Clemson falls to GT 30-27

I'll go drive by drive and hit the highlights as best I can, hopefully seeing all this purple again doesnt destroy my eyesight. I picked out some plays and uploaded them to youtube myself, and found a few others.

-I like how Clemson is coming out and trying to run the football. Parker's incompletions are bad throws. He's throwing under his receivers and not to a spot where only they can catch it. We luck out by not having two of them picked off. I think we get a bad spot on the 3rd &2 run by Spiller. Watch Lambert get his ass beat on this 4th down play.

-Nesbitt comes out on the very next play and sails one into the arms of McDaniel. It was a really late throw into what appears to be Cover 1. He runs it back to the 45 and fumbles it, and Maye recovered. Clemson fails to do anything on the next drive, and it appears to me that GT is playing good coverage. The snap infraction on Cloy was just a little twitch of his hand.

-The TD play, a crack arc play. I plan to cover this in detail again later. A crack block on McDaniel by the WR and a cut on the Corner, someone gets turned around on the play: Bowers and Maye. Conner tries to keep the play inside, but it really was a great pitch. Conner's assignment is the pitch man. If Bowers collapses, Maye should be there to back him up but gets stood up by a Guard.

Just to define them:
Arc block: Block on a DE or Corner by a RB with the back attempting to block the defender inside, the blocker starts wide out and then comes back towards the middle of the field.
Crackback: Block by a player who has lined up more than 2 yards outside the tackle and is blocking a man inside his position.

-We take a few plays and get close enough to punt. Then Dabo decides to go for the 57 yd FG, and the team is late gettin on the field. Timeout called. Then Jackon pooches it, and doesnt get it out of bounds as he was supposed to. 3 players missed tackles immediately, and shouldn't have. None of those 3 play defense normally. Dabo was outcoached on this play. He should never ever have done this. Johnson had a man deep as a returner waiting, and Clemson should've taken the Delay and punted the football normally. Stupidest call of the game.

-Clemson gets the ball back from the kickoff in good field position, and Ashe fails to catch a pass that hits him in the hands for the INT. Lack of concentration.


-GT makes a few good runs here at the end of the 1st, one good pitch by Dwyer goes about 20 yards, and then Nesbitt sails one into Gilchrist's hands. The early Dives were working because we couldnt get B.Thompson to shoot up the A-gap, the Center had him well-blocked early every time. They were basically running a crack-arc screen to the boundary side. Had Gilchrist not picked up his toe, it wouldve been a touchback and no TD to follow. On the fake, Chancellor should've seen Thomas out wide, but Johnson ran off his kick team fast, and Thomas came on the field right at the last second (or actually never left) and Chancellor never thought to look, its not his job to count. It was not an illegal substitution.

Its true that you cannot break huddle with 12, but any new player coming in an a no-huddle must check in across the numbers. If a player was on the field beforehand, he doesnt have to check in at all. (Edit: this interpretation is incorrect)

-On the next drive the 2nd timeout is wasted by not getting the play in on time. Overall the offense looks confused and out of sync, and we STILL cannot convert 3rd downs. 2 of 7 in the 1st quarter, though we led in possession 11:28 to 3:32. This was a factor late in the game when GT got tired on defense. End of 1st.

Check out the blocking on this inside misdirection play, this is really a clinic on inside blocking.

On the goalline, Clemson's defense did a great job to stiffen up, and we held to a chip FG. The DEs are starting to get penetration at this point in the game.

-Clemson got good field position after the kickoff return by Jacoby, then this happened, and watch the block of Rendrick Taylor:

It was a simple wheel route by Spiller who was set in a H-back position with Taylor as the Tailback. A deep post over the middle drew the safety and Spiller was free to run. The "wolf", basically an extra SS, was the man covering him. Definite mismatch.

-Defense came on and, as we stated, the CB is on an island against this type of offense sometimes. They stopped GT and Nesbitt threw up a lob and Butler got burnt, Gilchrist was a little late getting over as well. GT runs some inside dives and keepers, but the D is now sticking to their assignments and in better position overall. GT punts. GT uses the punt-coverage formation that we really hate. Actually I think its the damned dumbest formation in all of football. The linemen line up in basically 1-2 yard splits with 3 actual blockers for the punter. I don't see why any coach runs this, because if Clemson would just RUSH more than 2 men, we'd block a kick. Several times in this game we sent only 1 or 2 against the punt, and their punter takes forever to kick the ball.

-Next drive, Landon Walker is in at RT. Morgan still runs right around him to pull CJ down from behind on a play to the left side. Palmer is over there to help Walker, but never touched Morgan. Then later the INT over the middle to Jacoby Ford. Parker didnt plant his feet before he threw the ball, and it lost some velocity. The DB wanted the ball more than Ford did if you ask me.

