Thumbs up, thumbs down: Clemson vs. Troy

Greg Huegel

He went 3-for-3 on field goals and made all of his extra points after missing one last week at Auburn

The fans

The majority stayed for the entire game despite the sloppy play and hot temperatures.

Dexter Lawrence

The true freshman made seven tackles including 1.5 for loss and continues to be dominant on Clemson’s defensive line.

Kendall Joseph

For the second straight week he led Clemson in tackles for loss with two and also intercepted a pass.

The receiving corps

Clemson dropped seven passes by Dabo Swinney’s count and the receivers were out of sync with Deshaun Watson most of the afternoon.

Offensive line

Clemson’s offensive line had Watson running for his life early and also committed a few holding penalties in the first quarter. The Tigers averaged less than 4 yards per carry.

Play calling

Clemson attempted 53 passes including 42 in the first three quarters with only 32 rushing attempts. Watson was Clemson’s leading rusher and led the Tigers in rushing attempts with 10. Star running back Wayne Gallman received only nine carries.

The punt return

Ray-Ray McCloud played well overall, but dropping the ball on the punt return before it crossed the goal line was a critical mistake.

This story was originally published September 10, 2016 at 8:37 PM.