SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 28, 2013
No. 4 Clemson 56, Wake Forest 7: Tajh Boyd passed for 311 yards and three touchdowns and also rushed for a score as the host Tigers rolled past the Demon Deacons in ACC play.
Sammy Watkins and D.J. Howard each caught long touchdown passes in the first quarter as Clemson (4-0, 2-0) built a 28-point halftime lead and substituted liberally in the second half. The Tigers racked up a season-high 573 yards and held Wake Forest (2-3, 0-2) to 222.
Boyd’s 64-yard touchdown throw to Watkins just 46 seconds into the contest was the 80th of his career, breaking a tie with Florida State’s Chris Weinke (1997-2000) for second-most in ACC history. Howard’s 75-yard scoring reception made it 21-0 midway through the opening stanza.
The Demon Deacons lost their 33rd consecutive game against teams ranked in the Top 5. Tanner Price tossed a 10-yard first-quarter touchdown to Sherman Ragland III for Wake Forest’s points.
Boyd rushed for a 2-yard score and connected with Mike Williams on a 14-yard pass over the final five minutes of the first half for a 35-7 lead. He left the contest with 6:41 left in the third quarter after C.J. Davidson rushed for the first of his two 1-yard scores.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Boyd added 69 rushing yards for 380 yards of total offense to raise his career output to 9,971. North Carolina State’s Philip Rivers (13,582 from 2000-03) and Georgia Tech’s Joe Hamilton (10,065 from 1996-99) are the only players in ACC history to reach 10,000. … Wake Forest drops to 9-74 all-time in road games against ranked teams. … Clemson WR Martavis Bryant was suspended for the first half for making a throat-slashing gesture after catching a touchdown pass against North Carolina State on Sept. 19.