'Are you not entertained?' In primetime, don't expect Clemson's quarterback plan to change

Saturday afternoon’s opener was a day Clemson fans had been waiting for since the Spring Game concluded.

A quarterback competition that kept most people in the dark was finally brought to light. Whatever was going to happen moving forward was going to transpire in front of our very eyes in a public setting.

As Kelly Bryant and Trevor Lawrence rotated their way into being the man behind center all afternoon, you could feel the vibe from the crowd. The loud ovations when each quarterback entered the game, and the moans and groans if a drive were to stall.

The afternoon reminded me of battle scenes from the classic film “Gladiator” as each quarterback did their best to show the coaching staff - and the 80,000 fans in attendance - what they were made of.

The players, no matter how experienced they are, felt the pressures of game day in that kind of environment. At least for a moment.

Clemson Sports Talk

Trevor Lawrence looks downfield during Clemson's 48-7 win over Furman.

Both Bryant and Lawrence said after the game there were a few “jitters” in their system as they trotted onto the field. Lawrence said he had butterflies during his first series but finally was able to settle in on the 95-yard touchdown drive.

Many fans went into the first game hoping the quarterback situation would be put to rest before a trip to College Station this weekend. But that wasn’t the case.

When the dust settled after the first Saturday of the season, both Bryant and Lawrence were almost identical on the stat sheet. Bryant finished throwing 10-of-16 for 127 yards and one touchdown, while Lawrence finished 9 of 15 passes with 137 yards and three touchdowns.

With Bryant at the controls for five drives, the offense put together 17 points. With Lawrence for the same amount of series, the offense scored 31 points.

People on the outside can have - and will probably voice - their preference of who should be the first guy out there against Texas A&M. The offense looked to march to the beat of a different drum under Lawrence, but Bryant gives you more of a dynamic running ability as we saw on his 35-yard touchdown run.

In Dabo Swinney’s immediate mind following the win, there was nothing he saw from the small game-like sample size that would keep him from playing both quarterbacks next weekend.

And that doesn’t seem to bother him one bit.

“I didn't see anything that would say, ‘hey, this guy doesn’t deserve the opportunity to play,’” Swinney said.

But Swinney wasn’t the only one who felt that way.

“You couldn’t tell a difference from my perspective,” co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said on how the offense ran with either quarterback in the game. “It’s happening fast, but obviously they were both able to move the ball up and down the field and were both able to make plays so I didn’t notice any difference.”

And that’s where it ended for week one. Swinney saw the talents of Lawrence unfold and Bryant’s maturity allowed him to bounce back after Lawrence looked like the clear better quarterback.

It’s time for act two. There’s no reason to believe the battle between these two quarterback gladiators won’t play out the same way next weekend.

Barring anything major in practice, Bryant will be the first quarterback on the field with Lawrence ready to go depending on how the first three series are handled.

Only this time, it won’t be taking place in the friendly confines of Death Valley against inferior Furman. The battleground will transfer to Kyle Field where the Tigers and Aggies will collide at 7:00 PM ET. The nation will watch the game within the game as if it were taking place in the Colosseum of Ancient Rome.

Swinney said Saturday’s first meeting with Jimbo Fisher in College Station will feel like another opening game. There’s bound to be plenty jitters going into this game, even though Bryant has handled the ever-so-bright, College Gameday spotlight on many stages in the regular season before.

And if Lawrence’s ability to calmly handle answering questions from the media for the first time is any indication of how he’ll handle himself on the road, Swinney has to like his chances with whoever he throws out there.

Swinney saw what he wanted to see and what he’s seen all fall camp, but the bigger test will be how either player performs when the setting moves to primetime. It may end up not being about who starts things off, but who finishes it. Especially if the game ends up being close.

We’ve only just begun seeing publicly how this is going to play out. But we’ll know a lot more about who has put themselves in the best position of this competition this time a week from now.

In the meantime, this week is about to be a lot of fun to watch and dissect.

And to that I ask, Are you not entertained?