Just to preface, I'm not wildly upset about this game.
I assumed we would lose, hoped for a win, but I think we're still on track and on an upward trajectory. That said, there are a few things that frustrated me Saturday night:

1. Clemson's D-line is great, but I think we hurt ourselves by getting brainwashed by that fact all week. There were some plays where you could tell JJ was told to just get rid of the ball if the first look wasn't there, even though in the flow of the play, he still had time to look at other reads, or pull the ball down and run. We were so concerned by their D-line that even when there wasn't pressure, we were running plays as if there was.

2. Relating to #1, our rush to get off passes resulted in most of the game being played right around the line of scrimmage, even though a lot of our deeper passes that stretched the defense actually worked. We were so concerned about the D-line that we rarely took shots downfield early in the game, even though later in the game when we did, there was usually someone open. Both INTs were on short/wide throws, not on downfield throws. IMO, this was a missed opportunity.

3. I know JJ is young, but IMO the staff has him too reliant on sideline checks. There was one play in particular where Cam lined up on the right side and the closest Clemson defender to him was literally 20 yards away. But instead of simply seeing this, taking a snap, and throwing it quickly to Cam for an easy 8-10 yards minimum, the offense just stood around and then stared at the sideline for a call. JJ should have a little more freedom to make a call at the for an obvious gain when the defense isn't lined up correctly.

4. Perhaps why #3 is true, JJ seemed to know where he was throwing the ball before the play even started, rather than checking down his reads. At least in the first half, I noticed a few plays where JJ threw to one side of the field, even though he had a guy WIDE OPEN elsewhere for potential big gainers.


All in all, it was a fun night and we're heading in the right direction. I just wish some of the items above hadn't happened.
[Post edited by wansapana at 10/02/2017 12:44PM]