Clemson Comes From Behind, Beats UNC 28-20 Despite 2-1⁄2 Hour Delay
Clemson, S.C. – Gideon Davidson, Tait Reynolds, and Mother Nature all combined for a huge early season test for the Tigers as they came from behind to defeat the visiting Tar Heels. The Tigers overcame the pressure with the help of an incredibly long delay to take the win. This showed something in Clemson we haven’t seen this year: grit, determination, and juice.
Earlier in the week, offensive coordinator Chad Morris had many questions about the offense, with the biggest being: Where is the juice?
After the game against Georgia Southern, Morris noticed that the lack of energy was very
troubling.
“I was just kind of looking around, going okay, let’s go. Look, I shared this with our guys...
sometimes I think I’m looking at the back of your head when I’m looking through your eyes,”
Morris said. “We got to have a fire about us.
“This is a brand that we got to ride high for, and, you know, man, we’ve worked too hard to not come out here and take advantage of the seven opportunities that we have to play in the Valley,” Morris stated later in his press conference. “And, again, and then show them and our staff, hey, it’s not just, it’s everybody. It’s all of us. We’ve got to have more juice with our staff. There’s no excuse. We all have to bring it.
“This is us, and we’ve all got to bring the juice, and we all got to bring the passion and the honor that we get to wear this brand, and we will. And I promise you we’re going to do that.”
Morris certainly delivered on his promise as the offense totaled 401 total yards, including 186 on the ground.
The execution of the game plan was not perfect by any means – far from it in fact – but the
resilience the Tigers showed made up for it on both sides of scrimmage.
Offensive Takeaways
The offense completely stifled the first two quarters of the game as North Carolina’s defense
effectively shut down the run game and broke Clemson’s offensive line.
This was the first start ever for freshman quarterback Tait Reynolds, making him the earliest true freshman to start at quarterback for Clemson since 1975. After experiencing early growing pains – including a first half that saw him go 12/19 for 76 yards – Reynolds settled in to finish with 215 passing yards, a touchdown, and an interception.
Sophomore Gideon Davidson put together his first career 100-yard rushing game, churning out yards in the clutch when the Tigers needed him the most. Davidson ran for 105 rushing yards on the day with one rushing touchdown. Gid the Kid was able to grant Clemson their first lead of the game, going up 21-20.
Wide receiver Tyler Brown offered the last nail in the coffin when he took a 34-yard end-around to the house to put the Tigers up one possession with a minute remaining.
Other Notable Offensive Performances
WR Bryant Wesco Jr. caught the ball five times for 77 yards.
WR T.J. Moore caught 7 passes for 38 yards.
TE Christian Bentacur cradled the rock twice for 35 yards and a touchdown.
Defensive Takeaways
While the Tigers struggled early to contain the North Carolina rushing attack, the defense
stiffened significantly when it mattered most, completely shutting down the Tar Heels’ passing game and limiting Billy Edwards Jr. to a pitiful performance.
Tom Allen’s secondary had the field on lock, allowing Edwards to finish the day completing 13 of 31 passes for 135 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.
Ashton Hampton and London Merritt played sticky coverage, deflecting three passes and
putting continuous pressure on UNC wideouts all afternoon.
Jerome Carter III had a huge impact on the game early, forcing a turnover on downs after
staying step-for-step with tight end Jelani Thurman on a critical fourth-down play.
Elliot Washington II put the game away for the Tigers after intercepting Billy Edwards with 32
seconds left, completing the comeback.
Notable Defensive Performances
Corey Myrick finished with 11 total tackles and four solo tackles.
Jeremiah Alexander finished with 10 tackles, one solo and 0.5 TFL.
Sammy Brown collected 9 total tackles, four solo tackles, one sack, and one TFL.
Will Heldt had three total tackles, two solo, two sacks, and two TFLs.
Fletcher Cothran garnered 2 solo tackles and one fumble recovery.
Nolan Hauser Solidifies Case for Groza Award
Clemson’s place kicker is still perfect, notching three field goals in the win. His longest of the
game came from 49 yards.
Hauser opened the season in flawless fashion going 9-for-9 on field goals through these first
three games. He is the only kicker in college football as of the writing of this article to be 9-of-9 and perfect on all kicks. He is ahead of Conor Taity (Bama), Drew Klein (NDSU), Gavin Lahm (Wisconsin), Jonah Delange (UAB), and Samer Layous (GAST) for kickers with 7+ made field goals and perfect accuracy on those kicks.
Safe to say that Hauser is having a career year that none of us truly expected.
Notable Streaks, Records, and Anomalies
With the 28-20 victory, Clemson extended its active winning streak over UNC to eight
consecutive games, continuing the run that dates back to 2010.
The Tar Heels have now gone a full 25 years without winning a football game in Death
Valley.
By taking the opening snap, Tait Reynolds became the earliest true freshman to start at
quarterback from Clemson since 1975 (Steve Fuller).
Gideon Davidson notched his first 100-yard rushing game of his career, the first 100-yard
rusher since Adam Randall (2025 vs. USC).
The 2-hour and 28-minute lightning delay officially set a new Memorial Stadium record
for the longest weather stoppage in Clemson history.
This game marked Clemson’s third consecutive game of the young season to feature a
weather delay, which is an absolute anomaly.
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