Boston College Athletics
BC Offense To Face Clemson's Cycle of Success
October 29, 2020 | Football, #ForBoston Files
The Clemson defense is a nightmare factory for oppsoing offenses over the past six years.
It doesn't take much to describe No. 1 Clemson as a football team. The Tigers win, and they command the spotlight's respect. Pulling on the orange helmet is a guaranteed shot to play deep into the season with an opportunity to individually play on Sundays in the near future. The very good players are high draft picks, and the team's leaders are first rounders. The very best, the ones rewriting the record book, walk across the stage to hug the NFL Commissioner.
Then there's quarterback Trevor Lawrence, the presumptive No. 1 overall pick in next year's NFL Draft. He's in a class by himself and a legend in an orange uniform, the rare player who lived up to the hype when he enrolled in college. He's going to graduate into the NFL at some point, and he has the potential to change the face of a franchise for the next decade's worth of history.
Those reputations can create mythological creatures, but the truth in Clemson's success runs deeper than any individual's talent. The Tigers are so much more than that, and peeling back the layers reveals a football factory built by one of the greatest coaching staffs in college football history.
"A compliment to Clemson and their whole coaching staff is that they develop guys really well," BC head coach Jeff Hafley said. "This isn't a team that throws great athletes and five-star (recruits) that run around to make plays. There are plenty of teams that do that, (but) what (Clemson has) done is develop their players. They have a good scheme."
Offenses grab the highlight reels, but Clemson turns over its defense every year with minimal drop off. For each of the past three years, the Tigers allowed an average of 13 points per game. In 2017 and 2019, they allowed less points at home than on the road and averaged less than two touchdowns per game defensively in Memorial Stadium. That same defense posted a top ten total defense output in each of the past six seasons and averaged more than 300 yards allowed per game in only two seasons since 2014.
The Tigers are right on schedule this year with 274 yards allowed per game (10th nationally) and an average of four sacks per game (fourth). They are elite in every situational facet and limit both third down conversions and first downs. In three games this season, opponents averaged less than four yards per play, including consecutive blowouts against No. 12 Miami and Georgia Tech.
"(The scheme) is why they've had success over a long period of time," Hafley said. "They play some young guys and get them experience, but they have other guys that are products of development. They are tough and make plays, and that's a credit to the coaches who make good players into great players. There aren't a lot of teams like that. When you build a program like that, you have success for a long time."
Clemson never feels out of sync defensively, and the players cycle seamlessly into and out of coordinator Brent Venables' system. The front four is young with sophomores and freshmen setting the edge and interior, but linebackers James Skalski and Baylon Spector are both graduate students nearing the end of their collegiate careers. Eventually, those older players will cycle out and be replaced by younger, budding stars, while the younger players develop into potential first round draft picks.Â
It's how Clemson litters every NFL Draft with defensive players. Arizona and Atlanta drafted linebacker Isaiah Simmons and defensive back AJ Terrell with the eighth and 16h picks this year, one season after Oakland, Miami and the New York Giants drafted three defensive linemen in the first 17 picks. In 2017, the highest-drafted defensive player was a defensive back, one year after Shaq Lawson went to Buffalo in the first round.
"Our defense is not easy," Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said during his press conference this week. "There's a lot of moving parts, and sometimes it takes a little longer for some guys to grab a hold of. All of those Zoom meetings from March to July, when we (ordinarily) wouldn't meet or talk ball, is a reflection of that. It's a silver lining, one of the positives, that's come about (during the COVID era). Mentally, coming into camp, we were further along than we normally would be. It's allowed us to have some more functional depth."
Continually developing players makes Clemson's defense impossible to crack without the perfect game plan, but Boston College's continually-improving offense offers a unique look. The Eagles rushed for more than 250 yards for the first time last week and already proved the new-look offense isn't afraid to chuck the ball downfield. The offensive line is starting to gel, and quarterback Phil Jurkovec offers a look at who might fill the vacuum atop the ACC once Lawrence leaves for greener pastures.
"They're five out (with) max protection," Swinney said. "They're doing a really good job schematically. This last week, they got the running game rolling. Excellent personnel up front and three backs who can run. (Zay Flowers) is a really good player, and (Hunter Long) leading them in receiving. He's a big, strong target that makes a ton of competitive plays. Our work is cut out for us."
Boston College and No. 1 Clemson will kick off at 12 p.m. on Saturday from Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina. The game can be seen on national television on ABC with radio broadcast available on the BC Learfield IMG Sports Network, locally in Boston on WEEI 93.7 FM.
