2012 Clemson Tigers football team

The 2012 Clemson Tigers football team represented Clemson University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Tigers were led by head coach Dabo Swinney in his fourth full year and fifth overall since taking over midway through 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. On November 10, Clemson set a school record with their 12th straight home win at Death Valley. They finished the season 11–2, 7–1 in ACC play to be Atlantic Division co–champions with Florida State. Due to their loss to Florida State, they did not represent the division the ACC Championship Game. They were invited to the Chick-fil-A Bowl where they defeated LSU. The Tigers had their first 11-win season since 1981.

2012 Clemson Tigers football
ACC Atlantic Division co-champion Chick-fil-A Bowl champion
Chick-fil-A Bowl, W 25–24 vs. LSU
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
Division	Atlantic Division
Ranking
Coaches	No. 9
AP	No. 11
Record	11–2 (7–1 ACC)
Head coach	Dabo Swinney (4th full, 5th overall season)
Offensive coordinator	Chad Morris (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Brent Venables (1st season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Charlie Harbison (5th season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
Seasons ← 2011 2013 →

2012 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Atlantic Division
No. 10 Florida State xy$		7	–	1					12	–	2
No. 11 Clemson x		7	–	1					11	–	2
NC State		4	–	4					7	–	6
Wake Forest		3	–	5					5	–	7
Maryland		2	–	6					4	–	8
Boston College		1	–	7					2	–	10
Coastal Division
Georgia Tech xy		5	–	3					7	–	7
North Carolina†		5	–	3					8	–	4
Miami (FL)‡		5	–	3					7	–	5
Virginia Tech		4	–	4					7	–	6
Duke		3	–	5					6	–	7
Virginia		2	–	6					4	–	8
Championship: Florida State 21, Georgia Tech 15
$ – BCS representative as conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant † North Carolina ineligible for ACC title, championship game, and bowl game due to NCAA sanctions.[1] ‡ Miami ineligible for ACC title, championship game, and bowl game due to self-imposed sanctions.[1] Rankings from AP Poll

Personnel

2012 Clemson Tigers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 1 Martavis Bryant So WR 2 Sammy Watkins So WR 6 DeAndre Hopkins Jr QB 8 Cole Stoudt So QB 10 Tajh Boyd Jr QB 11 Chad Kelly Fr WR 16 Adam Humphries So WR 18 Jaron Brown GS WR 19 Charone Peake So RB 23 Andre Ellington Sr RB 24 Zac Brooks Fr C 55 Dalton Freeman GS G 62 Tyler Shatley Jr OT 63 Brandon Thomas Jr OT 79 Isaiah Battle Fr TE 80 Brandon Ford Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DE 3 Vic Beasley So DT 6 Tavaris Barnes So LB 12 Stephone Anthony So CB 17 Bashaud Breeland So CB 21 Darius Robinson Jr DT 48 D.J. Reader Fr DT 50 Grady Jarrett So DE 93 Corey Crawford So DT 94 Carlos Watkins Fr DT 97 Malliciah Goodman Sr DE 98 Kevin Dodd Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 39 Chandler Catanzaro Jr P 92 Bradley Pinion Fr	Head coach Dabo Swinney Coordinators/assistant coaches Chad Morris (OC/QB) Brent Venables (DC/LB) Tony Elliott (RB) Jeff Scott (WR/RC) Robbie Caldwell (OL) Dan Brooks (DT) Marion Hobby (DRGC/DE) Charlie Harbison (DB) Danny Pearman (STC/TE) Zac Alley (Student Asst.) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Coaching staff

