STANFORD AT NO. 17CLEMSON
Records: Stanford 2-1, 1-0 ACC. Clemson 2-1, 1-0 ACC
To start up: 4:00 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Stadium, Clemson
TV: ESPN
Radio: KNBR 10:50 a.m.
History of the series: First regular season meeting. The only previous meeting between the Cardinal and Tigers was in the 1986 Gator Bowl, which Clemson won 27-21.
Stanford scenarios: Stanford won its first-ever ACC game last week, beating Syracuse 26-24 on a 39-yard field goal as time expired by Emmet Kenney, who has made all eight field goals this season. Stanford ranks third nationally and leads the ACC in allowing just 51.7 yards per game on the ground. In the win over Syracuse, Stanford allowed just 26 rushing yards. The Cardinal will play their second straight game on the East Coast and will travel approximately 2,200 miles, the farthest distance an opponent has traveled to face the Tigers in Clemson all-time (the previous record was approximately 2,000 miles by Long Beach State in 2000).
Clemson scenarios: The Tigers dominated the unranked teams, edging Appalachian State and NC State by a combined score of 125-55 in Death Valley. Clemson led 35-0 and 28-0 and quarterback Cade Klubnik led the offense to touchdowns on 15 of 17 drives during that winning streak. Clemson is 99-9 at home under Dabo Swinney, who would tie Bobby Bowden for the most career wins, leading an ACC program with 173 if the Tigers win Saturday.
Statistics that matter: The Tigers have also won 21 straight night games in Death Valley since 2013. … The Cardinal are 4-2 on the road under Troy Taylor, including three fourth-quarter comebacks. … Last year, the Cardinal defense allowed 461.7 yards per game, the most in program history. This season, they are holding opponents to just 350.3 yards per game and have recorded five turnovers. …Stanford wide receiver Ismael Cisse’s 19 receptions are the most by a freshman in the country this season, followed by UAB’s Kam Shanks with 15 receptions.
—Harold Gutmann
