Wesco Breaks a Streak That Dates to 2018
Bryant Wesco Jr. fielded a punt at his own 35-yard line and never broke stride. Sixty-five yards later, Clemson had its first scoring return since 2018, and Cal had a problem it never solved for the rest of the night. The play snapped a 10-10 tie in the third quarter and triggered a burst the Golden Bears had no answer for.
Clemson pulled away from there and closed out a 24-10 win on the road, pushing the Tigers to 3-1 overall and 2-0 in ACC play. Cal slipped to 2-2 and 1-1 in conference, still hunting for the identity that made it a trendy preseason pick out west.
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Davidson Does the Heavy Lifting on the Ground
Gideon Davidson carried the load Clemson needed all night. The running back finished with 159 yards and two touchdowns, including a 75-yard burst that turned a tight game into a laugher by the fourth quarter. Quarterback Tait Reynolds barely had to do more than manage the offense: 13 of 21 for 108 yards and an interception, a modest line that reflected how little Clemson leaned on the passing game once Davidson and Wesco took over.
On defense, Elliot Washington II picked off two passes from Cal quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, who finished 16 of 29 for 119 yards and never found a rhythm against a Clemson front that swarmed all night. Cal’s evening got worse when Adam Mohammed, who had piled up 81 scrimmage yards, limped off with a knee injury before halftime.
The loss stings for a Cal program that came in with a 1-0 conference mark and designs on an early statement against one of the ACC’s marquee names. Justin Wilcox’s group now has to regroup on short rest with the rest of its conference schedule still ahead.
What It Means Going Forward
Clemson sits at 2-0 in the ACC with its ground game clicking again after a shaky start to September, and Dabo Swinney’s staff will point to Davidson’s workload as the blueprint going forward. Cal returns home to face a schedule that offers no easy fixes as the rest of its conference slate starts climbing back into form.
For Wesco, a name few outside Death Valley knew before Friday night, that punt return alone will get replayed at ACC media stops for weeks. It was Clemson’s first scoring return in eight years, and it arrived exactly when the Tigers needed it most.
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