Having joined only the 1981 national championship Tigers at going 12-0, Swinney is relishing this season no matter what the immediate future holds and points to the now annual performance of his program as being a new mindset. Yet, one key thing I have learned about this rivalry is that most times it’s highly competitive regardless of circumstances.
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“All we’ve gotten done so far is in the rear-view mirror”, Swinney said Tuesday. “Certainly, if we were the number two team in the country and they were number one, you’d be on edge a little bit more”. Well, it’s our national championship, too.
Especially if Watson keeps performing at this level.
“This game isn’t any more important to them than it is to us”, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. A victory is a chance to get in the CFP themselves, as head coach Larry Fedora told Luke DeCock of the Charlotte Observer.
Stat of the game: South Carolina’s offense was terrible throughout the game, with 67 percent of its plays going for 3 yards or less, but Clemson was gashed again and again by big plays. The Tigers were pushed hard by the upset-minded Gamecocks, but they withstood the challenge thanks in large part to a superhuman effort from quarterback DeShaun Watson. Watson finished 20-of-27 for 279 yards and a touchdown in the air, adding 114 yards and three more touchdowns on a season-high 21 carries on the ground. “It’s what he was born to do. I think we were 4-0 last year against the SEC on the rivalry weekend so that is 7-1 the last 2 years head to head”. “I’m just saying this league is as good as any out there”. But if it was looking for style points to impress the CFP committee, this was not the way to do it.
The Tigers quickly answered when Easley’s C.J. Fuller rushed for Clemson’s second touchdown of the quarter building the Tigers’ lead back to 18 points. Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, the drive would stall there and Elliott Fry would come on to boot a 21-yard field goal through making it 14-3 just before the half ended.
After a scoreless first-quarter by both offenses, Clemson scored first midway through the second period when Watson capped an eight-play, 83-yard march with a five-yard touchdown plunge.
Still, the Tigers went past 500 yards for an eighth straight game and did enough on defense to corral the struggling Gamecocks. “It didn’t matter what happened in the game today, but everyone was very positive and that’s the epitome of who this team is”. Show up ready, execute, and play with heart.
Clemson looked a shaky early on, fumbles ending two of the Tigers’ first two drives.
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After losing five straight to the Gamecocks before 2014, the Tigers decisively picked up a 35-17 win over USC to end the skid. Watson added a 30-yard touchdown and threw a 55-yard score to Deon Cain.
