The Tigers will wear their white-on-white jersey combination with orange lettering for the game.
Will FSU delay move Clemson game off ABC?
We’re waiting to see if or how the weather-delayed FSU-Georgia Tech game (currently airing on ABC) will affect what channel Clemson-Wake Forest appears on. The Clemson game is scheduled to be carried on ABC at 7:30 p.m. (7:49 p.m. kickoff) but FSU-Georgia Tech was just wrapping up the first quarter shortly before 6 p.m.
ESPN/ABC announced Clemson-Wake will stay on ABC while the finish of Georgia Tech-FSU will be on ESPN2.
This story was originally published September 12, 2020 at 5:53 PM.
