Clemson's Offensive Line Holds Up Against Auburn
Going into the Chick-fil-A Classic at the Georgia Dome, the greatest question facing the Tigers outside of the defense was how they were going to recover from losing three of their starters from the offensive line, including Philip Price, a beast of a man. The concern was well warranted, as it was apparent that a lack of depth at offensive line contributed to the downward spiral at the end of last season. Although, Clemson did catch a break in the sense that some offensive line recruits were able to enroll early and get an extra spring’s worth of practice under their belts.
When Chad Morris came to Clemson, he had a clear vision of what he wanted the offense to be. He wanted to run an up-tempo, ground-and-pound offense, and it was nearly impossible to run long, fast-paced drives with the offensive line last year. They were the remnant of the previous offensive coordinator, who wanted to run a pro-style offense. As it turned out, this fresh offensive line was exactly what Morris needed.
With this young, lean offensive line, Morris is able to run his Pistol offense. The Pistol needs offensive lineman who are able to line up consistently play after play without having to stop for oxygen. Morris was able to get these linemen conditioned to that point and it definitely paid off.
But how much did it pay off?
This offensive line went up against a veteran Auburn defensive line and was able to control the game by the second half, tiring out the defenders. They allowed no sacks in the second half, and provided blocking for Clemson’s offense to gain 320 yards on the ground, including 231 yards by senior running back Andre Ellington.
For the Tigers, inexperience paid off. The offensive line, which was viewed as a major obstacle to Clemson’s ability to repeat an ACC Championship, is proving to be one of the more improved positions for this Clemson team. Their next major test will be at Florida State, who just lost senior defensive end Brandon Jenkins to injury. This group of young talented men may be the unit to watch as the season develops.
Until next week, God Bless, and Go Tigers!