Georgia Southern HC Clay Helton Explains Why He Isn't Taking Clemson Lightly Despite LSU Loss

Despite Clemson's historic loss against LSU, Helton isn't reading too much into it ahead of Week 2.

Despite the Week 1 blowout, Georgia Southern head coach Clay Helton isn't taking his team's preparation for Clemson lightly. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With the LSU contest now in the rear-view mirror, it's time for Clemson to control the controllable, as Dabo Swinney likes to say. That starts with the program's home-opener against Georgia Southern on Saturday night.

Fifth-year defensive back Aaron Sears is already making bold statements about the Tigers based on their Week 1 performance, saying he's "pretty happy about our odds" heading into this week. Others, however, have taken the outcome with more of a grain of salt. 

On Monday, Eagles head coach Clay Helton spoke to the media, mentioning that they're taking a step up in competition regardless of Clemson's 51-10 loss to LSU. More specifically, Helton pointed to Swinney's history of bouncing back from adversity as a reason his team won't take the Tigers lightly.

"One of the things that I think Coach Swinney does a magnificent job of in his career, um, is he has his teams ready to face adversity, and after adversity, you see what they can do," the former USC coach said. "They always propel forward. Um, he's still one of only two coaches in College Football right now in FBS that has two National Championships, him and Coach [Kirby] Smart. So, he knows what he's doing. He'll have that team prepared."

Helton's statement couldn't be more accurate, as we've seen Swinney and the program overcome adversity a handful of times over his 18-year head-coaching career, especially in recent years.

Through the Tigers' first eight games of 2025, the program had its back against the wall, sitting at 3-5 and at risk of missing their first bowl game since 1998. They then went on to win their final four games of the season, and while it certainly wasn't the final record they wanted to end the season with, it's the type of adversity Helton is talking about.

Even going back to 2024, Clemson lost its season opener to Georgia, 34-3, before winning the next six games straight and finishing 9-3 in the regular season. Furthermore, the Tigers went on to win the ACC Championship and make their first College Football Playoff appearance since 2020.

Beyond Clemson's ability to respond to adversity, Helton also pointed to the individual talent still on the roster as a reason for concern heading into Saturday.

He began with the defensive side of the ball, naming star linebacker Sammy Brown and cornerback Ashton Hampton, and praising edge rushers Will Heldt and Jahiem Lawson, whom he referred to as "NFL kids."

"Defensively, I know that they gave up some yards, but you see their personnel, and it's extremely impressive," Helton began. "I mean, you start with the linebacker core and Sammy Brown, the guy's all over the field. I mean, he produced 10 tackles within that game. Just an absolutely terrific athlete that runs the alleys extremely well."

"Ashton Hampton is another one, No. 2, the corner, that you didn't see very many balls go to his side. He's not only one of the best corners in the ACC, he's one of the best corners in the country and you could see that in that game. The two edge players, I think, are talented pass rushers. I think both are NFL kids that'll play on Sunday. So they have the personnel to be extremely effective defensively."

The fifth-year head coach then pivoted to speaking on the offense under new offensive coordinator Chad Morris. 

Clemson's offense was limited to just 49 snaps against LSU in Week 1, and those limited opportunities contributed to both quarterbacks, Christopher Vizzina and Tait Reynolds, never finding a rhythm, something Helton identified as the area with the most room for growth heading into Saturday.

The numbers back that up, too, as the Tigers converted just 1-for-13 on third down against LSU, while the starters managed only four first downs total through three quarters. 

Nevertheless, there's still plenty of weapons on Clemson's offense that Helton is staying wary of, specifically the wide receiver duo of Bryant Wesco Jr. and T.J. Moore.

"Offensively, you know, I look at it as I see the skill around," he finished. "I think Coach Morris's biggest growth probably from game one to game two is the quarterbacks just being able to get in flow because the weapons around them, I think, are really special, especially with Wesco and Moore on the outside, you can see what they can do. They have several runners inside that can do the job and an offensive line that can be effective."

"But I think getting the quarterbacks in flow will be their main topic of discussion this week [based on] just watching the tape. They used two of them; we'll see which one comes out. Both are talented, just didn't get in rhythm last game. I thought a lot of it had to do, like I said earlier, with the third-down efficiency."

This week is all about response for Swinney and his team. We've seen them do it before, and now they need to prove to the college football world they can do it again.

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