QUOTABLE: Tigers win over Charlotte

CLEMSON HEAD COACH DABO SWINNEY

Opening statement: “There was a lot of good stuff in the ballgame today. We ran the ball well. In the second half, we substituted so many guys defensively. To see that many players continue to play well throughout the game was great. I thought the guys were ready to go and the other guys challenged on the sideline.”

On his takeaways from the win:“It was an awesome crowd tonight and an unbelievable environment. It’s a game where we got better as a team. We achieved the objectives we were trying to achieve this week and got better for next week.”

On utilizing 110 players in the game:“We’ve got a lot of guys who can say they played for the Tigers, and nobody can take that away from them. They were rewarded for their hard work and had a chance to go out and play. That was pretty special. ”

On the keys to the victory:“We were able to pressure Charlotte a little bit and pressure their run game. That was effective for us. All in all, I thought we got better as the game went along. I thought our guys were ready and excited. They took control right out of the gate. I was able to get a lot of guys playing time that they needed and get a lot of guys out, too. The mindset that they had, it was good for me to see.”

CLEMSON CO-OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR TONY ELLIOTT

On the game: “You’re truly excited for the guys to get a win. Obviously, Charlotte is a good team. They’ve been playing well, and [we] knew they were going to present some challenges on defense… [We’re] really excited about the way we started the game. The challenge this week was for our guys to come out and… get off to a fast start, be efficient and play clean. I thought we really did that in the first half, and in the second half we had an opportunity to play a lot of guys and give them an opportunity to grow up.”

On building momentum for next week’s game:“We’ve been very explosive leading up to this game, but not quite as efficient. [We’re] not quite clicking on all cylinders. We wanted to come out today and make sure we got off to a fast start, improve our efficiency on third down and just find that rhythm, and I thought we did that in the first half. That allowed us in the second half to come out and give some guys some meaningful snaps.”

On the plan with Trevor Lawrence’s playing time:“The biggest thing is [that] we just wanted to give guys opportunities, and once we felt like we had the game in control, we wanted to give some guys some meaningful snaps. [It] was the same thing with Travis [Etienne]. Travis was out of there early. Trevor [Lawrence] was out of there early. The decision was made before the game.”

CLEMSON OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR JEFF SCOTT

On the game: “[I’m] really proud of our guys. This was kind of the next test coming off of a physical game against Syracuse last week and coming out to play a game we’re expected to win big. To be able to go out there and get off to a fast start was really big. That’s something we really challenged the offensive guys [to do].”

On the quarterbacks:“It was great to be able to get Trevor [Lawrence] out of there and let Chase [Brice] get some good reps. I thought he did a good job. It was great to see him throw that touchdown to Joseph Ngata. That was big. And [it was also big] for Taisun [Phommachanh] to get in there and get some good experience.”

On the plan with Trevor Lawrence’s playing time:“The plan was to go out and get control of the game, and then if we could do that let Chase [Brice] get in there and play.”

CLEMSON DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR BRENT VENABLES

On playing 110 players: “It was a lot of fun to watch those guys get out there and get an opportunity… It was great to reward them when those guys work every bit as hard. Backups, third team, walk-ons and scout team guys, they all deserved that opportunity because they’ve been working about as hard as anybody in the program.”

On joy in watching the back-ups play:“I think it’s all the same. Those guys are grinding all the time, and they’d probably surprise you a little bit. They were able to go out and execute and make plays. It was a great opportunity for them, and it gives you confidence as a coach. It develops them, and it gives both them and the coaches confidence when they go out there and execute.”

On watching the back-ups on film:“They’ll show. It’ll be their first time showing up all year to film study. It’ll be a lot of fun going through the tape with those guys and watching those guys get around and make plays.”

CLEMSON QUARTERBACK CHASE BRICE

On team performance:“I think it starts with everybody doing their job and knowing what to do. We’re playing Clemson every week, so we’re going to practice to a standard and then play to a standard.”

On team’s motivation:“We were excited to play, and we knew the fans were going to come. I think it was a sold out crowd. It’s just awesome, and it gets us excited seeing everybody out there.”

On team improvement:“We’re definitely going to build off of this game. We did a lot of good things tonight. All we can do from this game is look back at the film and build on it.”

CLEMSON DEFENSIVE END K.J. HENRY

On game atmosphere:“Tonight was really awesome. It was just great to see the fans come out tonight.”