Name	Position	Seasons at Clemson	Alma mater
Dabo Swinney	Head coach	3	Alabama (1992)
Chad Morris	Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks	1	Texas A&M (1992)
Brent Venables	Defensive coordinator/linebackers	0	Kansas State (1992)
Tony Elliott	Running Backs	1	Clemson (2003)
Jeff Scott	Wide Receivers/recruiting coordinator	3	Clemson (2002)
Robbie Caldwell	Offensive line	1	Furman (1976)
Dan Brooks	Defensive tackles	2	Western Carolina (1976)
Marion Hobby	Defensive Running game coordinator/Defensive Ends	1	Tennessee (1989)
Charlie Harbison	Defensive Backs	0	Gardner–Webb (1981)
Danny Pearman	Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends	3	Clemson (1995)
Zac Alley	Student Assistant	2	Clemson (2014)
Reference:[2]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	7:00 p.m.	vs. No. 25 Auburn*	No. 14	Georgia Dome Atlanta, GA (Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game / rivalry)	ESPN	W 26–19	75,211
September 8	12:30 p.m.	Ball State*	No. 12	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	ACCN	W 52–27	79,557
September 15	3:00 p.m.	Furman*	No. 11	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	RSN	W 41–7	83,574
September 22	8:00 p.m.	at No. 4 Florida State	No. 10	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL (rivalry) (College GameDay)	ABC	L 37–49	83,231
September 29	3:30 p.m.	at Boston College	No. 17	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA (O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy)	ESPN2	W 45–31	40,138
October 6	3:30 p.m.	Georgia Tech	No. 15	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC (rivalry)	ESPN	W 47–31	82,873
October 20	Noon	Virginia Tech	No. 14	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	ABC/ESPN2	W 38–17	83,338
October 25	7:30 p.m.	at Wake Forest	No. 14	BB&T Field Winston-Salem, NC	ESPN	W 42–13	31,162
November 3	7:00 p.m.	at Duke	No. 10	Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC	ESPN2	W 56–20	31,894
November 10	3:30 p.m.	Maryland	No. 10	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	ESPNU	W 45–10	78,302
November 17	3:30 p.m.	NC State	No. 11	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC (Textile Bowl)	ABC/ESPN2	W 62–48	77,831
November 24	7:00 p.m.	No. 13 South Carolina*	No. 12	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC (Palmetto Bowl)	ESPN	L 17–27	84,513
December 31	7:30 p.m.	vs. No. 9 LSU*	No. 15	Georgia Dome Atlanta, GA (Chick-fil-A Bowl)	ESPN	W 25–24	68,027
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

^[3][4]

Depth chart

Defense FS Xavier Brewer Garry Peters WLB MLB SLB ⋅ Stephone Anthony ⋅ Travis Blanks Spencer Shuey ⋅ SS Jonathan Meeks Rashard Hall CB Bashaud Breeland Cortez Davis DE DT DT DE Corey Crawford (American Football) Grady Jarrett Deshawn Williams Malliciah Goodman Vic Beasley Tavaris Barnes Josh Watson Roderick Byers CB Darius Robinson Martin Jenkins Offense WR DeAndre Hopkins Martavis Bryant WR Jaron Brown Charone Peake LT LG C RG RT Brandon Thomas Kalon Davis Dalton Freeman Tyler Shatley Gifford Timothy Isaiah Battle David Beasley Ryan Norton Reid Webster Joe Gore TE Brandon Ford Sam Cooper WR Sammy Watkins Adam Humphries QB Tajh Boyd Cole Stoudt Key reserves Special teams PK Chandler Catanzaro P Spencer Benton KR Sammy Watkins PR DeAndre Hopkins LS Michael Sobeski H Dawson Zimmerman RB Andre Ellington DJ Howard

Recruiting class

College recruiting information (2012)
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Carlos Watkins DT	Forest City, North Carolina	Chase High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	290 lb (130 kg)	-
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Germone Hopper WR	Charlotte, North Carolina	Phillip O. Berry Academy	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Travis Blanks S	Tallahassee, Florida	North Florida Christian High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Chad Kelly QB	Buffalo, New York	St. Joseph School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	205 lb (93 kg)
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Zac Brooks RB	Jonesboro, Arkansas	Jonesboro H.S.	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Ronald Geohaghan S	Fairfax, South Carolina	Allendale Fairfax High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Martin Aiken DE	Bamberg, South Carolina	Bamberg Ehrhardt	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	240 lb (110 kg)	-
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
D. J. Reader OL	Greensboro, North Carolina	Grimsley	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	330 lb (150 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Jay Guillermo C	Maryville, Tennessee	Maryville H.S.	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	285 lb (129 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Patrick DeStefano OL	Roebuck, South Carolina	Dorman H.S.	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	285 lb (129 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Isaiah Battle OL	Fork Union, Virginia	Fork Union Military Academy	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	260 lb (120 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Oliver Jones OL	Ninety Six, South Carolina	Ninety Six H.S.	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	300 lb (140 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Kevin Dodd DT	Chatham, Virginia	Hargrave Military Academy	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	280 lb (130 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
TJ Burrell LB	Goose Creek, South Carolina	Goose Creek H.S.	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Cordrea Tankersley ATH	Aiken, South Carolina	Silver Bluff H.S.	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	262 lb (119 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Shaq Lawson DE	Central, South Carolina	D. W. Daniel	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	255 lb (116 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Marty Williams S	North Augusta, South Carolina	Fox Creek H.S.	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Jay Jay McCullough ATH	Fort Mill, South Carolina	Foc Creek Charter	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Bradley Pinion K	Concord, North Carolina	Northwest Cabarrus	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	—
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Overall recruit ranking:   Scout: 17    Rivals: 14    247Sports: 15    ESPN: 10
‡ Refers to 40-yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, 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: "2012 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved February 6, 2016.

