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Virginia Football vs. Clemson Match Preview, Score Prediction

Virginia Football vs. Clemson Match Preview, Score Prediction

The Virginia Cavaliers and Clemson Tigers meet on Saturday at noon in Clemson, South Carolina. The two will face each other for the first time since the 2020 season, when the Tigers defeated the Cavaliers 41-23. The game is also a rematch of the 2019 ACC Championship Game, which Clemson won in Charlotte. It’s also a reunion for Tony Elliott with his alma mater Clemson and his mentor Dabo Swinney, as Elliott played wide receiver for the Tigers from 2000 to 2003 and served on Swinney’s coaching staff from 2011 to 2021.

Read on for a full Virginia vs. Clemson preview with everything you need to know, including game details and notes, an opponent scouting report, what to look for and a score prediction.

WHO: Virginia Cavaliers (4-2, 2-1 ACC) vs. Clemson Tigers (5-1, 4-0 ACC)

When: Saturday, October 19th at 12pm ET

Where: Memorial Stadium (81,500) in Clemson, South Carolina

How to listen: SiriusXM 371, SXM App 371 | Virginia Sports Radio Network

All-time series: Clemson leads 40-8-1

Last meeting: Clemson defeated Virginia 41-23 in Clemson, South Carolina during the 2020 season.

Read Virginia’s injury report for the Clemson game here: UVA Football Week 8 Injury Report: Trell Harris, Antonio Clary, Chris Tyree

Below is the UVA depth chart for Week 8 for the Clemson game:

Virginia Cavaliers Week 8 Depth Chart vs. Clemson

Virginia Cavaliers Week 8 Depth Chart vs. Clemson / Virginia Athletic

Opponent Scouting Report: Clemson

2023: 9-4, 4-4 ACC
2024: 5-1, 4-0 ACC

After a brutal season-opening loss to Georgia, Clemson has been riding high with five straight wins as the Tigers have dominated every opponent except the Bulldogs. That included a 49-14 win at Wake Forest, where the Cavaliers beat the Deacs 31-30 in their second game of the season. The dominant wins propelled Clemson to lock up the AP rankings and move them to No. 10 in the country heading into this week’s matchup.

The scouting report for the Tigers begins with quarterback Cade Klubnik, who has been incredible for Clemson this season with 1,528 passing yards, 17 touchdowns and just two interceptions with a 66.8 completion percentage. Klubnik runs an offense that has scored 40 or more points in four games this season. After a mediocre season in 2023, Klubnik has solved many of his problems, a big reason why many see Clemson as a frontrunner in the ACC.

Virginia Football: ACC Football Week 8 Power Rankings

Antonio Williams is Klubnik’s top target through the air, as Williams has 349 yards and five touchdowns in 2024. In addition to Williams, tight end Jake Briningstool is second in receiving yards for the Tigers this season with 289 yards and two touchdowns. Statistically speaking, Clemson has managed to be the second-best offense in the ACC behind Miami.

On the ground, Phil Mafah had a productive year with 604 yards and four rushing touchdowns in 2024. That includes an 83-yard rushing touchdown against Appalachian State in week two. Behind Mafah, Klubnik is the Tigers’ second rusher with 198 yards and four touchdowns.

Defensively, Clemson dominated its opponents, with the Tigers ranking fourth in the ACC in pass defense and allowing just 1,248 yards this season. Clemson also produced nine interceptions and recorded 13 sacks in 2024. The Clemson defense is led by linebackers Wade Woodaz and Barrett Carter, who combined for 77 tackles, four sacks, one interception and two forced fumbles.

Other notable defensive players include safeties RJ Mickens and Khalil Barnes, who combined for 52 tackles to help secure Clemson’s secondary. On the defensive line, TJ Parker is the Tigers’ biggest threat with 22 tackles, four sacks and two forced fumbles. This Clemson defense has threats at all levels of defense that will look to disrupt Anthony Colandrea and his depleted wide receiver corps all day long in Death Valley.

Red zone offense
If Virginia is to miraculously win against Clemson in Death Valley, the Cavaliers will need to improve their offense in the red zone. This season, the Cavaliers have scored touchdowns on 10 of 27 red zone appearances, for a touchdown rate of 37%, which is an extremely disappointing total. If the Cavaliers can string together some drives and make it into the red zone, they will need to improve their red zone woes against the toughest defense they face this season and punctuate those drives with touchdowns. As for the Tigers, they are in the red zone in terms of touchdowns scored at 15/27.

How will Virginia’s defense perform against Clemson’s powerhouse offense?
The Virginia run defense struggled against Louisville last week, allowing 192 yards on the ground, including Isaac Brown rushing for 146 yards, a major reason for the Cavaliers’ loss last Saturday. Now the Hoos will focus on containing Phil Mafah, who is in the top 20 in rushing in the NCAA. How will Virginia fare against the prolific running back while keeping Klubnik on the ground? To bolster Clemson’s ground attack, Virginia will need to contain Klubnik and his wide receiver corps, who will face a Cavalier secondary that will likely be without Antonio Clary for the second straight week.

UVA Football Week 8 Injury Report: Trell Harris, Antonio Clary, Chris Tyree

Special teams
Last week, Virginia’s special teams were atrocious against Louisville. Daniel Sparks got lucky with a low punt before his second low punt of the day hit a blocker and landed on the Virginia 14-yard line, setting the Cardinals up perfectly and changing the momentum of the game. Virginia’s few paths to victory will likely require flawless play from a special teams perspective. The question is whether the Cavaliers can flip the script and make special teams an asset if they want to get a win or at least keep it close on Saturday.

Last year’s epic win at North Carolina showed the Cavaliers are capable of beating top-ranked teams when they reach their potential, especially in the clutch. While Virginia struggled to excel late in close games for most of the rest of the season, this win at UNC was a major breakthrough for a program that had had little success up to that point under Tony Elliott. With that in mind, it would be foolish to compare the 10th-ranked North Carolina team, which lost four of its last six games plus its bowl game, with the 10th-ranked Clemson team, which enters this game on a winning streak of five games and has won those games by an average of 29.4 points. This Virginia team is capable of winning games like this, but doing so on Saturday will require a near-perfect performance from the Cavaliers and a well-below performance from the Tigers.

Score Prediction: Virginia 24, Clemson 42

Stat Comparison: How Virginia performs on paper against Clemson

UVA Football: Players to watch for Virginia vs. Clemson

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UVA Football Week 8 Injury Report: Trell Harris, Antonio Clary, Chris Tyree

Virginia Football Depth Chart vs. Clemson | Insights, analysis