The first half of play Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium wasn’t pretty for fourth-ranked Clemson as it trailed No. 20 NC State 21-17 at halftime with 171 total yards of offense compared to NC State’s 244 yards.
However, the Tigers got a spark of momentum in the first quarter when Ray-Ray McCloud returned a punt 77 yards for a touchdown to tie the game at 7 apiece. It was Clemson’s first punt return for a touchdown since Adam Humphries did it in 2014.
“That’s one thing we talked about (Friday) night,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said. “Somebody be the spark in special teams.