5 things we learned from Clemson’s loss to Notre Dame, which snapped several streaks
An undermanned Clemson team went on the road and battled for four quarters, plus two overtimes, before falling to Notre Dame Saturday night in South Bend.
The loss snapped Clemson’s streak of 28 consecutive wins over ACC teams, as well as Clemson’s run of 50 straight wins in games played on Saturdays, 36 regular season wins in a row and 14 straight road wins.
The defeat, which was Clemson’s first in the regular season since 2017 at Syracuse, came without Heisman hopeful Trevor Lawrence, who was out due to COVID-19 protocol. But QB play wasn’t the reason the Tigers dropped the game.
The Tigers have another open week this week. Up next is a trip to Florida State on Nov. 21.
Here are five things we learned from Clemson’s trip to South Bend.
D.J. Uiagalelei is going to be a star
If you weren’t ready to put Clemson’s freshman QB into the same category as Deshaun Watson and Lawrence, it’s OK to do that now. Uiagalelei, making his first career road start, passed for the third-most yards by a Clemson QB in a game in school history against the fourth-ranked Irish — completing 29-of-44 passes for 439 yards, with two touchdowns and a rushing score.
The California native also didn’t turn the ball over for the second consecutive game and passed for the most yards ever by any QB against the Irish. The previous record was 425 yards by Southern Cal’s Carson Palmer in 2002. Uiagalelei recognized blitzes, showed off his strong arm and never got rattled on the road against a top 5 team.
“He’s special. I mean, are you kidding me? You watch this guy play, he’s going to be awesome,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “That was a big challenge for him tonight, for sure. But he made some incredible plays. He never wavered. He never flinched. Made some big, big throws, a couple of nice runs. He did a really, really nice job. He’s just going to get better and better.”
The running game is officially a problem
Swinney pushed back on the notion that Clemson’s running game was a concern after the Tigers rushed for only 147 yards against an abysmal Syracuse defense last month. He’s now ready to admit that the Tigers need to get some issues worked out.
Two-time ACC Player of the Year Travis Etienne carried the ball 18 times for only 28 yards, and as a team Clemson finished with 33 carries for 34 yards. It was Clemson’s worst rushing performance since 2011 against N.C. State when the Tigers also finished with 34 yards. Uiagalelei was sacked twice and Clemson surrendered 10 tackles for loss while playing one of its most one-dimensional games of the Swinney era.
“That was incredibly disappointing, for sure,” Swinney said of the running game.
Clemson needs to get healthy
The Tigers also had issues stopping the run against Notre Dame, but that’s likely due more to who the Tigers were missing than a long-term concern. Clemson was without starting defensive tackle Tyler Davis and starting linebackers James Skalski and Mike Jones Jr. heading into Saturday. Meanwhile, starting defensive tackle Bryan Bresee, starting defensive end Justin Mascoll, starting safety Nolan Turner, starting safety Lannden Zanders and part-time starting cornerback Andrew Booth all went down during the game.
Notre Dame took advantage of the absences, rushing for 209 yards, which is the most Clemson has allowed in a game since the 2016 national title game against Alabama.
“We were pretty thin,” Swinney said of the injuries. “Give them credit. We don’t have any excuses. We had every opportunity to win the game.”
Travis Etienne needs to play better
No, there wasn’t much running room for the senior, but for the second consecutive week Etienne made a critical mistake. Etienne’s fumble in the second quarter, which was returned for a touchdown, took Clemson from being down a field goal and driving to take the lead to a double-digit deficit. The fumble was Etienne’s second that was returned for a touchdown in as many games. He also had uncharacteristic drops in the passing game and finished with just 85 yards of offense on 26 touches.
Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly admitted that the main focus for his defense was stopping Etienne, but the Louisiana native and Heisman candidate needs to be better as well.
“He has to catch that pitch and not make a bad play worse,” offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said of Etienne’s fumble. “Right now he’s in a little bit of a slump with putting the ball on the ground, but we’re going to get that fixed. ... We’re going to live and die with Travis Etienne. ... Just a tough game overall.”
Clemson never quits
With several factors working against the Tigers, including injuries, a road game against a top 5 team and starting a true freshman QB, Clemson got down double-digits for the second consecutive week but never flinched. The Tigers fought until the final whistle for four quarters and two overtimes, showing the effort, determination and belief that has made Clemson arguably the top program in college football for the past five years.
“I’ve never been more proud of a team. You can’t ask anymore from a group of young people. I mean they fought with every ounce of everything they had,” Swinney said. “The game didn’t go our way, but I’m proud of our team. I’m proud of the heart that they displayed tonight. … All you can do is congratulate Notre Dame, because they did an amazing job.”
This story was originally published November 8, 2020 at 11:08 AM.
