Clemson Plagued by One-Dimensional Offense in Loss to LSU

CLEMSON, S.C. – The Clemson Tigers fell to the No. 9 LSU Tigers, 17-10, on Saturday night, behind an extremely stagnant offensive performance from Cade Klubnik and company.

One of Clemson’s most prominent question marks – and the offense’s biggest uncertainty – proved to be true against the Bayou Bengals. Many were unsure of the Tigers’ rushing attack and ability to produce on the ground heading into this highly anticipated top-10 matchup.

Well, the concerns transpired to be valid.

Clemson’s loaded offense was one-dimensional all night and was unable to find a rhythm against LSU’s talented defensive front. The Tigers seemed to only boast one valuable possession, which came midway through the second quarter when Clemson mustered a 13-play, 75-yard touchdown drive -- the last time Clemson found the endzone.

THE DETERMINATION TO FIND THE END ZONE 🔥

Adam Randall with an unreal effort to give Clemson the lead 😤

Watch now on ABC and the ESPN App: https://t.co/Nz7AG4DFyf pic.twitter.com/6z2wYquKyH
— ESPN (@espn) August 31, 2025

Klubnik, a third-year starter and preseason All-American under center for the Tigers, went 19-for-38 passing with 230 yards and one interception through the air. Clemson lost one of its top weapons in Antonio Williams, who limped off the field and into the locker room with an apparent hamstring injury in the first quarter. The preseason second-team AP All-American never returned after exiting the game, and Dabo Swinney said he was unsure of Williams’ status in his postgame press conference.

Even with Williams injured, the Tigers still boast one of the best wide receiving corps in the nation. Each of the Tigers’ next best wideouts – Bryant Wesco Jr., T.J. Moore, and Tyler Brown – hauled in four passes each, with Wesco recording 66 yards, Moore posting 55 yards, and Brown tallying 43 yards. None of them found the endzone, obviously, which disappointed many Clemson fans considering the sheer talent of Klubnik’s arm and the receivers’ ability to create explosive plays.

As mentioned, the Clemson offense couldn’t get any valuable contributions from its rushing attack. Randall, a former wide receiver who made the transition to running back over the offseason, only recorded five carries for 16 yards. Randall scored the Tigers’ only touchdown courtesy of a 1-yard run to cap off a 75-yard touchdown drive, but he didn’t do much else.

Freshman David Eziomume only gained five yards on three carries, leaving Clemson minimal depth behind Randall in the running back room. The Tigers were unable to generate any sort of consistent effort, racking up just 32 rushing yards total on 19 attempts – the longest rush by any Tiger last night was seven yards.

“That we didn’t get the run game going,” Swinney said of his biggest frustration with the offense. “Plenty of opportunities, and we missed our opportunities. We didn’t run the ball effectively at all.”

Clemson will have an opportunity to find its footing and claim its first win of the season next week against Troy. Even despite their underwhelming and inefficient offensive performance Saturday night, Swinney believes his Tigers have the potential to bounce back and continue to improve week by week.

“I really believe this is going to be one heck of a football team when it’s all said and done,” Swinney said. “I really do. It’s a long season ahead. We’ve got to be resilient and lock in and focus on what we can control.”