# 2014 Clemson Tigers football team

The 2014 Clemson Tigers football team represented Clemson University in the 2014 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Tigers were led by head coach Dabo Swinney in his sixth full year and seventh overall since taking over midway through the 2008 season. They played their home games at Memorial Stadium, also known as "Death Valley." They were members of the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They finished the season 10–3, 6–2 in ACC play to finish in second place in the Atlantic Division. They were invited to the Russell Athletic Bowl where they defeated Oklahoma.

## Personnel
### Coaching staff

| Name | Position | Seasons at Clemson | Alma mater |
| Dabo Swinney | Head coach | 7 | Alabama (1992) |
| Chad Morris | Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks | 3 | Texas A&M (1992) |
| Brent Venables | Defensive coordinator/linebackers | 2 | Kansas State (1992) |
| Jeff Scott | Wide receivers/recruiting coordinator/co-offensive coordinator | 5 | Clemson (2002) |
| Tony Elliott | Running backs/co-offensive coordinator | 3 | Clemson (2003) |
| Robbie Caldwell | Offensive line | 3 | Furman (1976) |
| Dan Brooks | Defensive tackles | 4 | Western Carolina (1976) |
| Marion Hobby | Defensive running game coordinator/defensive ends | 5 | Tennessee (1989) |
| Michael Reed | Defensive backs | 1 | Boston College (1994) |
| Danny Pearman | Special teams coordinator/tight ends | 5 | Clemson (1995) |
| Zac Alley | Student assistant | 4 | Clemson (2014) |
| Reference: ||||

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 30 | 5:30 p.m. | at No. 12 Georgia* | No. 16 | Sanford StadiumAthens, GA (rivalry) | ESPN | L 21–45 | 92,746 |
| September 6 | 12:30 p.m. | South Carolina State* | No. 23 | Memorial StadiumClemson, SC | ACCN | W 73–7 | 81,672 |
| September 20 | 8:00 p.m. | at No. 1 Florida State | No. 22 | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL (rivalry) (College GameDay) | ABC | L 17–23 $^{OT}$ | 82,316 |
| September 27 | 7:00 p.m. | North Carolina | | Memorial StadiumClemson, SC | ESPNU | W 50–35 | 79,155 |
| October 4 | 3:30 p.m. | NC State | | Memorial StadiumClemson, SC (Textile Bowl) | ESPNU | W 41–0 | 78,459 |
| October 11 | 3:30 p.m. | Louisville | | Memorial StadiumClemson, SC | ESPNU | W 23–17 | 81,500 |
| October 18 | 3:30 p.m. | at Boston College | No. 24 | Alumni StadiumChestnut Hill, MA (Battle for the O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy) | ESPNU | W 17–13 | 42,038 |
| October 25 | 7:00 p.m. | Syracuse | No. 21 | Memorial StadiumClemson, SC | ESPNU | W 16–6 | 80,031 |
| November 6 | 7:30 p.m. | at Wake Forest | No. 21 | BB&T FieldWinston-Salem, NC | ESPN | W 34–20 | 28,846 |
| November 15 | Noon | at No. 22 Georgia Tech | No. 19 | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA (rivalry) | ESPN | L 6–28 | 49,378 |
| November 22 | 3:30 p.m. | Georgia State* | No. 22 | Memorial StadiumClemson, SC | ACCRSN | W 28–0 | 77,693 |
| November 29 | Noon | South Carolina* | No. 21 | Memorial StadiumClemson, SC (Palmetto Bowl) | ESPN | W 35–17 | 82,720 |
| December 29 | 5:30 p.m. | vs. Oklahoma* | No. 17 | Orlando Citrus Bowl StadiumOrlando, FL (Russell Athletic Bowl) | ESPN | W 40–6 | 40,071 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after October 28 released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time ||||||||

## Depth chart

Defense :
* FS
* Jayron Kearse
* Jadar Johnson
| WLB | MLB | SLB |
| ⋅ | Stephone Anthony | ⋅ |
| Travis Blanks | B.J. Goodson | ⋅ |
* SS
* Robert Smith (safety)
* T. J. Green
* CB
* Mackensie Alexander
* Garry Peters
| DE | DT | DT | DE |
| Corey Crawford | Grady Jarrett | Josh Watson | Vic Beasley |
| Tavaris Barnes | Carlos Watkins | D. J. Reader | Shaq Lawson |
* CB
* Cordrea Tankersley
* Martin Jenkins
Offense :
* WR
* Adam Humphries
* Artavis Scott
* WR
* Mike Williams
* Demarre Kitt
| LT | LG | C | RG | RT |
| Isaiah Battle | David Beasley | Ryan Norton | Kalon Davis | Joe Gore |
| Shaq Anthony | Eric Mac Lain | Jay Guillermo | Tyrone Crowder | Shaq Anthony |
* TE
* Sam Cooper
* Jordan Leggett
* WR
* Charone Peake
* Kyrin Priester
* QB
* Cole Stoudt
* Deshaun Watson
* Key reserves
* Special teams
* PK Ammon Lakip
* P Bradley Pinion
* KR Charone Peake
* PR Adam Humphries
* LS Michael Sobeski
* H Corbin Jenkins
* RB
* DJ Howard
* Zac Brooks

### Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2014 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Deshaun Watson QB | Gainesville, Georgia | Gainesville H.S. | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | - |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Artavis Scott WR | Tarpon Springs, Florida | East Lake High School | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Trevion Thompson WR | Durham, North Carolina | Hillside High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 188 lb (85 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Korie Rogers LB | Buford, Georgia | Buford High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Demarre Kitt WR | Tyrone, Georgia | Sandy Creek | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Richard Yeargin III LB | Fort Lauderdale, Florida | University School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Adam Choice ATH | Thomasville, Georgia | Thomas County Central | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 206 lb (93 kg) | - |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Cannon Smith TE | Columbia, South Carolina | Hammond School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Chris Register LB | Greensboro, North Carolina | Dudley H.S. | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Kyrin Priester WR | Fork Union, Virginia | Fork Union Military Academy | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Milan Richard TE | Savannah, Georgia | Calvary Day School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 232 lb (105 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Justin Falcinelli OT | Middletown, Maryland | Middletown H.S. | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 290 lb (130 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Kendall Joseph LB | Honea Path, South Carolina | Belton Honea Path H.S. | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 228 lb (103 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Jefferie Gibson S | Hope Mills, North Carolina | Gray's Creek H.S. | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Taylor Hearn OT | Williston, South Carolina | Williston Elko H.S. | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 305 lb (138 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| C. J. Fuller CB + RB | Easley, South Carolina | Easley H.S. | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Alex Spence K | Florence, South Carolina | West Florence H.S. | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Jabril Robinson DT | Leland, North Carolina | North Brunswick H.S. | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 265 lb (120 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Jalen Williams LB | Central, South Carolina | D.W. Daniel | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Jae'lon Oglesby RB | Central, South Carolina | D.W. Daniel High School | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | — |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 28 Rivals: 13 247Sports: 17 ESPN: 12 |||||||
| ‡ Refers to 40 yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2014 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 6, 2016. |||||||

## Game summaries
### Georgia

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 7 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Bulldogs | 14 | 7 | 3 | 21 | 45 |

### South Carolina State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Tigers | 10 | 24 | 24 | 15 | 73 |

### Florida State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Tigers | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| Seminoles | 3 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 23 |

### North Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tar Heels | 0 | 7 | 14 | 14 | 35 |
| Tigers | 10 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 50 |

### NC State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Wolfpack | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tigers | 21 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 41 |

### Louisville

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cardinals | 3 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| Tigers | 7 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 23 |

### Boston College

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| Eagles | 0 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 13 |

### Syracuse

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Orange | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Tigers | 0 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 16 |

### Wake Forest

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 0 | 17 | 3 | 14 | 34 |
| Demon Deacons | 7 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 20 |

### Georgia Tech

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Yellow Jackets | 6 | 3 | 16 | 3 | 28 |

### Georgia State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tigers | 14 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 28 |

### South Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Gamecocks | 7 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| Tigers | 7 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 35 |

### Oklahoma (Russell Athletic Bowl)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Sooners | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| Tigers | 17 | 10 | 13 | 0 | 40 |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Final |
| AP | 16 | 23 | 23 | 22 | RV | RV | RV | 24 | 21 | 22 | 19 | 18 | RV | 23 | 19 | 18 | 15 |
| Coaches | 16 | 24 | 24 | 24 | RV | RV | 25 | 22 | 20 | 21 | 19 | 17 | RV | 24 | 19 | 18 | 15 |
| CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 21 | 21 | 19 | 22 | 21 | 18 | 17 | Not released |

## 2015 NFL Draft

Clemson had five players selected in the 2015 NFL draft. Vic Beasley was picked first at 8th overall.
| Player | Team | Round | Pick # | Position |
| Vic Beasley | Atlanta Falcons | 1st | 8th | DE |
| Stephone Anthony | New Orleans Saints | 1st | 31st | OLB |
| Grady Jarrett | Atlanta Falcons | 5th | 137nd | DT |
| Bradley Pinion | San Francisco 49ers | 5th | 165th | P |
| Tony Steward | Buffalo Bills | 6th | 188th | OLB |

### Undrafted signees

In addition to five draft picks, four more Clemson Tigers made it into the NFL as undrafted rookies.
| Player | Team | Position |
| Corey Crawford | Washington Redskins | DL |
| Adam Humphries | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | WR |
| DeShawn Williams | Cincinnati Bengals | DL |
| Tavaris Barnes | New Orleans Saints | DE |

## Awards
### Preseason All-ACC Offense

Fourth Team
•Wayne Gallman – Running back
•Charone Peake – Wide receiver

### Preseason All-ACC Defense

First Team
•Vic Beasley – Defensive end
•Grady Jarrett - Defensive tackle
•Stephone Anthony - Linebacker
Third Team
•Corey Crawford – Defensive end
•Jayron Kearse - Safety
Fourth Team
•Tony Steward - Linebacker

### Preseason All-ACC Special Teams

Fourth Team
•Adam Humphries - Punt Returner