Good, Bad and the Ugly
Wow. Does every game have to be a nail biter? Can Clemson NOT put people away at the end of the game without making fans go crazy?????? Obviously not.
This game was such a see-saw type of momentum game. Louisville jumped out to a 17-7 lead. Malik Cunningham was doing whatever the heck he wanted. WIth 2:31 to go in the 1st quarter, Will Brown fumbled a punt inside the 30 and Cunningham took it in for a 14-7 lead. Momentum change. DJ Uiagalelei hit TE Davis Allen with a TD pass with time running out in the 1st half to tie it up. Momentum change.
The Tigers got the ball to start the half and went three and out. On the next drive, Cunningham took it 51 yards to the house, untouched, to give Louisville back the lead. Momentum change. From this point on, the Cardinals could only manage 64 yards on the next 23 plays. With 3:59 left in the game, Uiagalelei led a Tiger drive of 9 plays and 59 yards that culminated in an 8-yard run for the go ahead-touchdown. Momentum change.
On the next drive, Louisville turned it over on downs, and BT Potter, coming off his worst game of the year last week against Florida State, nailed his 3rd FG of the game to make the score 30-24. The Cardinals took the ball with 2:04 left in the game, with no timeouts and drove the ball down to the 2 yard line. Momentum change? Cunningham and this offense had the ball, 1st down and goal at the 2 yard line with 1:18 to go in the game. All it took was a 2 yard run and an extra point, Clemson goes back home with their 4th loss of the game.
Four plays later, and with 10 seconds left on the clock, 4th and goal at the 2-yard line, James Cunningham took off around the right end only to have no one to throw it to, and super senior James Skalski and Xavier Thomas brought him down for a 2-yard loss, ballgame.
Let’s start this off with the Ugly. One of the things that Trevor Lawrence and Deshaun Watson was very good at was closing out a half or a game by not giving the ball back to the opponent. The “kneel down” is the best play in football. Ahead 27-24, with the ball deep in Louisville territory, the Tigers ran three straight plays right up the middle, netting 3 yards. Because Louisville had all 3 timeouts, the Tigers were only able to run off 16 seconds. 16 seconds. Potter kicked his 3rd FG and Louisville got the ball back, giving them a chance to drive the field for the go ahead touchdown. OC Tony Elliott was asked about the drive after the game. “I got a call from downstairs that this was run territory, so we tried to pop a run. We didn’t get the first, so we kicked the FG.” They DID drive the field but due to the Tiger defense, the game is history. The staff has GOT to put the game away when it has the chance and not give the ball back to the other time. It’s happened more than once this year.
Hard to talk about the BAD without mentioning injuries once again. RB Kobe Pace, just returning this week after missing last week due to the Covid protocol, went out early in the 1st quarter after a helmet-to-helmet knocked him out. No call was made, but that was the end of the game for Pace. RB Will Shipley had some outstanding plays, but he too was the recipient of a helmet-to-helmet tackle (this one was called), and spent a lot of time on the bench. Uiagalelei went out with a bad ankle in the 1st half, but after a time in the tent with the trainers, came back in the game to lead the Tigers to their 6th win of the year.
When Louisville scored in the 3rd quarter to go ahead 24-17, Shipley returned the ensuing kickoff 71 yards The Tigers moved the ball down to the 1 yard line and on 4th down and 1, RB Phil Mafah was stopped short of the goal line and turned the ball over on downs. Tony, you have a 250 LB quarterback and a 300 pound DT running fullback. Quarterback sneak with Orhorhoro pushing him in from behind? Easy for us to sit and second guess sitting at home in our comfy chairs, but that play call was big.
Anytime you have a win, you have to have SOME Good, right? Right. The word “resilience” is defined as “the ability to become strong, healthy, or successful again after something bad happens. This Tiger team showed great resilience all night, coming back from a 10-point first half deficit to win the game, 30-24.
The Tigers had a rough time corralling Cunningham, but when push came to shove, and the Cardinals drove the ball down to the 2 yard line with time running out, this Clemson defense rose to the occasion. In the end, the Clemson defense held a very potent Louisville offense under 400 yards for the 1st time this season, had four sacks, and nine tackles for loss. LB Trenton Simpson had an outstanding game, recording 10 total tackles, two sacks and three tackles for loss. Safety Nolan Turner registered 9 tackles, and Skalski chipped in with 8 tackles. You can’t say enough about this defensive effort this year.
Unsung hero time. RJ Mickens. He totaled 7 tackles on the night but this “missile” was in on three straight tackles when Louisville had the ball 1st and goal at the 2 yard line at the end of the game. He picked a great time to show out.
Beaux Collins had a breakout game, hauling in 6 passes for 104 yards, including a 46-yard TD reception in the 1st quarter. Justyn Ross had 5 catches for 58 yards, including several on 3rd downs. Uiagalelei was 18-30 for 220 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. His 8-yard TD run in the 4th quarter put the Tigers ahead to stay.
The Cardiac Kids went on the road to a tough place to play and battled all game long. They battled injuries. They battled a loud, excited Louisville home crowd. They battled a quarterback (134 yards rushing, 2 touchdowns, 174 yards passing) that at times resembled previous Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson. Nothing comes easy for this year’s Tiger team. Nor has this season been easy on the Clemson faithful.