Then there's quarterback Trevor Lawrence, the presumptive No. 1 overall pick in next year's NFL Draft. He's in a class by himself and a legend in an orange uniform, the rare player who lived up to the hype when he enrolled in college. He's going to graduate into the NFL at some point, and he has the potential to change the face of a franchise for the next decade's worth of history.
Those reputations can create mythological creatures, but the truth in Clemson's success runs deeper than any individual's talent. The Tigers are so much more than that, and peeling back the layers reveals a football factory built by one of the greatest coaching staffs in college football history.
"A compliment to Clemson and their whole coaching staff is that they develop guys really well," BC head coach Jeff Hafley said. "This isn't a team that throws great athletes and five-star (recruits) that run around to make plays. There are plenty of teams that do that, (but) what (Clemson has) done is develop their players. They have a good scheme."
Offenses grab the highlight reels, but Clemson turns over its defense every year with minimal drop off. For each of the past three years, the Tigers allowed an average of 13 points per game. In 2017 and 2019, they allowed less points at home than on the road and averaged less than two touchdowns per game defensively in Memorial Stadium. That same defense posted a top ten total defense output in each of the past six seasons and averaged more than 300 yards allowed per game in only two seasons since 2014.
The Tigers are right on schedule this year with 274 yards allowed per game (10th nationally) and an average of four sacks per game (fourth). They are elite in every situational facet and limit both third down conversions and first downs. In three games this season, opponents averaged less than four yards per play, including consecutive blowouts against No. 12 Miami and Georgia Tech.
"(The scheme) is why they've had success over a long period of time," Hafley said. "They play some young guys and get them experience, but they have other guys that are products of development. They are tough and make plays, and that's a credit to the coaches who make good players into great players. There aren't a lot of teams like that. When you build a program like that, you have success for a long time."
Clemson never feels out of sync defensively, and the players cycle seamlessly into and out of coordinator Brent Venables' system. The front four is young with sophomores and freshmen setting the edge and interior, but linebackers James Skalski and Baylon Spector are both graduate students nearing the end of their collegiate careers. Eventually, those older players will cycle out and be replaced by younger, budding stars, while the younger players develop into potential first round draft picks.Â
It's how Clemson litters every NFL Draft with defensive players. Arizona and Atlanta drafted linebacker Isaiah Simmons and defensive back AJ Terrell with the eighth and 16h picks this year, one season after Oakland, Miami and the New York Giants drafted three defensive linemen in the first 17 picks. In 2017, the highest-drafted defensive player was a defensive back, one year after Shaq Lawson went to Buffalo in the first round.
"Our defense is not easy," Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said during his press conference this week. "There's a lot of moving parts, and sometimes it takes a little longer for some guys to grab a hold of. All of those Zoom meetings from March to July, when we (ordinarily) wouldn't meet or talk ball, is a reflection of that. It's a silver lining, one of the positives, that's come about (during the COVID era). Mentally, coming into camp, we were further along than we normally would be. It's allowed us to have some more functional depth."
Continually developing players makes Clemson's defense impossible to crack without the perfect game plan, but Boston College's continually-improving offense offers a unique look. The Eagles rushed for more than 250 yards for the first time last week and already proved the new-look offense isn't afraid to chuck the ball downfield. The offensive line is starting to gel, and quarterback Phil Jurkovec offers a look at who might fill the vacuum atop the ACC once Lawrence leaves for greener pastures.
"They're five out (with) max protection," Swinney said. "They're doing a really good job schematically. This last week, they got the running game rolling. Excellent personnel up front and three backs who can run. (Zay Flowers) is a really good player, and (Hunter Long) leading them in receiving. He's a big, strong target that makes a ton of competitive plays. Our work is cut out for us."
Boston College and No. 1 Clemson will kick off at 12 p.m. on Saturday from Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina. The game can be seen on national television on ABC with radio broadcast available on the BC Learfield IMG Sports Network, locally in Boston on WEEI 93.7 FM.
Players Mentioned
#24 Baseball Defeats UConn (April 15, 2026)
Wednesday, April 15
#24 Baseball Defeats Northeastern in Beanpot Championship (April 14, 2026)
Wednesday, April 15
#23 Baseball Defeats Virginia Tech (April 12, 2026)
Tuesday, April 14
#23 Baseball Defeats Virginia Tech (April 11,2026
Saturday, April 11