On amount of player participation:“Coach [Swinney] said that we played 110 players tonight. At this game and at this level, not everybody gets that shine, so it’s good to see those guys that have worked really hard to finally get rewarded.”

On team performance:“From the jump this week, we knew we were playing a great team. We watched the film, and we knew they were hands down the best running team [Clemson had faced], and they showed it tonight. It was the biggest game of the year because it was the next one, and I think we played well.

CLEMSON SAFETY LANNDEN ZANDERS

On team performance:“[The] team effort was great, [and] the preparation was great, so that let us come out and dominate. We knew not to underestimate them because they are a great rushing team. They’ve put up points against other tough opponents.”

On how team is feeling ⅓ of the way through the season:“Mentally and physically, we’re feeling good. Every guy, right now, is healthy. Mentally, we’re there. We just need to keep pushing ourselves and get better.”

CLEMSON QUARTERBACK TAISUN PHOMMACHANH

On his performance“I think I played alright. I think there’s always room for improvement. Tomorrow we have to get back to the quarterback room and fix our mistakes.”

On the interception:“I got the ball, and I was looking out to the receiver. It just left my hand a little bit high. It sailed on me a little bit, and the DB made a good play.”

On 110 players playing:“It just builds us as a team. I think we all went out there. Coach [Dabo] Swinney, he likes to set up a lot of guys, so we all went in there and just did what we did.”

CLEMSON WIDE RECEIVER JOSEPH NGATA

On touchdown:“Chase [Brice] threw a great ball. I just caught it and scored.”

On scoring first touchdown of Clemson career:“It felt unreal, honestly. I caught it, I was running, and I was like, ‘Dang, I should score.’”

On team depth:“That’s all Coach Swinney preaches about: best is the standard, and best is not only for the first group. It’s for everyone.”

CLEMSON RUNNING BACK MICHEL DUKES

On his touchdown run:“When Taisun [Phommachanh] gave me the ball, I was just looking for a crease to run through, and the [offensive] line did an awesome job setting it up. Then from there, the wide receiver set the block.”

On getting to play and contribute:“It was great. We were practicing the whole week, taking it one game at a time. To come out and do what we did was awesome.”

On expectations of an undefeated season:“We’re just taking it one game at a time. We’ve got this motto: ‘our next game is the most important game,’ so we’re just taking it like that.”
CHARLOTTE HEAD COACH WILL HEALY

On performance

“Yeah, obviously really impressed with Clemson. They did an unbelievable job. [I was] impressed by the way their guys played and they really got after us. I think we compounded it by making a few mistakes of our own. You know, the pick six, we can’t do. And too many penalties; I think we had 12 or 13 penalties. We definitely didn’t help ourselves but give them credit. They did exactly what they were expected to do and they got after us.”

On run game success

“I think Benny Lemay’s a really good running back. I was proud of those guys, you know, Malik Harkness was stepping in; Dominic Taylor was down and then Fish went down and Gage had to come in. At one point in time we were down three or four offensive linemen. I thought those guys still did a good job of at least covering guys up and Benny ran really hard.

On passing game struggles

“Well I think you’ve gotta give them a lot of credit. They’re really, really good. And, again, I don’t think we did a whole lot of things to help ourselves on top of it. We didn’t throw the ball great, but I don’t know. They’ve got some really good DBs and they put pressure on our quarterback so I don’t know if they were a whole lot of throws we could have made.”

On defensive performance

“Well, I think the problem that I’m having right now is giving up so many points on defense that aren’t coming on defense. I think this is four straight games now with either a special teams touchdown or a pick six or something. They’re putting points up on the board in other ways than just giving them up on defense. I think we responded… and we had a hard time getting them off the field. I think they only played, you know, in the second half and that’s how dynamic their offense is. But I didn’t think we ever quit or laid down. I just don’t think we executed that well.”

On the fight of his team

“Yeah, I mean, they’re going tempo with 45 seconds left in the game and we’re tired. We’re worn out, and you couldn’t lay down. And they didn’t. And I think time after time we’ve shown that we will continue to fight. And so I am very proud of it. I hope that becomes a staple of our program. We’re still not good enough to shoot ourselves in the foot, turn the ball over, have thirteen penalties and expect to be in the game, especially against the number one team in the country.”

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