Clemson vs. NC State Football Game Notes

Clemson vs. NC State Series Notes

Overall, Clemson has a 51-28-1 lead in the series against NC State, including an 18-16 lead in Raleigh and a 13-9 lead in games played at Carter Finley Stadium. Clemson has a 22-11 lead in games at Clemson and a 19-11 lead in games in Death Valley.
The series dates to 1899 when Clemson was victorious 24-0 in a game played in Rock Hill, SC. That was just the fourth year of Clemson football and the 16th game in the school’s history.
Nine of the last 15 games have been decided by eight points or less, including 2010 when Clemson won 14-13 in Death Valley.
Clemson had won seven straight games in the series, before last year and that was the longest winning streak by the Tigers in the history of the series. NC State’s longest winning streak in the series is six (1971-76).
The 2004 game at Clemson was decided on the last play of the game when Charles Bennett made an interception at the goal line. The 2006 game was a 20-14 Clemson win. NC State drove to the Clemson 30-yard-line before freshman Ricky Sapp recorded a sack on the last play.
NC State was Clemson’s nemesis team from 1986-88. The Tigers won the ACC Championship each year under Danny Ford, but never beat the Pack in the process, losing all three seasons. It was the only loss for Clemson in the ACC in each of those years.
The 2008 Clemson victory over NC State proved to be Tommy Bowden’s last win over an ACC team in his Clemson career.
Clemson has 51 wins in the series, the third most victories for the Tigers over a school. Clemson has beaten South Carolina the most with 65 wins (65-39-4), followed by Wake Forest (60-17-1). NC State is next at 51-27-1. Furman is the only other team Clemson has beaten more than 40 times. The Tigers are 42-10-4 against the Paladins lifetime.

Landmark Games in Clemson vs. NC State Series

1903 – Clemson defeated NC State 24-0 in Columbia, SC in 1903. Clemson Head Coach John Heisman married the former Evelyn Barksdale in Columbia after the game. It is believed to be the only time in Clemson sports history that a coach has won a game and won a lady’s hand in matrimony on the same day.
1948 – Bobby Gage ran 90 yards on a punt return for the only score of the game in a 6-0 Tiger victory over the Wolfpack in 1948. It was the longest punt return in Death Valley until Jacoby Ford had a 92-yard punt return against Florida Atlantic in the opening game in 2006.
1950 – Clemson defeated NC State 27-0 in 1950. Wyndie Windham led the Clemson defense and according to legend knocked out three NC State backs on three consecutive plays in the second half.
1967 – Clemson painted its shoes orange for the NC State game in Death Valley and the Tigers upset the 10th ranked Wolfpack 14-6. One of the linebackers on that NC State team was former Pack Head Coach Chuck Amato. Clemson clinched a tie for the ACC championship with the victory. Clemson painted its shoes orange because NC State had featured a defense that had worn White shoes during the season. It was the highest ranked team Clemson defeated in Death Valley in the Frank Howard era.
1984 – Clemson defeated NC State 35-34 in Raleigh in the highest scoring game decided by one point in Clemson history. No points were scored by either team in the fourth quarter.
1991 – Clemson wore purple jerseys for the first time since the 1940s in a 29-19 upset victory over NC State. NC State was undefeated and ranked 10th in the nation entering the game against Ken Hatfield’s Tigers. Nelson Welch kicked a record five field goals in leading Clemson to the victory. Clemson went on to win the ACC Championship.
1995 – Clemson gave up over 500 yards total offense to the Pack, but still won 43-22. Leomont Evans tied a Clemson single game record with three interceptions. The Tigers, with first year defensive backs coach Charlie Harbison, had six interceptions in the game to tie a Clemson record.
1997 – In Raleigh, Matt Padgett, who went on to a professional baseball career, booted a 20-yard field goal with just 19 seconds left to give Clemson a 19-17 victory over 25th ranked NC State. The Tigers drove 78 yards in 14 plays to set up the winning score. Nealon Greene hit 20-32 passes for 250 yards and Tony Horne caught eight passes for 112 to key the Clemson offense.
1998 – At Clemson, Tory Holt completed an incredible day with a nine-yard scoring pass from Jamie Barnette with just 37 seconds left. It was his fourth touchdown reception of the day, the most ever against Clemson. He had 225 yards receiving in that game and he is the only Clemson opponent to catch four scoring passes in the same game.
1999 – NC State, behind then Head Coach Mike O’Cain, defeated Clemson 35-31 in an exciting contest in Raleigh that featured 35 first-quarterpoints between the two teams combined, most combined points ever in the first period of a Clemson game. Clemson had five possessions in the fourth period with a chance to take the lead, but could not drive for a winning touchdown.
2001 – Woody Dantzler gained 517 yards of total offense, an all-time Clemson record. He had a career best 23-27 passes for 333 yards and four scores, and also rushed for 184 yards and two touchdowns. It was arguably the best individual performance in Clemson history as he accounted for an ACC record six touchdowns. Still, it was a 45-37 outcome, as Phillip Rivers had another outstanding passing game for NC State.

Recent Games in the Series

2003 – Phillip Rivers evened his career record against Clemson at 2-2 with a 213-yard passing performance, leading the Pack to a 17-15 victory in Raleigh in a game shown on ESPN on a Thursday evening. Clemson cut the deficit to 17-15 with five minutes left, but the Tigers could not get close enough for a winning field goal. NC State got the ball back with 3:54 left and ran out the clock. This game was a battle of future San Diego Chargers quarterbacks as Charlie Whitehurst was Clemson’s starter in this game.
2004 – Clemson won 26-20 when Charles Bennett intercepted a pass at the Clemson goal line on the last play to preserve the victory. It was the seventh time in the last eight meetings that the game was decided by eight points or less.
2005 – Even though he played just over two quarters, freshman James Davis gained 143 yards rushing in just 12 attempts to lead Clemson to a 31-10 victory, Clemson’s largest margin of victory in the series since a 40-17 win in 1996. It remains Clemson’s only victory on a Thursday evening ESPN game.
2006 – Jad Dean kicked a pair of fourth quarter field goals to lead Clemson to a six-point win. C.J. Spiller had 154 yards rushing, including a 52-yard scoring run for the Tigers. Toney Baker had 174 yards rushing for NC State.
2007 – James Davis rushed for 166 yards and C.J. Spiller added 114 in Clemson’s 42-20 victory in Raleigh. Both players had a touchdown rushing and receiving. The Tigers had 608 yards of total offense, the most ever by Clemson in a road game.
2008 – Clemson gained victory 27-9 at Clemson in what would be Tommy Bowden’s final ACC win as Clemson Head Coach. Nate Irving returned a Cullen Harper pass for an interception in the first quarter, but Harper settled down after that and completed 20-28 passes for 268 yards. Jacoby Ford had 106 yards receiving and 48 yards rushing on two attempts.
2009 – C.J. Spiller accounted for touchdowns, passing, rushing and receiving to lead Clemson to a 20-point victory. Jamie Harper had a 69-yard touchdown run and Kyle Parker completed 12-18 passes for 183 yards and two scores.
2010 – Clemson came back from a 10-0 deficit to win 14-13 at Death Valley last year. It was a Tigers victory that kept NC State from going to the ACC Championship game. Kyle Parker completed 20-29 passes for 214 yards and a touchdown and DeAndre Hopkins had five catches for 80 yards and a touchdown for the Tigers. Clemson’s defense held NC State to 275 yards and 13 points, season lows for the Pack team that was led by current Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson. Wilson was 0-3 in his career against Clemson.