Nolan Hauser made five field goals and Clemson’s defense held visiting Georgia Southern to 22 rushing yards en route to a 22-7 victory on Saturday night.
Christopher Vizzina threw a touchdown and an interception in the first quarter for Clemson (1-1), before exiting with an apparent arm injury. True freshman Tait Reynolds took over and completed 16 of 27 passes for 178 yards.
T.J. Moore caught seven passes for 103 yards and a score for the Tigers, who rebounded from a 51-10 loss to then-No. 11 LSU last week.
Max Johnson threw for 244 yards and a touchdown for Georgia Southern (1-1), which was outgained 347-266.
Clemson took a nine-point lead into halftime. From there, each team punted on their first four drives of the second half.
The first second-half possession that didn’t finish with a punt came with 9:45 left in the fourth quarter, when Georgia Southern’s Tripp Bryant came up short on a 53-yard field goal attempt.
Clemson answered with Hauser’s 50-yard field goal to extend the lead to 19-7. After forcing Georgia Southern’s turnover-on-downs, Hauser drilled a 49-yarder at the 3:10 mark.
The Eagles were turned away on fourth-and-goal from Clemson’s 3-yard line to seal the Tigers’ sloppy win.
After Clemson began the game with a three-out-out, the Tigers got the ball right back. Eaglers returner Antavious Murphy muffed Jack Smith’s punt and Jackson Reach recovered it at Georgia Southern’s 27-yard line.
Clemson capitalized on the early mistake, as Vizzina hit Moore for a 10-yard touchdown with 11:01 remaining in the first quarter.
Clemson’s third drive began with Vizzina’s second interception of the year, picked off by Jakyri Jones. After Georgia Southern’s second punt, Reynolds entered and led Clemson into Eagles’ territory before fumbling at the 7-yard line. Carlo Thompson forced the fumble and Jones recovered it.
Following another Georgia Southern punt, Clemson added Hauser’s 20-yard field goal on the first play of the second quarter.
Georgia Southern punted on its next three drives before Reynolds threw a 45-yard pass to Moore, which led to Hauser’s 34-yard field goal.
The Eagles then pieced together their best drive of the first half, as Johnson connected with Ashton Hollins for a 42-yard touchdown to pull the visitors within six.
Hauser capped the first half with his third field goal, a 38-yarder as time expired to give Clemson a 16-7 lead.
The game’s start was delayed for two hours because of severe weather and lightning.
