No. 11 Clemson, QB Watson happy with steady showing

When: October 3, 8 p.m. Though Petrino mixed things up in the second half of last week’s Atlantic Coast Conference opener against Clemson, Traveon Samuel’s 100-yard kickoff return was Louisville’s only TD in the final 30 minutes.

Given how competitive Thursday night’s game was, Clemson coaches and players themselves did not have much time to sit back and soak in the environment of the team’s first trip of Louisville.

In his rookie campaign, Watson completed 67.9% of his passes for 1,466 yards (10.7 per attempt) with 14 touchdowns and only two interceptions for a tremendous quarterback rating of 188.57.

So it’s been a point to ponder: Is Watson a little too anxious to start the game? “That’s going to take care of itself”, Watson said Monday. It’s kind of hard to be flawless in this game or this sport.

Watson hasn’t been quite as dynamic as he was in limited duty during his freshman year. “So that’s about where I’m at”, he said as the room filled with laughter. “I guess I forced certain passes throughout the game, but I’m getting back to the basics and doing what (quarterbacks coach Brandon) Streeter’s coaching me to do”.

For some transplanted Tigers fans like Matthew Couch, who attended Clemson for his undergraduate studies but received his master’s degree from Louisville and has lived there for the past seven years, Thursday’s game was an opportunity to see the team they root for play close to home.

“We don’t have any concerns about Deshaun“.

Co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott acknowledged that he could not get a true feel for the stadium environment during the game, as he was seated in the press box calling plays, but said “everyone was very nice” in advance of the game. He’ll continue to work hard.

“I’ve been wanting to come to Louisville, Kentucky forever”, said Randy Reeves, who lives in Anderson. The Cardinals had chances to tie both contests late, but normally steady senior kicker John Wallace missed field goals each time – one was blocked – and is just 1 of 3 inside 39 yards. “That’s what we’re focused on this week”.

While the Tigers and Cardinals had never played one another prior to last season, they are set to play each other annually going forward, with Louisville having joined the ACC’s Atlantic Division in 2014. If anything was lost, it was Watson’s momentum toward national awards; he dropped in Bovada.com’s Heisman Trophy odds tracker to 20-to-1, the same as former Clemson quarterback and current Mississippi starter Chad Kelly.

“He played pretty good“, Swinney said about Watson. “I’m just here to do my part and get wins”. Let’s take a look at some defensive grades for the Tigers.

“It maybe wasn’t as exciting and glamorous as we want it to be, but when the defense challenges you to be patient, I felt like we did a really good job of not trying to force things”, he said.

“We got better as the year went on”, Swinney said. “If I had 400 yards every game, then that’s what happens, but as long as we get that W, it’s all good with me”.