CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — When Clemson’s offense struggled to get points early on, cornerback Avieon Terrell shrugged it off and told them not to worry.
“We got you,” he said to his offensive teammates. No. 17 Clemson’s defense certainly did with three interceptions and three fourth-down stops in a 40-14 victory over Stanford on Saturday night.
“We’re confident,” said Terrell, who had one of the first-half picks in the end zone to stop a Cardinal drive. “We don’t worry too much.”
Cade Klubnik threw for four touchdowns and ran for another to continue his hot stretch where he’s accounted for 16 touchdowns (12 passing, four rushing) in the past three wins for the Tigers (3-1, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference).
The victory was the 173rd for coach Dabo Swinney, who tied Florida State’s late national championship coach Bobby Bowden for most coaching victories with an ACC school.
And unlike Clemson’s wins the past two games, the defense led the way.
“It’s great to see those guys do what they did,” Klubnik said.
The Tigers stopped the Cardinal (2-2, 1-1) three times inside the Clemson 20, two on interceptions and the last when safety R.J. Mickens forced Emmett Mosley V out of bounds on fourth-and-5 at the Clemson 10 with the Tigers up just 20-7.
Clemson’s defense stopped the Cardinal on downs three times despite giving up 361 yards, 236 of that rushing.
The Tigers held Stanford to 71 yards passing through three quarters with quarterback Ashton Daniels going just 9 of 19 before he was helped off the field in the fourth after Clemson stopped him short on fourth-and-1.
Stanford coach Troy Taylor said it was too soon to know Daniels’ status.
Klubnik put things away a moment later with his final scoring pass, a 34-yard throw to dynamic freshman Bryant Wesco Jr. for a 33-7 lead.
The game took place a day after Hurricane Helene struck the Southeast, including South Carolina. The storm was responsible for at least 56 deaths and left millions without power, including many areas near Clemson’s campus. It also delayed Stanford’s arrival into the area until Friday, some 25 hours before kickoff.
Clemson looked like it was off to another fast start when it forced a fumble on Stanford’s opening drive and Klubnik ran for a 34-yard TD.
But the Cardinal did what Appalachian State and N.C. State couldn’t — push the Tigers’ defense to the limit when it mattered most. Clemson, though, did not break as both drives inside the red zone ended on a Daniels interception, the first in the end zone by Terrell and the other inside the 10 by Jeadyn Lukus.
The Clemson offense, which played near perfect football in blowout wins over the Mountaineers and Wolfpack, was not as crisp against Stanford.
Klubnik threw his first interception in three games since a 34-3 loss to then top-ranked Georgia in the opener and finished 15 of 31 passing for 255 yards.
Stanford’s Taylor said the team missed early chances to keep things close.
“That’s a great football team we just played. We were able to hang with them for a while. Just too many mistakes,” he said.
Takeaways
Stanford: The Cardinal made the most of their long, cross-country trip that got them to Clemson on Friday, some 24 hours before kickoff. They moved the ball on the Tigers defense and largely kept the Tigers’ array of playmakers out of the end zone.
Clemson: The Tigers’ front-line players had not played a four-quarter game since losing to Georgia. And they mostly withstood the test, wearing down a Stanford team playing its second game in eight days in the eastern time zone.
Milestone moment
Clemson’s Swinney has a photo of him and Bowden from 2008 when he had only one win with the Tigers. He’s always treasured it and the friend he knew in Bowden. When Swinney was named interim coach in the middle of the 2008 season — taking over for Bobby’s son, Tommy Bowden, who was fired — he received a call from Bobby that said, “All the Bowdens are pulling you.”
“Great man, great family. I’m just honored to be in the conversation with him,” Swinney of Bowden.
Across the country
It was the second time in eight days Stanford had to fly from its Northern California campus to the Eastern time zone. The Cardinal won at Syracuse 26-24, then flew home before arriving in South Carolina on Friday. The team was flying home right after its Clemson’s loss and did not make players available in the postgame.
Stanford, first-year ACC members, have two more games in the Eastern time zone, at Notre Dame on Oct. 12 and at N.C. State on Nov. 2.
Up next
Stanford returns home to play Virginia Tech on Saturday.
Clemson goes to Florida State on Saturday.
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