Clemson Tigers Three Keys to Success to Beat Wake Forest Demon Deacons

The Clemson Tigers seek their fifth straight win of the season when they hit the road to face the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.

Aug 31, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Clemson Tigers defensive lineman Peter Woods (11) shown on the field pregame prior to the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers hope to continue to improve their chances of a berth in the ACC Championship when they play their second straight road game on Saturday, this time at the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.

The Tigers (4-1, 3-0 in ACC) haven’t lost since they were blown out in their season opener against Georgia. Along the way, Clemson appears to have solved the offensive issues that, in part, led to that loss.

Wake Forest  (2-3, 1-1) has been a team the Tigers have traditionally played well against, as Clemons leads the all-time series 71-17-1. Game time is set for noon Eeastern on ESPN.

Let’s explore three keys to success for Clemson to beat Wake Forest.

High-Octane Balance

There are many ways to tell that the Clemson offense is firing away. There’s no better way to illustrate that than the below.

The Tigers have rushed for at least 200 yards and passed for at least 200 yards in three of their five games this season. That includes last week against Florida State, when Clemson racked up 265 rushing yards and 235 passing yards.

Now, that isn’t easy to accomplish week-to-week. But this Clemson offense is just rolling behind quarterback Cade Klubnik and running back Phil Mafah.

And, historically, this is a great benchmark. When the Tigers do that under coach Dabo Swinney the Tigers are 64-1. In program history, they are 114-1-1.

Protect the Quarterback

If you watched last week’s Wake Forest-NC State game, you saw Wolfpack quarterback Grayson McCall suffer an injury that required him to make a visit to a hospital after the game.

That injury wasn’t the only reason the Wolfpack lost the game, but it didn’t help matters.

Which brings us to Klubnik. He’s having a tremendous season. He’s already thrown for 1,219 yards, 14 touchdowns and two interceptions in five games. He’s also rushed for 168 yards and scored four touchdowns.

That brings us to another question — does anyone know who the back-up is? Does anyone want to find out at this point?

Probably not. That’s why it’s up to tackle Marcus Tate and the rest of the offensive line to keep Klubnik out of harm’s way.

(The backup quarterback is Christopher Vizzina, by the way).

Rush the Passer

That’s usually a pretty good key to try and hit each week. Well, this game is a great opportunity for the Tigers’ pass rush because the Demon Deacons don’t do a good job of protecting the quarterback.

Wake Forest is No. 103 in sacks allowed, as the Demon Deacons have given up 13 sacks in five games. Teams that are giving up sacks are usually giving up more pressures than the average, too. That’s how Clemson has to look at it.

With Peter Woods back, the Tigers’ pass rush is only going to get better. This is a great opportunity for Barrett Carter and the rest of the rushers to bring the heat on Saturday.