Wofford Terriers vs Clemson Tigers Match Player Stats On Sep 05, 2015

The Sports Xchange
Sep 5, 2015

CLEMSON, S.C. - Sophomore quarterback Deshaun Watson, playing in his first game since suffering a torn ACL last November, got off to a solid start in Clemson's season opener Saturday, completing 18-of-22 passes for 194 yards and two touchdowns in limited duty as the No. 12 Tigers rolled past Wofford 49-10 at Memorial Stadium.

While Watson appeared completely healed from ACL surgery last December, the Tigers' post-game concern focused on the health of junior wide receiver Mike Williams.

Williams snagged a 4-yard touchdown pass from Watson to cap Clemson's game-opening drive, but suffered a neck injury on the play when he collided with the goalpost support. He remained on the ground for approximately 15 minutes before being placed on a stretcher and carted off the field.

Williams, who led Clemson with 1,030 receiving yards last season and was a preseason All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection, raised his right arm as he left the field, but was hastened to a nearby hospital for evaluation.

Even without Williams, Clemson's offense didn't appear to miss a beat against the Terriers (0-1), an FCS opponent from nearby Spartanburg, S.C. The Tigers racked up 524 yards of offense and weren't forced to punt until late in the third quarter.

Sophomore running back Wayne Gallman, who was Clemson's leading rusher a year ago, amassed 92 yards on 14 carries and scored on short dives of 1 and 2 yards. Reserve running back Tyshon Dye added a pair of 1-yard scoring runs for Clemson, which improved to 30-0 all-time against FCS opponents.

Wofford, which gave Clemson fits four years ago with its triple-option offense in a 35-27 loss, struggled to gain any consistency on offense Saturday. The Terriers managed 213 total yards, including 123 on the ground.

Wofford quarterback Evan Jacks was under duress all day as the junior completed 3-of-8 passes for 42 yards. Nick Colvin, the Terriers' leading rusher, had 31 yards on seven carries.

Despite breaking in eight new starters, the Clemson defense shined. Junior safety T.J. Green led the effort with 10 tackles, including 2.5 for loss, and the Tigers - who have led the nation in tackles for loss the past two seasons - had 10 tackles for lost yardage against the Terriers.

NOTES: Clemson freshman Mitch Hyatt started the game at left tackle, becoming the first freshman to start the first game of the season at that position for the Tigers since Phil Prince in 1944. ... Clemson has 40 freshmen or redshirt freshmen on its roster, which is the most since the 2011 ACC Championship team had 42 first-year players. ... Wofford senior DL E.J. Speller made his 34th career start, more than any other Terrier on this year's team. ... Junior QB Evan Jacks, who started six games in 2014 before being injured, was the Terriers' starting quarterback Saturday.