Redshirt sophomore Hudson Clement eclipsed the 100-yard mark in his first career start last season earning a scholarship in the process. The Martinsburg native totalled 177 yards and 3 touchdowns on five catches but hadn’t crossed the century mark in the ten games since that point.
That changed for Clement against Kansas as he hauled in 7 catches for 150 yards leading the Mountaineers in receiving and accounting for more than half of quarterback Garrett Greene’s yards.
It was a bounce back for the wide receiver and was a sign that he isn’t putting pressure on himself and instead is just relaxing and going out playing the game of football.
That has been a challenge at times for Clement after coming off a campaign where he essentially emerged out of nowhere to become a key piece of the rotation at the wide receiver spot. But the former walk-on was more than just a neat story with an in-state native.
No, Clement is a good football player who has a lot more to his story than one game. He displayed that multiple times last season including finishing the year with 80+ yards in back-to-back games.
“He was so hell-bent on making sure everybody knew he was a good player that he was putting a lot of pressure on himself,” head coach Neal Brown said. “My message to him was you’re a sophomore. Relax and play and if you just play as hard as you can possibly play then you’re going to make plays.”
Sometimes that’s easier said than done and Clement had to realize that he wasn’t helping his situation by adding extra pressure to the equation.
“Sort of try to be perfect in everything I do and that’s unrealistic,” Clement said. “And sometimes you’ve just got to go out there and play.”
That was the case against Kansas where Clement took advantage of a good matchup and displayed the ability to win one-on-one across the middle of the field. Out of his 150 yards receiving, Clement was able to pick up 54 yards after the catch and extend drives.
The Mountaineers had in-breaking routes as a big part of the game plan and with Kansas playing a little off and opening up their hips it led to Greene finding Clement in those situations.
“The ball found me today. It happens that way sometimes and you just have to capitalize when the ball comes your way,” Clement said.
The sophomore currently leads the Mountaineers in both receptions with 14 and yards with 231 and that’s with a 50-yard touchdown taken off his totals on a questionable holding call against Pittsburgh.
The window is there for Clement to prove that he’s more than capable in the role, but the key is for him to let his play do the talking and put pressure on the opposing defense instead of himself.
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