-In years past, this team would've folded with GT at near midfield, and they'd have scored, but GT fails to capitalize. Clemson stretched out some crack arc screen option plays to the boundary and they got little yardage.

-Teams trade punts, Parker pushes a few throws out-of-bounds and Morgan continues to beat Lamberts ass. He's got too much speed and leverage on him. On the very deep ball to Spiller that went incomplete, Jacoby was wide open underneath. Clemson punts again and GT runs off the clock.

Halftime 24-7 246 yards for GT, 147 for Clemson. About 200 of those yards were on the first 4 drives by GT. KP was 8/17 for 98 yards, 1 TD/2 INT.

-In the GT opening drive, CU has shut down the inside Dive plays by putting Thompson/Chavis right on the outside shoulder of the Center and both are drawing double-teams. GT punts.

-CJ makes a cutback on an Off-tackle Power play, designed to go right, and cuts up the left side for 20 yars. Hairston is now playing RT. The dumbest call was the HB Pass CJ threw....that looked like a Rodney Williams pass. Palmer worked back to the sideline as Parker was pushed out of the pocket and makes an outstanding catch falling out of bounds at the 8. Clemson fails to shut off the backside rush on the next play and the DE runs him down from behind again. Why we didnt change the cadence or use a misdirection to get Morgan overpursuing a play baffles me. On the next play, Allen runs a pump route (out-n-up) to the post and Parker throws the ball about a foot behind him. Great catch. 7 plays 57 yards. 24-14


-Defense forces a punt after one long keeper by Nesbitt. I like that Johnson tells his offense to stay out on 4th and 1 and try to draw Clemson offsides, when do we see Clemson do that anymore? -On 3rd and 7, Parker throws a bullet to Jacoby and he makes a good catch through a double team of the safety and a LB. GT only rushed 3 with a Spy over the middle for Parker, Morgan was out on the sidelines. 77 yard TD. 24-21

-Defense forces a 3 & out, but a BOGUS holding call on the punt, before the kick, by Cumbie gives them a first down. Basically he hit the lineman head on and they tackled each other. Total bullshit. Defense forces another 3 & out because Nesbitt can't find his open man underneath.


-CJ starts the next drive with a perfectly executed HB Power for 25. The next play was the same but CJ cut it back and wouldve had another 25 if not for a great tackle. Their defense left M. Jones uncovered and he busts them for a big gain into the red zone. End 3rd Qtr The 3rd & 1 on the goalline looks to be an OT handoff and GT runs it down from behind because Austin gets whipped. Clemson FG. 24-24 7 plays 72 yard drive.

-Nesbitt sailed another and again it tails right and into McDaniels hands. He's got no zip on his throws. I dont see how they can throw to beat anyone with this guy.

-A quick play to Jacoby nets a big gain but two plays later Parker should've been intercepted, the corner route was underthrown into 2 GT players, and none got the ball. Spiller manages to block Morgan on the play, a great cut block. I really couldnt believe Jackson would hit this 53 yarder, but he SLAMMED it. That would've been good from 64. 27-24.

-Georgia Tech gets stuffed on the run, but a little quick pass to Allen underneath gets them to the 40. Now they have decided to run a little zone read QB keeper to the field side and Clemson couldnt really stop it for the rest of the game. Notice the counter step by the Wing and the fake handoff to Dwyer, then Nesbitt follows his Wing into the hole. We didnt have someone standing in the alley forcing things inside on some of these; McDaniel was backed up and we didnt shift our LBs. I am trying to get a good video loaded on youtube of this, but it seems not to work. As they are entering the red zone, I think Clemson should've called a TO just to rest our defense, but we stopped them and forced the kick. 27-27


-Clemson is really killing them with the Power play all night. Their defense is tired. Parker fumbles a low snap from Cloy on 2nd and 10, on 3rd down he hits Ford who ran right by Terrant, negated by a STUPID call.

The DT was fatigued, stopped moving his feet, and Austin has two hands on him as he falls down, then Austin fell down on top of him to pin him. That's not holding. We got shafted.

-Clemson gets a gift call back on a holding call on the next drive, the RG rammed into Thompson's hip and knocked him down, that was not holding either. On 3rd down & 11, Chancellor gets ripped on a post-corner route by Thomas. We were playing Cover 2 and Gilchirst didnt get over. The real culprit here was the pass rush, we got none. That play should not have had time to develop from a post to the corner route. They set up for a right hash kick and make it 30-27.

ShoelessCU highlights