Clemson’s Dabo Swinney impressed by Spencer Rattler, South Carolina upset of Tennessee
Dabo Swinney likes to call this late November game a “season of its own,” and it’s finally here — with some Rocky Top-fueled dramatics to boot.
South Carolina week is officially underway for Swinney’s Clemson football team, and it’s coming on the heels of USC’s biggest win of the 2022 season by a mile.
The Gamecocks put it all together on Saturday night against No. 5 Tennessee, with quarterback Spencer Rattler throwing six touchdown passes and a potent offense racking up a season-high 606 total yards to extinguish the College Football Playoff hopes of the Volunteers.
The 119th all-time matchup between Clemson (10-1, 8-0 ACC) and South Carolina (7-4, 4-4 SEC) was already going to be big. Now, it’s even bigger.
Swinney said he watched a “good bit” of South Carolina-Tennessee once he got home Saturday night, fresh off Clemson’s 40-10 win against Miami that gave the team a perfect 8-0 record in ACC play and 10 or more wins for the 12th straight season.
“They just really, really played a complete ballgame in all facets,” Swinney said of USC during his Sunday night teleconference. “Then, as they got going, they just kept pouring it on. Tennessee, it wasn’t their night — and you’ve gotta give South Carolina all the credit for that.”
The Gamecocks never trailed against Tennessee, taking a 21-7 lead after the first quarter and a 35-24 lead into halftime at a sold-out Williams-Brice Stadium.
Tennessee got within 35-31 after a third-quarter touchdown pass from star quarterback Hendon Hooker, but South Carolina responded with 28 unanswered points to secure its biggest upset since 2019 (No. 3 Georgia) and biggest home upset since 2012 (No. 5 Georgia).
Particularly impressive was Rattler, the Oklahoma transfer who completed 30 of 37 passes for 438 yards, six touchdowns and zero interceptions. It was a career day for one of the sport’s more intriguing players, who went from Heisman Trophy favorite to second-stringer with the Sooners before transferring to USC last December.
Rattler entered Saturday’s game against Tennessee averaging 198 passing yards per game and had thrown eight touchdowns against nine interceptions in 10 games. Then, playing on a national stage against the former CFP No. 1 Volunteers, he delivered a masterclass.
“Their quarterback played outstanding,” Swinney said.
Rattler led South Carolina to touchdowns on nine of 11 drives and helped the Gamecocks pile up 63 points — the most ever by an unranked team against an AP top 5 opponent, per the school — while getting each and every one of his playmakers involved.
Swinney, who also watched Rattler play at Oklahoma, said it was a reminder of why Rattler graduated high school as a five-star recruit and the No. 1 quarterback in the class of 2019.
“He can move around well, he’s really good in the pocket and he can make every throw,” Swinney said. “He throws really well on the move also. Just a really good football player … he’s everything you like about a quarterback. He’s got a great arm.”
This will be Swinney’s 19th overall Clemson-South Carolina rivalry game and 14th as the head coach of the Tigers. He’s 8-5 all-time against USC, losing five straight in the series to Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks from 2009 to 2013 before winning seven in a row against USC from 2014 to 2021 entering this weekend.
That seven-game Clemson winning streak is tied for the longest on either side of the rivalry, which stretches back 118 games to 1896. Swinney is also the only coach in Clemson history with a seven-game winning streak against South Carolina.
“This is a game where it doesn’t matter what your records are,” Swinney said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re coming off three big wins in a row or three big losses in a row. This is a game where you just throw all that stuff out. It’s all about this game … it’s really all about how you play in these four quarters.”
Swinney is 1-0 against second-year South Carolina coach Shane Beamer, with whom he has a cordial relationship. The Tigers shut out the Gamecocks 30-0 in Columbia last season – but South Carolina’s offensive fireworks against Tennessee indicate a greater challenge.
“It’s a goal of its own and a season of its own, as I said last night, and it;s the same for them,” Swinney said. “It’s a fun game to be a part of … a fun week to get ready, and a game where both teams are gonna put everything they got into finding a way to win.”
This story was originally published November 20, 2022 at 7:21 PM.
