MIAMI GARDENS, Fla.— Prior to the start of Saturday’s game between Clemson and Miami, Hurricane players approached a group of Clemson receivers during warm ups as if trying to intimidate the sixth-ranked Tigers. That was a bad idea.
All that did was make Clemson mad, and the Tigers used it instead as motivation, letting their play do their talking as it steamrolled the Hurricanes, 58-0 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens.
The 58-point margin of victory matched the largest by a Clemson team in ACC play, and was the worst defeat in Miami history.
Freshman quarterback Kelly Bryant got the Tigers (7-0, 4-0 ACC) over the top with a 10-yard touchdown with 8:50 to play in the game. Bryant also had a 59-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Clemson (7-0, 4-0 ACC) finished the game with 416 rushing yards, the 14th best mark in school history, and the first time a Clemson team rushed for more than 400 yards since getting 436 against Wake Forest in 2000.
Cordrea Tankersley’s 36-yard interception return with 34 second to play gave Clemson the most points scored in a half against an ACC opponent since they scored 42 against Duke in 2012.
Tankersley’s touchdown return was the Tigers’ 11th defensive touchdown under defensive coordinator Brent Venables.
Clemson had 363 yards in the opening half, including 230 rushing yards. The Tigers had more rushing yards in the first half than in any game this year.
The Clemson defense held Miami to 84 total yards, including just 24 yards passing, plus it knocked out starting quarterback Brad Kaaya from the game with a second quarter sack by Shaq Lawson.
Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson completed 15 of 19 passes for 143 yards and one touchdown, while running back Wayne Gallman had 118 yards rushing and one touchdown. Watson also rushed for 98 yards and scored on a six-yard touchdown run. He also had a 63-yard run on the Tigers’ second possession of the game.
Clemson scored on its first four possessions of the half to take a 28-0 lead. First Watson found tight end Jordan Leggett on a 34-yard throw back pass. Then Wayne Gallman scored on a five-yard run with 6:53 to go in the opening quarter for a 14-0 lead. Watson’s 63-yard run to the 10-yard line set up Gallman’s touchdown.
The Tigers increased their lead to 21-0 on Zac Brooks’ one-yard run and then 28-0 when Artavis Scott took an option pitch from Watson and went into the end zone from three yards out.
Watson ran in from six yards out with 42 seconds to play in the half to cap a 13-play, 84-yard drive. Four of Clemson’s five first half scoring drives were 82, 84, 85 and 84 yards. The other was a 13-play, 61-yard drive.