Welcome to the Senior Day edition of What We Are Hearing!
The Tigers have clinched the outright division title in the
last year of ACC divisions and their 9th trip to the ACC Championship. Now they
have the opportunity to win a 10th game for the 12th straight year on Senior
Day, as Tyler Davis, KJ Henry, Xavier Thomas, BT Potter, Jordan McFadden, Joseph
Ngata, Drew Swinney and others will be honored before kickoff. Alabama and FSU
are the only other programs to have won 10 or more games for 12 straight years,
and the Tigers have had to overcome a shortened Covid season and an
injury-plagued 2021 season to keep this remarkable streak going. Amazingly, not
a single player opted out of the Cheez-It Bowl last season, when probably every
other team outside of the playoff had at least one player opt out of a bowl, in
order to win that 10th game. The Tigers bounced back from the devastating loss
at Notre Dame nicely, leading Louisville from start to finish in a 31-16 win in
which they led by 3 touchdowns until the final play of the game.
Don’t look now, but with Oregon’s upset home loss to
Washington last week, the Tigers are right back in the playoff hunt when it
seemed like it was a near impossibility just a couple of weeks ago following
the Notre Dame loss. The ESPN pundits might still not be giving the Tigers a
good chance of making the playoff, but in my opinion, they have a pretty decent
shot. Obviously, the Tigers have to win out and beat a very good UNC team with
a prolific offense and Drake Maye, who I believe should be the Heisman
front-runner. If TCU loses and USC loses, I think the Tigers will get in over
the loser of Ohio State and Michigan because both of their resumes are
terrible, and the Tigers would be a conference champion. The Tigers may even
get in over Tennessee, another non-champion. The committee places a lot of
weight on conference champions. It's one of their biggest criteria for making
the playoff. So even if TCU or USC were to make the playoff, the Tigers could
get in over Tennessee and the loser of Ohio State/Michigan. USC has not beaten
a ranked team all season and has 3 very tough games remaining. They are at UCLA
in a big rivalry game on Saturday night and then have to play red-hot Notre
Dame. If they survive those games, USC would still have to beat a very good
team--either Oregon or Utah--in the Pac 12 Championship. As Committee Chairman
Boo Corrigan told me a few weeks ago, the committee will give the Tigers credit
for beating NC State with Devin Leary, which was a legitimate top-10 team at
the time, and the Tigers will also have wins at FSU, which is now ranked No.19,
and at Wake, which I believe will be ranked at the end of the season, and
possibly a top-10 UNC team in the Championship. So there is a very good chance
the Tigers will make the playoff if they can win out! It all starts this week
against Miami, and the Tigers can help their cause by gaining some style points
in these last two games at home. They need to run the score up on Miami and
South Carolina to start gaining some traction with the committee.
This will be the first meeting between Clemson and Miami
since 2020 when the Tigers blew out the No.10 Canes 42-17. Of course, the Canes
have a whole new coaching staff now, including new Defensive Coordinator Kevin
Steele, who was fired by Dabo after the 2011 blowout loss to West Virginia in
the Orange Bowl. That was a huge turning point in the Clemson program, as it
necessitated the hiring of Brent Venables, and the rest is history! The Tigers
have had the nation’s best defense in the 11 years since. Steele has bounced
around a lot since he left Clemson, working for Nick Saban at Alabama as well
as stops at LSU, Auburn and Tennessee, where he was interim head coach. Steele
coached against Dabo and the Tigers in 2016 and 2017 when he was the DC at
Auburn, and he held the Tigers to 33 points combined in those two games. Of
course, Dan Radakovich also left Clemson last year and is now the Athletic
Director at Miami, so this series may be nicknamed the Radakovich Bowl for the
next several years!
On to the matchup…
MISCELLANEOUS
The all-time series between Clemson and Miami is tied 6-6, and
Clemson has won 3 straight, but the Tigers are 1-2 against the Canes in Death
Valley…From 2004-09, all 3 meetings between the teams went to overtime, with
the road team winning each (Clemson won in 2004 and 2009). It was just the
second time in history that 3 straight meetings between two teams went to
overtime…Clemson seniors are 43-7 over the last 4 years, winning the third-most
games over that span behind Alabama (45) and Georgia (44)…The seniors will have
an opportunity to be the 11th Clemson senior class to win at least 3 ACC Championships…A
win Saturday would give the Tigers their 9th perfect regular season record
against ACC competition. It would be just the 5th time the Tigers have won 8
ACC games in a season…A win Saturday would give the Tigers 11 straight wins
over ACC teams, marking the 4th longest streak in program history…Since 2012,
Clemson leads the nation in tackles-for-loss with over 200 more than Alabama.
