2011 ACC Championship Game
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Game 13
University
Virginia Tech
10
Clemson
38
December 3, 2011 • ACC Championship Game Bank of America Stadium • Charlotte, NC
Two weeks of frustration were cured in just over one quarter at Bank of America Stadium as #21 Clemson scored 28 points in the first 17 minutes of the second half to defeat #3 Virginia Tech by a score of 38-10 to win its first ACC Championship since 1991. “We’re a championship program and tonight we added to a great tradition,” said Head Coach Dabo Swinney. “I think this was our 18th (conference title) overall and 14th ACC Championship. “It’s our first time to win 10 games in 21 years. It’s our first time to win an ACC Championship in 20 years and our first time to go to the Orange Bowl in 30 years. It’s great to be a Tiger and we’re 10-3. We’re excited about representing the ACC in the Orange Bowl.” With the game tied 10-10 at halftime, Clemson forced the Hokies to a three-and-out on their first possession of
the third quarter and then used a 10-play, 87-yard drive to regain the lead for good. Tajh Boyd, who was named game MVP, threw his second of three touchdown passes with an eight-yard pass to tight end Dwayne Allen to cap the drive. Allen and Boyd hooked up for a 24-yard touchdown in the first quarter as well. Boyd finished the game 20-29 passing for 240 yards and three touchdowns against no interceptions. In the process, he set Clemson single-season records for total yards and passing yards. It was a nice comeback for Boyd, who had struggled in the previous two games. “Somewhere you’ve got to dig deep inside yourself and work through things,” admitted Boyd. “I feel like that’s one of the things that happened, and it happened for a reason, to let you know that all you can really do is believe in yourself and your family, which is my teammates. I’m just proud to be here.” Boyd was even more proud on the Tigers’ next possession, as he connected with Sammy Watkins in stride for a 53-yard touchdown pass that gave Clemson a 24-10 advantage. After another three-and-out forced by the Clemson defense, which held ACC Player-of-the-Year David Wil-
TAJH BOYD QUARTERBACKED CLEMSON TO 28 SECONDHALF POINTS IN THE TIGERS’ 38-10 VICTORY OVER #3 VIRGINIA TECH IN THE ACC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME.
GAME STATS Virginia Tech Clemson
7 7
3 3
0 21
0 7
10 38
CU Allen 24 pass from Boyd (Catanzaro kick), 1st, 11:17, 3-24 VAT Coles 45 pass from Thomas (Journell kick), 1st, 0:44, 5-77 CU Catanzaro 20 FG, 2nd, 7:54, 11-71 VAT Journell 42 FG, 2nd, 0:01, 11-59 CU Allen 8 pass from Boyd (Catanzaro kick), 3rd, 10:45, 10-87 CU Watkins 53 pass from Boyd (Catanzaro kick), 3rd, 8:02, 1-53 CU Ellington 29 run (Catanzaro kick), 3rd, 6:21, 3-41 CU Boyd 1 run (Catanzaro kick), 4th, 13:04, 9-69 Attendance - 73,675 Weather - Partly cloudy, 43˚ Team Statistics First Downs Rushing Passing Passing Yards Total Offense Yards/Play Turnovers Penalties Punting Third-Down Conversions Sacks Time of Possession
VAT 19 29-56 22-44-2 274 73-330 4.5 3 9-91 6-46.2 7-16 1-6 29:50
CU 25 45-217 20-30-0 240 75-457 6.1 0 5-35 5-41.6 6-14 2-22 30:10
Rushing (Car-Yards-TD) VAT D. Wilson 11-32, Oglesby 6-22, Thomas 12-2 CU Ellington 20-125-1, Watkins 5-55, Boyd 11-28-1, Howard 3-11, Stoudt 1-1, McDowell 3-0, TEAM 2-(-3) Passing (Cm-Att-Yards-I-TD) VAT Thomas 22-44-274-2-1 CU Boyd 20-29-240-0-3, Hopkins 0-1-0-0-0 Receiving (Rec-Yards-TD) VAT Coles 7-116-1, M. Davis 4-50, Boykin 3-58, D. Wilson 3-14, Drager 2-23, Coale 2-11, Oglesby 1-2 CU Hopkins 7-92, Watkins 5-80-1, Allen 2-32-2, Ellington 2-(-5), Ja. Brown 1-17, Peake 1-17, Ford 1-5, Bryant 1-2 Punt Returns (PR-Yards) CU Hopkins 1-3 Kickoff Returns (KOR-Yards) VAT Gregory 6-135 CU Watkins 1-22, Ja. Brown 1-17 Interception Returns (INT-Yards) CU Breeland 1-64, Meeks 1-41 Tackle Leaders CU Hall 8, Wright 7, Branch 6, Meeks 6, Brewer 5, M. Jenkins 5 Sacks CU St. Anthony 1-11, Moore 1-11 Tackles For Loss CU St. Anthony 2-12, Moore 1-11, Thompson 1-3, Williams 1-3, Brewer 1-1, Hall 1-1
ClemsonTigers.com
son to only 32 yards on 11 carries in the game, the Tigers scored again, this time on a 29-yard touchdown run by Andre Ellington. The Clemson running back finished with 125 yards on 20 carries. Clemson finished the game with 217 rushing yards, while the Hokies were limited to 56 yards on the ground. “I’m proud of Andre Ellington,” stated Swinney. “He was big-time player tonight on a big stage. He was one of the big keys in the game for us, because we were able to run the football.” Boyd added his fourth touchdown of the contest to cap the night’s scoring with a one-yard plunge with 13:04 left in the game. From that point on, the celebration was on. “Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to announce that I will be taking my Clemson talents to South Beach, baby,” laughed Swinney in the press conference after the game. “I have wanted to say that. We’re excited. It’s a great time. We are excited about going to Miami. “We played like a champion.”
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2012 Clemson Football