Clemson football blows out Florida Atlantic ahead of huge ACC game vs. FSU

Ahead of the biggest game of this young season, Clemson football left little room for doubt Saturday against Florida Atlantic.

With Florida State coming to town next weekend, the Tigers turned in their cleanest performance of 2023 by beating FAU, 48-14, at Memorial Stadium.

Clemson, the preseason No. 9 team, dropped out of the AP Top 25 last week after losing its season opener at Duke and coming out of the gates slow in a blowout of FCS Charleston Southern.

But with an energetic crowd on hand for the team’s first night game of the season, Clemson (2-1, 0-1 ACC) left little room for error and made very few errors.

Quarterback Cade Klubnik threw for 169 yards and three touchdowns, the defense forced four turnovers in a game and Clemson never trailed in a game that moved Dabo Swinney (163 wins) within two wins of College Football Hall of Fame coach Frank Howard’s program-record 165.

The Tigers, who’d lost the turnover margin three straight games dating back to the 2022 Orange Bowl, came out on the positive side of that metric Saturday (+3) and looked as complete as they have all season against American Athletic Conference opponent FAU (1-2).

That adds extra intrigue to next Saturday’s looming showdown with No. 3 Florida State. The Seminoles were billed as Clemson’s top ACC competitor all offseason and became the favorite after a Week 1 floor mopping of No. 5 LSU.

But FSU looked a little more mortal Saturday, escaping the northeast with a 31-29 win over unranked Boston College in which it nearly blew a 21-point second half lead. Star quarterback Jordan Travis also briefly left the game with an injury to his non-throwing shoulder but returned for the entire second half.

So, no, Clemson-FSU isn’t going to be the game of the year most predicted — at least in terms of rankings. But after Clemson’s drubbing of FAU, which may sneak the Tigers back into the AP Top 25 in Sunday’s updated poll, it’s no noon game snoozer.

Clemson game recap

Cornerback Nate Wiggins got things started earlier by intercepting FAU quarterback Casey Thompson – a former starter at Texas and Nebraska – on his second pass of the night and returning it a weaving 46 yards for touchdown.

Wiggins became the first Tiger with pick sixes in back-to-back seasons since Rex Varn in 1977-78 and kicked off a quarter of clean, complementary football.

Klubnik threw touchdown passes to receiver Tyler Brown (30 yards) and tight end Jake Briningstool (7 yards) to put Clemson ahead 20-0 after one quarter.

The margin would’ve been greater had kicker Robert Gunn III not missed an extra point and a 31-yard field goal, slip-ups that could prompt Swinney to re-open the kicker competition this week like he did after Gunn missed two field goals at Duke.

Freshman Khalil Barnes, starting at nickelback in place of the injured Andrew Mukuba, also provided some first-half highlights. The rising star had a first-quarter interception and a perfectly executed second-quarter forced fumble and recovery along the sideline (that recovery was ultimately nullified because the ball went out of bounds).

Thanks to a swarming Clemson defensive effort, FAU – which stoked some pregame flames by huddling directly atop Clemson’s logo before kickoff – went eight possessions without a score in the first half and lost Thompson, its starting quarterback, to an injury in the second quarter.

The Tigers added rushing touchdowns from Phil Mafah (19 yards) and Klubnik (1 yard) to go up 34-0 at halftime. It was a crisp, comprehensive effort from the Garrett Riley-led Clemson offense, which went without a turnover, averaged 7.1 yards per play and scored on five of six possessions including kneel-downs.

Linebacker Wade Woodaz got in on the fun to start the third quarter by intercepting FAU backup quarterback Daniel Richardson and becoming the first Clemson LB with interceptions in consecutive games since Isaiah Simmons in 2019.

And freshman slot receiver, a three-star in-state recruit and former Minnesota commit who flipped to Clemson late in the 2023 cycle, continued to prove he’s a steal with a long punt return, a highlight reel catch and a short receiving touchdown to put Clemson up 41-0 in the fourth quarter.

Brown, though, was also responsible for a muffed punt in the third quarter that prevented Clemson from escaping Saturday 100% turnover-free. That remains a lingering issue stemming back to late in the 2022 season.

But it was mostly good vibes for a second straight Saturday in Death Valley as Clemson rotated a number of backups players in throughout the fourth quarter; former walk-on running back Domonique Thomas scored late to make it 48-7; and reserve linebacker Kobe McCloud forced a late fumble.

FAU, in its first year under former Texas coach Tom Herman, was shut out through three quarters but scored twice in the fourth quarter on a rushing touchdown and a trick-play pass from a wide receiver.

The Tigers played the game without two starters: nickelback Mukuba (lower body) and right guard Walker Parks (undisclosed). Both players are day to day, according to a team spokesperson.

Next Clemson game

Who: No. 3 Florida State (3-0, 1-0 ACC) at Clemson (2-1, 0-1 ACC)

When: noon next Saturday, Sept. 23

Where: Memorial Stadium in Clemson

Watch: ABC