Clemson-Auburn

Auburn has the chops on D to halt the Tigers if they become one dimensional.

That means Kelly Bryant will be counted on to move the chains in critical moments. If you are going to run temp, you MUST be able to convert 3rd downs, which was the nice thing about Watson. This is certainly a scary task, given he’s never been relied upon before, but two things give me confidence.

First, he had a solid week 1. He showed an accurate deep ball - something that isn’t so dependent on competition level. He completed easy passes and let his skill players do the work and he looked good in the option running game. Second, is Bryant’s speed and willingness to run. Even if he struggles a bit through the air, I’m not sure I believe in a Kevin Steele defense to stop a dual-threat QB in a spread offense. When Steele was the DC at Clemson, his defenses were often torched by dual-threat QBs on 3rd down.

AUbie used a lot of man defense in last season’s matchup, a defense that can fall victim to the QB scramble.

I am buying some of the hype on Auburn and could see them challenging LSU in Baton Rouge (they haven’t won there since 1999) and Alabama at home (their defensive strengths matchup well against the Tide). They’ll be the Clemson’s biggest test of the season, but I think they fall just shy of pulling off a road upset.