For all the early Heisman hype, Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson had taken his start to the 2015 season in stride, doing just enough of everything to help No. 6 Clemson get off to a 4-0 start. But for Georgia Tech on Saturday, Watson had a little something special in store.
The sophomore from Gainesville, Ga. used the Yellow Jackets to break out with his best game of the year so far, and some pretty sterling numbers to match. During one first half stretch, he completed 10 consecutive passes, and that was with a steady rain falling in Death Valley.
Watson had some sour memories of last year’s Tech game in Atlanta where he injured his knee and ultimately had to miss Clemson’s bowl game after undergoing surgery to repair a tear in his anterior cruciate ligament.
On Saturday he didn’t have to face a whole lot of contact from the Yellow Jackets, who didn’t mount much of a pass rush on him early, letting him step up in the pocket and throw, largely, at will.
Watson had completed 15 of 22 passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns by halftime. That’s more passing yardage than in three of his first four games of the season. His 248 yards passing against Appalachian State was the lone exception. He finished with 265 yards on 21 of 30 passes in the game, with two touchdowns and one interception. Watson rushed for another 16 yards on six carries.
“He got the ball out of his hand pretty quick so it was tough to get back there,,” said Tech defensive tackle Adam Gotsis. “And then we got back there a few times and it was just unlucky. We were getting hits on him but he was completing it.”
Watson’s version of “letting the game come to him” Saturday was handing off to running back Wayne Gallman for a 66-yard run on the third play from scrimmage. And Clemson had built a 19-3 lead in the first quarter before he really needed to exert himself. But when he did, he just got better.
On Clemson’s first third and long situation in the game – third and 10 - on the opening play of the second quarter, Watson stepped up into the pocket and fired a 34-yard strike to Germone Hopper, who had split two Tech defenders to the Tech 33. Two plays later, Watson found Jordan Leggett isolated past D.J. White for a 29-yard touchdown and a 26-3 lead on his ninth straight completion.
“He’s a good player and their receivers made some plays,” Tech coach Paul Johnson said. “They made some back shoulder catches on third down, similar to what we did to them a year ago at our place.”
Watson used his second touchdown pass to dishearten the Yellow Jackets just before halftime, after they’d dared to try to make a game of it.
The Yellow Jackets had used a fake punt and some busted coverage to mount their first touchdown drive and cut Clemson’s lead to 26-10. But Watson stole back the momentum. He took the Tigers down the field on a 72-yard touchdown drive to close out the first half.
On second and goal from the 8, with only eight seconds to work with, he simply lobbed a pass to the end zone over Leggett’s shoulder, who’d beaten Tech cornerback Corey Griffin for a touchdown and a 33-10 halftime lead.
