Swinney Feels Tigers Are on Schedule
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CLEMSON, S.C. — Clemson wrapped up the first quarter of the season with a 3-0 record, thanks to Saturday’s 48-20 victory over Louisiana Tech.
With the first quarter of the 2022 season in the books, head coach Dabo Swinney feels the fifth-ranked Tigers are right where he thought they would be.
“I think we have settled in,” he said. “That’s kinda what I think we needed to do. We needed to kinda settle in a little bit and learn about our team. Grow up a little bit.
“I am thankful that we have been able to have some adversity and have some challenges and have to kinda battle a lit bit. We are a lot more battled tested than we were starting out. That’s for sure.”
The Tigers (3-0, 1-0 ACC) opened the season on Labor Day with a 41-10 beatdown of Georgia Tech, a game in which the defense held the Yellow Jackets to 237 total yards. Last week, Furman took advantage of a tired defense and racked up 384 yards of total offense, but quarterback DJ Uiagalelei and the offense scored on five of their first six possessions and Clemson still rolled to a 35-12 victory.
Then this past Saturday, Uiagalelei and the offense continued to get better, while the defense forced four turnovers in a 28-point victory, despite the fact the defense was down five starters. The running game also got going in Week 3, as the Tigers gained 280 yards on the ground, including 139 yards and two touchdowns from running back Will Shipley.
“I think we as coaches know more about our guys and have gotten a lot of guys some experience,” Swinney said. “So, we have kinda settled in a little bit, but as we get into this next little stretch here, we have to apply the lessons. You know, we have to show some wisdom.
“Wisdom is the application of knowledge.”
Clemson will try to use that knowledge as they get back into ACC play to start the second quarter of the season. The Tigers travel to No. 21 Wake Forest (3-0, 0-0 ACC) for a noon kick on ABC.
“We have to show some wisdom as we get on the road,” Swinney said. “Wake Forest is a well-coached team. They usually do not beat themselves. We got to play well and play clean.”
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