On third-and-14, during his first drive since being injured against Georgia Southern in week two, Christopher Vizzina stood in the pocket on a bad ankle and found Juju Preston for 33 yards. Nolan Hauser finished the drive with a 40-yard field goal, and for the first time since Tait Reynolds went down, Clemson’s offense had some life.
There was plenty to be embarrassed about in a 20-6 loss at Death Valley to a Georgia Tech team that was reeling coming in, but Vizzina’s effort wasn’t one of them.
When Tait Reynolds went down in the second minute against Georgia Tech. Clemson burned through three possessions with Trent Pearman in the game without a first down.
It was stunning to see Clemson go to Pearman after the way Dabo Swinney spoke of Vizzina’s status leading up to the game.
Everyone knew he was injured.
No one would think Pearman was a better option. Yet after each failed drive, Clemson kept going back to Pearman.
I started to wonder if Vizzina had checked out after losing the starting job and simply told the staff to “stick it.”
Boy, was I wrong about him.
After the game, Swinney said Vizzina stepped on a lineman during a screen drill on the Monday of Syracuse week and couldn’t walk afterward. He barely got any practice reps that week or the next.
By the time Clemson asked him to play Saturday, the Tigers were down 10-0. On his first drive, he gave them a reason to believe they could make a game of it.
Vizzina finished 12-for-27 for 133 yards with a late interception. You could see how much trouble he had moving behind that offensive line, and he took a heavy hit late. Swinney said Vizzina was taken to the hospital from Clemson’s locker room.
“I thought he competed his butt off,” Swinney said. “I thought he competed with everything, every ounce of everything he had. You saw what CV is made of today.”
My question coming out of Saturday is what Clemson spent those two weeks preparing to do if Reynolds got hurt.
The staff already knew how badly Vizzina was hurt.
If Pearman was the next option, what did the coaches expect him to do behind that line? And why wasn’t there a package ready for Chris Denson?
I don’t buy the belief that Pearman was so good in practice that anyone watching him would think he could lead Clemson to victory.
Could he have held a lead if Clemson had one?
Maybe.
But the scenario of Reynolds being hurt three plays in didn’t seem to cross anyone’s mind because the backup plan stunk.
Had Denson, the former quarterback and converted wideout, been given some zone-read reps during the week, you at least would have had a way to make Georgia Tech account for the quarterback in the run game.
The Yellow Jackets entered the game as one of the worst defenses in the country at stopping the run, and Clemson had no chance without Reynolds legs.
As for Denson? He got one carry all afternoon.
The question for Swinney and his staff is this. If they knew what shape their quarterback room was in all week, why didn’t they have a better plan if Reynolds couldn’t go?
You knew Vizzina couldn’t do it with his legs. You knew Pearman couldn’t do it. At least prep Denson...just in case.
Once Reynolds went down, it took three empty possessions by Pearman before the Tigers went to Vizzina, who finally got the offense moving, bum ankle and all.
But even as much as CV gave Clemson, he couldn’t move like he would have needed to lead the Tigers to a comeback win.
After watching his gutsy effort, instead of questioning Vizzina’s loyalty, I’ve moved him into the Chase Brice category because of what he gave Clemson when it needed him.
This was supposed to be his year, and it all fell apart for a multitude of reasons, but he deserves to be remembered for what he gave on Saturday.
You saw it on third-and-14. You saw it on every single play when he picked himself up off the turf and took hit after hit.
You saw it every time he had to stand in the pocket—and I use the team pocket loosley—on a bad ankle, and make a throw.
Lots of embarrassing moments on Saturday for Swinney and Company.
None for Vizzina.
Credit Vizzina.
He earned it.