Game summaries

Auburn

	1	2	3	4	Total
#25 Auburn	7	3	6	3	19
#14 Clemson	3	10	3	10	26

See also: 2012 Auburn Tigers football team

Ball State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cardinals	7	3	10	7	27
#12 Tigers	13	32	0	7	52

See also: 2012 Ball State Cardinals football team

Furman

	1	2	3	4	Total
Paladins	0	7	0	0	7
#11 Tigers	7	13	14	7	41

See also: 2012 Furman Paladins football team

Florida State

	1	2	3	4	Total
#10 Tigers	14	7	10	6	37
#4 Seminoles	7	7	21	14	49

See also: 2012 Florida State Seminoles football team

Boston College

	1	2	3	4	Total
#17 Tigers	10	14	14	7	45
Eagles	7	14	7	3	31

See also: 2012 Boston College Eagles football team

Georgia Tech

	1	2	3	4	Total
Yellow Jackets	14	7	7	3	31
#3 Tigers	10	17	3	17	47

See also: 2012 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team

Virginia Tech

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hokies	7	3	0	7	17
#14 Tigers	3	14	14	7	38

See also: 2012 Virginia Tech Hokies football team

Wake Forest

	1	2	3	4	Total
#14 Tigers	7	28	0	7	42
Demon Deacons	0	7	6	0	13

See also: 2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team

Duke

	1	2	3	4	Total
#10 Tigers	28	14	7	7	56
Blue Devils	10	7	3	0	20

See also: 2012 Duke Blue Devils football team

Maryland

	1	2	3	4	Total
Terrapins	0	7	3	0	10
#110 Tigers	21	14	3	7	45

See also: 2012 Maryland Terrapins football team

NC State

See also: 2012 NC State Wolfpack football team and Clemson–NC State football rivalry

NC State Wolfpack (6–4) at #9 Clemson Tigers (9–1)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
NC State	21	3	14	10	48
Clemson	13	28	21	0	62

at Memorial Stadium • Clemson, South Carolina

• Date: November 17
• Game time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
• Game weather: Sunny • 57 °F (14 °C) • Wind E 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
• Game attendance: 76,000
• Referee: J. Magallanes
• TV announcers (ABC/ESPN2): Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham, Jeannine Edwards
• Box Score

Game information
NC State Mike Glennon 29/53, 493 Yds, 5 TD, INT Shadrach Thornton 21 Rush, 114 Yds, TD Tobais Palmer 7 Rec, 219 Yds, 3 TD Clemson Tajh Boyd 30/44, 426 Yds, 5 TD, 2 INT Andre Ellington 22 Rush, 124 Yds Sammy Watkins 11 Rec, 110 Yds, TD

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP NCST CLEM 1 12:56 9 46 2:04 Clemson 46-yard field goal by Chandler Catanzaro 0 3 1 9:54 9 66 2:21 Clemson Tajh Boyd 4-yard touchdown run, Chandler Catanzaro kick good 0 10 1 7:31 6 25 1:35 Clemson 43-yard field goal by Chandler Catanzaro 0 13 1 7:13 1 77 0:13 NC State Tobais Palmer 77-yard touchdown reception from Mike Glennon, Niklas Sade kick good 7 13 1 6:19 1 49 0:09 NC State Tobais Palmer 49-yard touchdown reception from Mike Glennon, Niklas Sade kick good 14 13 1 1:36 9 81 2:49 NC State Rashard Smith 18-yard touchdown reception from Mike Glennon, Niklas Sade kick good 21 13 2 14:17 5 19 1:24 NC State 32-yard field goal by Niklas Sade 24 13 2 12:52 8 78 1:21 Clemson Brandon Ford 7-yard touchdown reception from Tajh Boyd, 2-point pass failed 24 19 2 10:28 4 59 0:33 Clemson Sammy Watkins 27-yard touchdown reception from Tajh Boyd, 2-point pass good 24 27 2 2:22 5 80 1:23 Clemson DeAndre Hopkins 62-yard touchdown reception from Tajh Boyd, Chandler Catanzaro kick good 24 34 2 1:14 4 32 0:53 Clemson Tajh Boyd 9-yard touchdown run, Chandler Catanzaro kick good 24 41 3 11:00 4 68 1:02 Clemson Martavis Bryant 40-yard touchdown reception from Tajh Boyd, Chandler Catanzaro kick good 24 48 3 4:13 10 74 2:58 Clemson Tajh Boyd 9-yard touchdown run, Chandler Catanzaro kick good 24 55 3 3:55 1 16 0:06 NC State Shadrach Thornton 16-yard touchdown run, Niklas Sade kick good 31 55 3 2:38 1 6 0:06 NC State Mario Carter 6-yard touchdown reception from Mike Glennon, Niklas Sade kick good 38 55 3 1:39 3 75 0:59 Clemson Brandon Ford 69-yard touchdown reception from Tajh Boyd, Chandler Catanzaro kick good 38 62 4 14:20 10 56 2:11 NC State Tobais Palmer 29-yard touchdown reception from Mike Glennon, Niklas Sade kick good 45 62 4 7:35 13 63 3:22 NC State 40-yard field goal by Niklas Sade 48 62 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 48 62

