Wake Forest 3, Clemson 38

1234T
WAKE (4-3)03003
CLEM (3-3)10217038

Final

12:00 PM ET, October 17, 2009
Memorial Stadium
CLEMSON, SC

Spiller carries Clemson to win vs. Wake Forest

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Team Stat Comparison
 
1st Downs1316
Total Yards178382
Passing97187
Rushing81195
Penalties6-552-20
3rd Down Conversions4-173-10
4th Down Conversions0-10-0
Turnovers22
Possession35:5724:03
Air/Ground Leaders
Wake Forest Passing
 C/ATTYDSTDINT
Skinner11/248202
Williams1/11500
Clemson Passing
 C/ATTYDSTDINT
Parker10/1713210
Ford1/13200
Wake Forest Rushing
 CARYDSTDLG
Dixon835015
Adams926015
Clemson Rushing
 CARYDSTDLG
Spiller9106266
Ellington234032
Wake Forest Receiving
 RECYDSTDLG
Brown322019
Givens116016
Clemson Receiving
 RECYDSTDLG
Ford151051
Palmer449122
Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTERWAKECLEM
TD12:26Michael Palmer 1 Yd Pass From Kyle Parker (Richard Jackson Kick) 07
FG03:34Richard Jackson 22 Yd 010
SECOND QUARTERWAKECLEM
TD12:20Kyle Parker 3 Yd Run (Richard Jackson Kick) 017
FG03:49Jimmy Newman 28 Yd 317
TD03:37C.J. Spiller 66 Yd Run (Richard Jackson Kick) 324
TD01:06Jamie Harper 3 Yd Run (Richard Jackson Kick) 331
THIRD QUARTERWAKECLEM
TD06:11C.J. Spiller 14 Yd Run (Richard Jackson Kick) 338
Associated Press

CLEMSON, S.C. -- C.J. Spiller ran for two touchdowns and Clemson put aside two weeks of turmoil to get back in the ACC's Atlantic Division race with a 38-3 victory over Wake Forest on Saturday.

Spiller had scoring runs of 66 and 14 yards for the Tigers (3-3, 2-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), who seemed ready to implode after an unexpected 24-21 loss to Maryland on Oct. 3.

The team held a players only meeting when it returned to campus and an anonymous blog report during the bye week detailed a shouting match at practice between coach Dabo Swinney and offensive coordinator Billy Napier.

Against Wake Forest (4-3, 2-2), though, Clemson showed its resiliency with its best performance of the season.

Freshman quarterback Kyle Parker threw for a score and ran for another. Spiller finished with 106 yards for his 10th career 100-yard game and Clemson's defense sacked ACC pass-efficiency leader Riley Skinner five times.

The Demon Deacons came in the Atlantic Division leader and could've opened up a two-game lead on Clemson. Instead, the six-team group took another crazy turn and kept almost everyone in the race for the league's title game.

Swinney celebrated the year anniversary of taking over the Tigers this week, yet sounded a lot like his old boss, Tommy Bowden, much of the season with his belief the team was a play or two from big success.

That didn't sit well with many Clemson fans, who criticized Swinney and Napier on sports talk radio and Internet message boards. The flashpoint came this week with word of Swinney and Napier's heated exchange.

Both coaches said the incident was overblown, although Swinney did say he intended to "get a piece" of several assistants and players after the team's 2-3 start.

Any controversy was drowned out by Saturday's cheers at Death Valley for Clemson's eight victory over Wake Forest in the past 11 meetings.

Things went Clemson's way from the start. Parker went 4-of-4 on Clemson's first drive, finishing with a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Michael Palmer.

DeAndre McDaniel's interception of Skinner set up a 22-yard field goal by Richard Jackson, who twice missed tying kicks in the fourth quarter against Maryland last time out.

Parker threw a near perfect 51-yard pass to Jacoby Ford to Wake's 5, the Clemson speedster spliting defensive backs Kenny Okoro and Josh Bush to make the catch. Parker ended the series soon afwith a leaping, 3-yard TD run to make it 17-0.

Wake Forest appeared to find its legs as it drove to Clemson's 1. However, a holding penalty forced them to settle for a 28-yard field goal.

Spiller ended any Demon Deacon momentum a play later, bursting untouched through the middle and outracing defenders for a 66-yard touchdown. It was the fifth scoring play of 63 yards or better this season for Spiller and pushed the ACC's all-purpose career yardage leader past 6,000 yards -- a first in league history.

Clemson's defense did its share, too.

Skinner threw for four touchdowns and 360 yards a week ago against Maryland and came into Death Valley the ACC's leader in pass efficiency. The Tigers, though, rattled him throughout.

Defensive lineman Andre Branch crunched Skinner from behind in the second quarter, popping the senior's helmet off.

It was that kind of a day for Wake Forest, which managed only 99 yards in the opening half and finished without a touchdown for the first time in 14 games since a 26-0 loss to Maryland in 2008.

Clemson backup safety Kantrell Brown had be take off the field on a stretcher after a second-quarter kickoff return. Brown, a sophomore, was face down and motionless for several minutes. However, Tigers athletic spokesman Tim Bourret said initial reports from school medical personnel were that Brown would be OK.

College Football Scores

Other Scores:

Saturday, October 17th
4 Virginia Tech 23 Final
19 Georgia Tech 28
9 Miami (FL) 27 Final
UCF 7
Wake Forest 3 Final
Clemson 38
North Carolina State 20 Final
Boston College 52
Virginia 20 Final
Maryland 9