By Sean Labar
The Clemson Tigers are still recovering from Saturday’s loss to Louisville at home.
Louisville pounded the rock all night and ultimately won with a strong running game that Clemson could never find an answer for.
The Cardinals took control of the game through the middle of it with two touchdowns in the final minutes of the second quarter and three field goals in the third quarter to go on a 23-0 run and take a lead at 26-7. After Clemson narrowed the margin with a touchdown in the fourth, they then immediately answered with a one-play drive because of a 45-yard rushing touchdown that sealed the victory.
By the final whistle, Louisville gainied 210 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries.
Clemson got dominated by Georgia in the season opener, but since then, the Tigers emerged as one of the best teams in the country heading into Saturday’s ACC clash.
The Tigers were riding a six-game win streak coming into this weekend, including their first five within the ACC. They weren’t just beating teams either, they were dominating. They entered the Louisville game with an average margin of victory of 27.3 points.
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Even more concerning, Clemson entered Saturday’s matchup coming off a bye week and had two weeks to prepare for the Cardinals. Still, Louisville cruised to a 33-21 road win over the Tigers, the first time the Cardinals had beaten Clemson in program history.
Dabo Swinney Admits He Was ‘Outcoached’ In Loss To Louisville
In his post-game press conference following the loss, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney was asked if he believed the bye week was a factor in his team’s lackluster performance.
“I don’t make no excuses. There’s no excuses. There’s none,” Swinney said postgame. “No excuses. That ain’t got nothing to do with it”
“Just flat-out got my butt out-coached tonight,” stated Swinney. “Ain’t got nothing to do with it.”
That was a shocking admission from the Clemson head coach — who has come under fire in the new age of college football for not using the transfer portal and instead, relying on building his team through high school recruiting and retaining talent.
With four games to go in the regular season, Clemson is now on the outside looking in when it comes to reaching the College Football Playoff.
“It hurts. It’s a missed opportunity, huge missed opportunity,” said Swinney. “We didn’t deserve to win. You know, they absolutely deserved to win and we did not so you’ve got to give them all the credit.”
“We looked like a very poorly-coached team tonight and that’s on me. Simple as that,” Swinney said. “I mean, just incredibly disappointed with our performance tonight.”
