CLEMSON,
S.C. — What should not have been a very interesting ending resulted in
80,000-plus clenched jaws at Memorial Stadium: Clemson, very much in control of a pivotal
game against Notre Dame,
then very much not in control, then surviving thanks to a gutting Irish mishap
just as they reached the cusp of a ridiculous comeback.
So, in the end, it was
a Clemson win by a 24–22 count, a game decided on a failed two-point conversion
attempt that never should have happened, a game that could have caused far
fewer heart palpitations on both sides but nevertheless keeps the Tigers
squarely in the early College Football Playoff discussion.
Here are
three quick thoughts on the drama:
1. Deshaun Watson’s
leg is fine
There were some questions about the Clemson
quarterback’s mobility over the first three games, maybe some lingering
concerns that his left knee wasn’t all the way recovered from surgery last
December. These questions and concerns were obliterated by a called quarterback
run on the first offensive snap of the game, which Watson took up the sideline
for 38 yards.
It set the Memorial Stadium crowd on fire and set the early
tone that saw the Tigers leap to a 14–0 lead. Notre Dame’s defense figured
things out for a bit after that, but the problem is Watson’s a dagger in the
stomach waiting to happen even when you’re fairly certain you’ve solved all
your problems. Hence the 21-yard scoring run after Notre Dame fumbled the
second-half kickoff, when Watson snuck through a crease and some traffic on a
keeper and burst into the open for a touchdown that took all the air out of the
visitors. If Clemson’s quarterback is a legitimate threat with his wheels, that
might be the game-breaking force that keeps the team in the playoff
conversation for the long term.
2. Notre Dame couldn’t
get out of its own way, especially when it came to doing math
The multiple drops. The horrid offensive line play. The
fumble on the second-half kickoff. The DeShone Kizer fourth-quarter
interception. The Chris Brownfumble at the goal line late that appeared to
cut the insane comeback short before it continued a minute later. Indeed, there
the Irish were, celebrating a Kizer touchdown pass to Torii Hunter Jr. with seven seconds left
to play, on the verge of a tie.
• Watch: Clemson kicker forces fumble
against Notre Dame on kickoff
But to tie, they were forced to go for two points. And
had head coach Brian Kelly not decided to try for two points with 14 minutes left
to play after a C.J. Prosise56-yard touchdown, had Kelly instead done the
math correctly and kicked a point after then, the Irish would have needed just
one point to complete the most insane comeback in recent memory.
But they needed two. And Kizer, rolling to his right,
didn’t get it, stuffed well short by Clemson’s defense. Ballgame.
3. Is Clemson’s biggest
problem now the ACC itself?
Yes, we’re going to go ahead and drop a giant cart in
front of whatever horse the Tigers are riding through 2015. Florida State comes through Death
Valley on Nov. 7, but there might not be another impact opponent on Clemson’s
schedule for the rest of the fall. There are tests, of course, like a trip to
NC State. And rivalry games are always up for grabs, as bad as South Carolina has looked so far. But
the general lack of quality in the league may handicap Clemson in the eyes of
the Selection Committee, if things get that far.
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