Wake Forest's offense has the slow mesh.
Clemson's offense boasts the fast thrash.
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The latter was in a different galaxy from the former Saturday afternoon in Winston-Salem.
The Tigers had some red-zone hiccups last week at Florida State that kept that game from getting truly out of hand.
Consider that malady cured in a 49-14 annihilation of the Demon Deacons and their Wakey-leaky defense.
Clemson (5-1, 3-0 ACC) piled up 566 yards to just 233 for the Deacons. The Tigers rushed for 223 yards and held Wake to 87, and amassed 37 first downs to 16 for the hosts.
Total plays: 85-57 in favor of the orange helmets.
Total red-zone trips: Five.
Total red-zone touchdowns: Five.
Average margin of victory since a 34-3 loss to Georgia in the opener: 29.4 points.
Yeah, pretty good for a Top 10 team that was supposed to be spiraling into mediocrity after the opening 60 minutes of football in 2024.
Cade Klubnik viewed this as a "get-right game," and not just for the missed scoring opportunities in scoring territory against FSU.
That 17-12 win over the Deacons last year at Death Valley was a lot harder than it should've been, and he was one of the culprits that day as he completed 18 of 28 passes for 131 yards and zero touchdowns.
For the fifth consecutive game, Klubnik served notice that this is a new year for him -- and, consequently, for this high-flying offense.
A few sputters early, and a 7-0 deficit after one quarter.
Then the Tigers were off to the races with a 28-point second quarter.
And Klubnik provided the horsepower by throwing darts and managing the offense in a way he seldom did in 2023 as a first-year starter.
Three touchdowns and 309 yards passing on a 31-of-41 clip was a bit of an upgrade from Klubnik compared to last year's game against Wake. He repeatedly picked apart a Deacons' zone defense that was geared to trying to make teams execute down the field.
The Tigers did some executing, all right. Check the pulse on Wake Forest's defense (officially listed as day-to-day).
Clemson finally got moving late in the first quarter, and Klubnik fired a beautiful ball to Antonio Williams on a corner route for a 22-yard touchdown on third-and-5 with 13:39 left in the second quarter.
Moments later, Kylon Griffin made an easy interception of Hank Bachmeier and returned it 12 yards to the Wake 23.
Klubnik promptly fired to Jake Briningstool for 22 yards to the 1, and then Phil Mafah (118 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries) finished it off with a scoring run.
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The Deacons (2-4) took their next drive into Clemson territory but an underneath Bachmeier throw was behind his target and the ball bounced into the air. Khalil Barnes made the grab, and the offense went right back down the field to make it 21-7.
Wake did answer with an eight-play, 75-yard touchdown drive to trim the deficit to a touchdown. But Clemson's offense resumed the shredding in coasting 75 yards on six plays for its fourth touchdown in as many possessions.
It got so good later that even Williams made a perfect touchdown throw to Briningstool. Wiliams, who had six catches for 69 yards and one rush for 28 yards, became the first Clemson player since C.J. Spiller in 2009 to both catch and throw for a touchdown in the same game.
Wake Forest hasn't beaten Clemson in 16 years, and that was Tommy Bowden's last game as coach before an interim coach named William Christopher took over.
But the Demon Deacons have been pesky at times for Swinney, including the previous two meetings.
Clemson's last visit to Winston-Salem produced a 51-45 thriller in double overtime that might've been the high point of the regular season for the 2022 team.
That style of victory is fun and all, but the Tigers and their fans greatly prefer the method of total annihilation and making their opponent beg for mercy.
The slow mesh was no match for the fast thrash.
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