CLEMSON, S.C. — NC State fell to 2-2 after getting blitzed in the first half in a 59-35 loss at Clemson on Saturday.
Clemson junior quarterback Cade Klubnik threw for 209 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for a 55-yard score in playing a little over half the game. Clemson held a commanding 45-7 lead at halftime thanks to four scores in the first quarter.
Klubnik set the tone just 1:41 into the game when he kept the ball on the read option and raced through the NC State defense. He then threw a 31-yard touchdown to sophomore wide receiver Antonio Williams to mae it 14-0 with 7:56 left in the first quarter.
Then things went from bad to ugly. Clemson sophomore defensive end T.J. Parker got a sack and forced fumble against NC State freshman quarterback Cedrick “C.J.” Bailey at the NCSU 19-yard line. Bailey was making his first college start and has gotten off to a solid start, but the game started to snowball from there, similar in the second half of the 51-10 loss against Tennessee on Sept. 7 in Charlotte, N.C.
Klubnik eventually threw a two-yard touchdown pass to Williams to extend their lead to 21-0 with 5:07 left in the first quarter.
Another fumble, this time when NC State sophomore wide receiver Kevin Concepcion was stripped by Clemson sophomore cornerback Avion Terrell, eventually led to senior running back Phil Mafah sprinting in from 38 yards out for a score.
Concepcion was the star of last year’s win over Clemson in Raleigh, but was held to five catches for 40 yards and two carries for four yards this year.
Clemson led 28-0 with 2:08 left in the first quarter. The Tigers had done that to the Wolfpack in the past, but it was with future NFL star quarterback Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence.
NC State coach Dave Doeren wasn’t sure what to make of it until he reviews the film, but he knows one thing about trailing 45-7 at halftime — the Wolfpack need to be tougher and the leaders need to lead.
“It was explosive plays, guys not fitting the run [gaps] properly and not tackling well, playing soft in coverage,” Doeren said. “Just not aggressive. We looked like we are on our heels, and I’m not sure why.”
Playing tougher and with more effort defensively proved to be a postgame theme.
“Everything we got to do has to change,” said NC State redshirt junior middle linebacker Caden Fordham, who had a team-high eight tackles. “The way we approach every day. We have to come out with more intensity. We have to communicate better.”
Bailey played with good poise for a true freshman in his first start, and to do it against the No. 21-ranked Tigers on the road. He finished 16-of-25 passing for 204 yards and one touchdown and one interception, plus rushed seven times for minus-13 yards and the lost fumble.
Bailey believes he came out of the game with a better understanding of who he is as a quarterback and team leader, despite his youth.
"It was actually a fun experience," Bailey said. "The crowd noise, and to be behind that snap, it was really a fun experience for me.
"I learned I have a lot more fight in me than I thought I had. I'm really a good leader and I didn't see that before. I had a lot of great energy for the offense and they had my back."
Clemson’s defense finished with eight tackles for loss, two sacks, two forced fumbles and an interception.
“I’m proud of C.J. for one, and I thought he prepared well for the game, and did some good things,” Doeren said. “When you are turning the football over three times, that isn’t good. I don’t think I’ve won a game where we were minus-three in the turnover margin.
“C.J. is not to blame for the loss, I’ll tell you that. He did some good things and that was a tough environment for a first start.”
The last time NC State allowed 59 points in a game was in a 59-21 loss to Georgia Tech on Oct. 11, 1986, during coach Dick Sheridan’s first season.If there is a silver lining, the Wolfpack ended up going 8-3-1 in 1986 under Sheridan.
The most Doeren’s defense has allowed came in two different games — a 56-41 loss to Florida State on Sept. 27, 2014, and a 56-23 defeat against Georgia Tech on Nov. 8, 2014.
He hopes to use last year’s 4-3 start and eventual 9-4 finish to inspire the players.
“There are eight games left in the regular season, and I know our staff will do a good job of looking at our personnel and our schemes,” Doeren said. “We’ll get back to work.
“We are going to find out who wants to fight. That is what happened last year.”
NC State has Northern Illinois coming to Carter-Finley Stadium next Saturday. The Huskies were Doeren’s first head coaching job. The first order of business is restoring the pride to a shell-shocked defense, which returned senior defensive end Davin Vann and senior cornerback Aydan White, plus Sean Brown, who converted from free safety to weakside linebacker.
“We didn’t use the rules of our [defensive] system well,” Doeren said. “We have to be better than that. That isn’t who we are on defense. I know [defensive coordinator] Coach [Tony] Gibson is sick to his stomach right now. The film will tell us a lot.”
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