vs No. 12 South Carolina (rivalry)

See also: 2012 South Carolina Gamecocks football team

Game Twelve– No. 12 South Carolina Gamecocks (9-2) at No. 11 Clemson Tigers (10-1) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 12 South Carolina	7	3	10	7	27
No. 11 Clemson	14	0	3	0	17

at Memorial Stadium • Clemson, South Carolina

• Date: Saturday, November 24, 2012
• Game time: 7:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather: Temperature: • Wind: • Weather: Clear
• Game attendance: 82,000
• TV announcers (ESPN): Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen, Shannon Spake

Game information

First quarter (5:27) CLEM – Tajh Boyd 3-yard run (Chandler Catanzaro kick) (Drive: 16 plays, 85 yards, 6:14; Clemson 7-0) (1:46) SC – Bruce Ellington 13-yard pass from Dylan Thompson (Adam Yates kick) (Drive: 7 plays, 63 yards, 3:41; Tied 7-7) (1:22) CLEM – DeAndre Hopkins 43-yard pass from Tajh Boyd (Chandler Catanzaro kick) (Drive: 2 plays, 75 yards, 0:24; Clemson 14-7) Second quarter (2:40) SC – Adam Yates 27-yard field goal (Drive: 12 plays, 79 yards, 6:14; Clemson 14-10) Third quarter (11:48) SC – Ace Sanders 34-yard pass from Dylan Thompson (Adam Yates kick) (Drive: 10 plays, 85 yards, 3:12; South Carolina 17-14) (6:56) SC – Adam Yates 43-yard field goal (Drive: 8 plays, 42 yards, 3:08; South Carolina 20-14) (5:07) CLEM – Chandler Catanzaro 37-yard field goal (Drive: 6 plays, 56 yards, 1:49; South Carolina 20-17) Fourth quarter (4:17) SC – Bruce Ellington 6-yard pass from Dylan Thompson (Adam Yates kick) (Drive: 13 plays, 65 yards, 7:39; South Carolina 27-17)

Statistics	SC	CLEM
First downs	26	18
Total yards	86–444	59–328
Rushing yards	45–134	35–145
Passing yards	310	183
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	23–41–1	11–24–2
Time of possession	39:34	20:02

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
South Carolina	Passing	Dylan Thompson	23/41, 310 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Kenny Miles	16 carries, 45 yards
	Receiving	Ace Sanders	6 receptions, 119 yards, TD
Clemson	Passing	Tajh Boyd	11/24, 183 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Andre Ellington	15 carries, 72 yards
	Receiving	Jaron Brown	3 receptions, 68 yards

LSU (Chick-Fil-A Bowl)

	1	2	3	4	Total
#15 Clemson	7	6	0	12	25
#9 LSU	7	7	10	0	24

See also: 2012 LSU Tigers football team and 2012 Chick-fil-A Bowl

Rankings

See also: 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	14	12	11	10	17	15	16	14	14	10	10	11	12	15	14	11
Coaches	14	12	11	9	16	15	13	13	13	9	8	9	9	14	13	9
Harris	Not released						14	13	13	9	9	9	9	14	13	Not released
BCS	Not released							19	18	13	13	11	11	14	14	Not released

2013 NFL draft

Clemson had four players selected in the 2013 NFL draft. DeAndre Hopkins went in the first round as the 27th overall pick.

Player	Team	Round	Pick #	Position
DeAndre Hopkins	Houston Texans	1st	27th	WR
Malliciah Goodman	Atlanta Falcons	4th	127th	DE
Jonathan Meeks	Buffalo Bills	4th	143th	DB
Andre Ellington	Arizona Cardinals	6th	187th	RB