Troy gives No. 8 Clemson scare, but falls short

Troy football nearly shocked the nation on the road Saturday against the No. 8 Clemson Tigers after holding a first-half lead, but a rally for the home team led to a 27-16 Trojans loss. 

Troy managed to find a 16-0 lead in the first half. With the college football world buzzing over the potential upset, Clemson managed to outscore the Trojans 20-0 in the third quarter to put the Dabo Swinney-coached team back out front. 

“I’m so proud of our team and for what they displayed.” head coach Gerad Parker said. “If we executed a little better and had less selfish penalties -- the things that lose games -- we come away with one that’s special.” 

Quarterback Goose Crowder and the Trojans offense came out swinging on the opening drive. The junior completed all four of his passes to start, including a 44-yard touchdown pass to Tray Taylor.  

Brady Fitch photo

Goose Crowder rolls out to pass against Nicholls.

Crowder finished the evening with 223 yards and a touchdown. Along with the endzone trip, Tray Taylor impressed with 69 yards on four receptions. 

“Goose played like a warrior tonight.” Parker said. “He’ll own it all and will improve.  

“I love him and believe him to be a great player.” 

Following a drive for each team, the game was suspended due to lightning in the area. Troy sat in the locker room with its 7-0 lead for roughly 90 minutes before it finally resumed play. 

Defensively, the Trojans managed to force two turnovers. Clemson reached scoring territory for the first time late in the first quarter, but Luke Hodge punched the ball loose on a run play at Troy’s 22-yard line.  

Justin Powe recovered it and returned the fumble deep into Clemson territory. It would give way for a Troy field goal to push the lead to 10-0. The forced fumble, four tackles and pass deflection earned Hodge Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week honors. 

With seven minutes to play in the first half, Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik fired a pass from his own goal line that Hodges tipped into the hands of Trojans linebacker TJ Thompson, who took a few steps to score a pick-six. Troy earned a 16-0 lead, the largest gap the team had held over a power conference opponent since leading Nebraska 17-0 in the 2018 win over the Cornhuskers. 

Clemson would manage to put up a field goal late in the half to send the teams to the locker room with a 16-3 score, but Trojans fans were certainly thrilled to see the potential upset developing after 30 minutes of play. 

After Clemson scored a touchdown out of the locker room, Troy's offense became snakebitten. Pinned deep on their own goal line, Goose Crowder’s pass was deflected and awkwardly picked off. One play later, the Tigers took their first lead of the game to go up 17-16. 

The struggles did not end there. Three plays later, Clemson would force another interception, leading to a made field goal. By the end of the third, Clemson had taken a 20-16 lead. The Trojans offense held posession for just one minute and 49 seconds over four plays in the quarter, with two turnovers. 

Troy had begun to stop the bleeding, methodically driving down the field early in the fourth quarter. The 16-play drive of over eight minutes came to an end after taking a sack on fourth down at Clemson’s 22-yard line. The Tigers would punch it in one more time to seal a 27-16 defeat for the Men of Troy. 

Though the Trojans came up short against last year’s ACC champions, there is plenty of hope around the team right now as they head into a big home matchup with Memphis this Saturday. 

“We’ll go back to work and get ready for them,” Parker said. “I’ll ask our guys to give the same effort and execute better, and we’ll see if we can give The Vet a show next week.” 

The Trojans return to Veterans Memorial Stadium to face Memphis in a nationally televised matchup this Saturday at 11 a.m. on ESPNU.