-- Clemson tried to get this game moved to Death Valley.

We've confirmed through sources that Clemson's athletics department reached out to Wake Forest to check the Deacons' temperature on playing this game in Clemson instead of Winston-Salem.

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Though the official news on Wake Forest not allowing fans didn't come until last week, it was pretty much assumed for a while that the opener would take place in front of an empty stadium.

We're told Clemson, which has established a capacity of 19,000 at Memorial Stadium, offered to split the gate as well as some other financial incentives to move the game.