No. 11 Clemson beats Furman 41-7 in Watkins return

Andre Ellington added a pair of rushing touchdowns for the Tigers (3-0).

Watkins scored in the first quarter after taking an inside handoff from Boyd and rushing past the right side of Furman's defense. The All-American sophomore receiver spent the past two games on the sideline, suspended for a May drug arrest. He finished with four catches for 52 yards.

Boyd's three scoring throws gave him 43 for his career, second all-time at Clemson and just six behind the record held by Charlie Whitehurst.

Furman of the Football Championship Subdivision opened 0-3 for the first time since 1979.

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney joked this week the Tigers had gained more than 500 yards of offense in both victories without Watkins and his star better not mess it up.

Clemson finished with 498 yards against Furman.

It didn't take long, though, for Watkins to make his mark. He had catches of 12 and 19 yards on Clemson's first scoring drive, which ended on Ellington's 10-yard run.

Watkins was dazzling the next time the Tigers had the ball, running along the offensive line to take an inside handoff from Boyd. Watkins turned it up the right side and outran two Furman defenders to the end zone for his first score of the season.

The Tigers' offense, though, had to work a bit harder with Watkins back for their instate rival — Furman's a 35-mile drive northeast of Clemson — than when Watkins missed last week's 52-27 victory over Ball State. In that one, Clemson scored touchdowns on five of its first six possessions and was up 45-10 at half.

This time, Boyd and the first-teammers needed a third-quarter surge — and some help from the defense — to put the game away.

Linebacker Quandon Christian's interception deep in Furman territory led to Ellington's second touchdown. Boyd was back at it a series later, finding a wide-open Brandon Ford on a 30-yard scoring pass and a 34-7 lead.