Georgia defense snaps Clemson's impressive first half streak

While the Georgia offense struggled in the first half of their 10-3 victory over Clemson on Saturday night, the defense accomplished a feat that has not happened in 11 years. They held Clemson scoreless for the first 30 minutes.

Prior to tonight, Clemson had scored points before the half in an NCAA-best 143 games. The last time the Tigers were shut out in the first half was 2010. NC State held the Tigers scoreless for a half, but Clemson had the last laugh. They won the game 14-13.

Saturday night’s results were different.

The Georgia front seven absolutely suffocated quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei and the Clemson run game. They held them to -4 rushing yards and just 2.8 yards per play in total in the first half. Lyn-J Dixon lead the team in rushing with just 10 yards.

Clemson finished the game with a total of two yards on the ground. Uiagalelei was sacked seven times.

The Clemson defense was dominant as well, allowing just three points. The only touchdown in the game came on a pick six by Georgia defensive back Christopher Smith.

Georgia quarterback JT Daniels completed 22 of his 30 passes, but as the final stats show, they were largely very short completions. He finished with just 135 yards, an average of just 6.1 yards per completion.

Offensive line woes are not new for Clemson

While Clemson’s offensive performance on Saturday night was unlike anything they have done in recent seasons, their run game has been struggling. The Tigers averaged just 153.8 rushing yards per game, which was 11th in the ACC behind teams like Virginia and Duke. 

Travis Etienne, the ACC’s all-time leading rusher and ultimate first-round NFL Draft pick, struggled in the big games last season, running for just 28 yards (1.6 yards per carry) against Notre Dame in their regular season meeting and 32 yards (3.2 yards per carry) against Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl. Admittedly, Etienne had 124 yards against the Irish in the ACC Championship Game, so he was much improved from the Nov. 7 game. 

Offensive coordinator Tony Elliott has spoken this offseason about the need to generate more of a run game, especially in high-pressure situations. 

“You’re gonna have to generate run game,” Elliott said. “We saw that last year when we played up at Notre Dame. We didn’t have enough run game to keep them honest. You’re not necessarily going to put a number on it, but it’s gotta be effective.”