Clemson Football is not used to being on the receiving end of what happened on Saturday night. In prime time, under the lights, and in front of a once-raucous crowd, the Tigers were simply manhandled by a hungrier and more prepared Louisville team. As Clemson picks up the pieces, here are a few day after observations from Saturday’s debacle.
Porous run defense
First and foremost, the Tigers could not stop the run. Clemson football has always made a name for itself on the back of its defense, and on Saturday night, it looked as if the Tigers needed proverbial training wheels on that side of the ball. Louisville and freshman Isaac Brown gashed Clemson all night and dominated the Tigers’ defensive front seven. It was a disheartening performance, coupled with a complete lack of adjustments, and that ultimately did Clemson in more than any other factor in the game.
Cade Klubnik with a gutsy performance
When Clemson football is going right, quarterback play drives the offense. Saturday night was not junior quarterback Cade Klubnik’s best game, but it was far from his worse. In fact, you could describe Cade’s effort as gutsy as he did everything humanly possible to will the Tigers back into the game. Cade completed 33 of 56 passes for 222 yards and a score, and on multiple occasions played Houdini and somehow escaped the Louisville pressure to keep plays alive. Kudos to Cade for leaving everything out on the field.
Louisville vs. Clemson Game Highlights | 2024 ACC Football
Special teams woes
And once again, we are talking about special teams. Namely, the place-kicking game. In 2023 it was the kicking position itself that struggled mightily. In 2024, kicker Nolan Houser is just fine. When he can actually get the kick away. For the second time this year, Clemson football has had two field goals blocked in a game. It was an area head coach Dabo Swinney vowed to fix, but on Saturday the wing blocking on kick attempts reared its ugly head again. I am not sure what the answer is at this point, but something has to change.
Lack of urgency
When is the last time you heard Clemson football fans boo the Tigers at home? Well, you heard it on Saturday in the fourth quarter. That ire stemmed from the Tigers’ seeming lack of urgency trailing by three scores with under 12 minutes to play in the game. On multiple occasions, the Tigers stood around and bled 30 or more seconds off the clock before sending in a play or snapping the ball. Meanwhile, precious time Clemson did not have was draining away. Say what you want, but Tiger fans are far more astute than the average fan base and they understood what was happening. Urgency is critical in those situations.
Breaking point
Let me state categorically that the referees were not the reason the Tigers lost on Saturday. But they were certainly one of the reasons. Clemson football, for whatever reason, always seems to get the short end of the stick when it comes to refs. But multiple bad or missed calls in crucial spots on Saturday were crushing. Yes, Clemson absolutely recovered the onside kick with 5:59 to play trailing by 12. 83,000 people saw it. The five whose opinion mattered apparently did not. It brought the irate fans to a boiling point and students begin hurling bottles on the field.
Not cool. At all. But I understand the anger better than most. Throwing things is never justified. The fury that prompted it was. The refs have to be better.
No adjustments
And last but certainly not least, let’s talk about the lack of adjustments from the Tigers’ defense. Those in charge can give as many platitudes as they wish, but the fact of the matter is the Clemson football team made absolutely zero adjustments to what Louisville was doing offensively. Not in the first half, or in the second half after having 20 minutes at halftime to discuss it. Einstein’s definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. The Cardinals found something that worked and when the Tigers made no effort to adapt, they kept doing it.
That was frustrating to watch to say the least.
So, where do the Tigers go from here? Clemson has to flush the loss and do it quickly. A trip to Virginia Tech next Saturday is never an easy task and the Hokies would love nothing more than to lay the pressure on. Clemson football saw it’s ACC Championship and play-off chances take a major blow on Saturday but there is still a puncher’s chance. But if the Tigers lose again, Clemson will be down for the count.
