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Clemson needs to shape up, or it will get knocked out
ORLANDO, Fla. — Clemson entered Saturday’s ACC Championship Game against Virginia Tech in the enviable position of having its College Football Playoff fate in its hands.
Unlike Penn State and Wisconsin, the Tigers didn’t need to convince the committee to have a last-second change of heart at the expense of another deserving team. Clemson also had no fear whatsoever that its rightful place in the top four could be usurped in the event of an especially persuasive performance the Badgers or the Nittany Lions — something that couldn’t be said, definitively, for Ohio State, or Washington. And unlike Michigan, the third-ranked Tigers didn’t have to pray for a miracle.
The only thing Dabo Swinney’s team had to do to assure it would play on New Year’s Eve was beat the Hokies — and beat the Hokies it did. But while the Tigers’ 42-35 victory at Camping World Stadium was everything it needed to be with respect to getting into the playoff field, it also revealed a host of flaws that could prove disastrous regardless of who they face in the national semifinal.
“There’s no question this team right here is incredibly deserving of where they are,” Swinney said of his players after the game. “They’ve earned everything they’ve gotten. It’s never been easy.”
In front of a Clemson-leaning crowd of 50,628, the Tigers (12-1) were unquestionably the superior team from the start, and there were several times throughout the game, which they led by as many as 21, when they appeared poised to blow it wide open — and in those moments, they looked every bit the part of a national champion.
But Clemson, for all its trying, could never pull away, and repeatedly allowed Virginia Tech (9-4) back in the contest long after the Hokies should have been put out of their misery. And it wasn’t until Cordrea Tankersley intercepted a Jerod Evans pass at the Clemson 11 with 1:11 to play that the Tigers faithful could finally breathe a sigh of relief, their team’s future finally secure.
“We needed a turnover,” Tankersley said. “The only way we knew we could win the game was if we won the turnover margin. Credit to our defensive line for getting pressure, (forcing) the quarterback to get the ball out quick.”
Overall, Clemson’s top-10 defense "held" Virginia Tech to 386 yards — 67 under the Hokies’ season average — and did win the turnover margin 2-1, but to evaluate the performance on that alone would be to miss the bigger picture.
For starters, the Tigers fell victim to several big plays over the course of the game, including a fake punt to set up the Hokies’ first touchdown, a 53-yard pass to set up their second and a 42-yard pass to set up their third. Against a better team — like any of the teams they’re apt to face in the playoff — that would have been more than enough to do them in.
Additionally, Clemson allowed Virginia Tech to complete 7 of 15 third-down chances, including 4 of 5 in the fourth quarter alone. That’s an unacceptable number for a team that entered the game ranked fifth nationally in third-down defense, and an area where they’ll need to improve with a return trip to the national championship on the line.
There were other issues, too — the eight penalties chief among them — but the Clemson defense, a rebuilt unit that ranked No. 2 nationally in tackles for loss and No. 4 in sacks, did what it does best just often enough to balance out its numerous mistakes. And that, combined with the brilliance of Deshaun Watson was enough to get by.
The game MVP, Watson threw for 288 yards and three touchdowns and added another 85 yards and two scores on the ground. He kept plays alive when he needed to, found receivers when they flashed open and showed the kind of leadership you’d expect from a senior. With anyone else under center, it may have been a different result for the Tigers, and Swinney seemed to acknowledge as much when complimenting his Heisman-candidate star at the dais.
“This guy right here is the best player in the country and it ain’t close,” Swinney said, motioning to Watson. “I’ve seen it the last two years and (the) proof is in the pudding — 12-1 this year, 13-0 last year in our regular seasons. There’s just nobody better. And it was on display tonight in big time, big time plays in crucial moments.”
But those regular-season records and all of the plaudits mean nothing for a team like Clemson if the season doesn’t end with a national championship. At this point, the expectations are that high. That reputation is the reason Clemson was so secure in its playoff fate coming into Saturday night’s game, and after coming so painfully close to beating Alabama for the title last year, anything short of redemption will be classified as a disappointment. That’s just the nature of being the best.
And while Watson may have been good enough to beat Virginia Tech by himself, that game plan won’t work when the Tigers take the field next.
“Just go out there and play ball,” Watson said when asked about his mindset coming into the game — one he’ll presumably take into the next one, as well. “Don’t play tight. Don’t overthink the game. It’s really simple. We have been doing this our whole life, and we came to Clemson for these moments like this, playing championship games and playing on the big stage.”
They’ll get at least one more chance in another few weeks, and if they do things right the Tigers will end up on the biggest stage of all for the second year. But if the team that nearly blew it Saturday shows up again in the national semifinal, Clemson will be watching this year’s championship game from home.
You can follow Sam Gardner on Twitter or email him at samgardnerfox@gmail.com.