Miami is tied with VA Tech for 4th over that span…A win Saturday would be the 12th
time in program history that the Tigers won at least 10 of their first 11 games
in a season…A win Saturday would extend the nation’s longest home win streak to
40 games and tie Notre Dame for the 8th longest streak all-time. It would be
the first time a program has won 40 straight home games since Nebraska won 47
from 1991-98. Dabo Swinney would join Bear Bryant (Alabama), Michigan’s Fielding
Yost (Michigan) and Darrell Royal (Texas) as the only head coaches to preside entirely
over a home win streak of 40 games or more…If not for a last-second field goal
by Pitt in 2016, Clemson would have already broken Miami’s all-time home win
streak record of 58…Clemson gave Miami its worst home loss in program history,
beating the Canes 58-0 on the road in 2015. The Canes fired Al Golden after
that game and have had 5 different head coaches since then, including interim
head coach Larry Scott…Since 2011, Clemson is 41-5 against head coaches in
their first game against the Tigers…Davis Allen and Jake Briningstool have
combined for 7 touchdowns this season. One more for Allen would make them the
first Clemson tight end combo with 4 TD’s each in a season… Clemson avoided consecutive
losses last week and has played 150 games since losing back-to-back, dating to
2011. That is the longest active streak in the nation…Clemson is now 92-6 under
Dabo Swinney when dropping in the AP Poll from the previous week…Clemson has 476
sacks since 2012, most in the nation. The next-closest is Alabama at 435...Clemson
has 1,241 tackles-for-loss since 2012, most in the nation. Alabama is second
with 1,035…The Tigers have won 67 straight games when leading at halftime…Clemson
is 100-4 against unranked teams since the start of the 2012 season…Dabo has won
159 games as a head coach. He took the sixth-fewest games (186) to reach 150
wins. Urban Meyer holds the record at 176 games, followed by Barry Switzer, Gil
Dobie, Fielding Yost and Joe Paterno. Switzer and Paterno are the only ones
who, like Dabo, won all 150 games at one school….Clemson has the second-most wins
and second-best win percentage since 2015 behind Alabama. The Tigers are 98-11
over that period while Alabama is 100-10. Ohio State is 3rd with a record of 89-10
since 2015. Clemson is also 2nd in wins since 2011 with a record of 140-22.
Alabama is 148-16 and Ohio State is 133-20….Clemson has the most Power Five
wins (100) since 2013. Alabama is 2nd with 97 and Ohio State is 3rd with 93….Clemson
holds the all-time record for most wins over a 5-year span with 69 from
2015-2019….Dabo Swinney has the best active win percentage in the nation
(minimum 10 years) at .811. Nick Saban is second at .799, Kansas Head Coach
Lance Leipold is 3rd (.744). Brian Kelly and Jimbo Fisher round out the top 5….Dabo
is currently 12th on the all-time win percentage list but climbing quickly.
He’s just two spots below legendary Oklahoma Head Coach Bud Wilkinson, who Dabo
could pass for 10th next season….A win Saturday would be Dabo’s 160th, tying
Bob Stoops for second-most of any coach in his first 15 seasons, but Dabo is
only in his 14th full season. By the end of the 2023 season, Dabo
should topple Urban Meyer’s record of 165 wins in his first 15 seasons….Dabo
has the most active wins (159) with one school. Mike Gundy is 2nd with 156 at
Oklahoma State. Dabo is 9th on the active head coach career win list, 3 more
than Mike Leach and Mike Gundy….With a win in the Cheez-It Bowl over Iowa State
last season, Dabo tied Bobby Bowden for most bowl wins (11) by any ACC coach in
history….
MIAMI SYNOPSIS
The Canes came into the season with high expectations in Mario
Cristobal’s first year as head coach and a lot of preseason hype over returning
starting quarterback Tyler Van Dyke, but it’s been a disappointing season for
them. They are just 5-5 overall and 3-3 in the ACC after suffering a massive 45-3
beat down at home to rival FSU a couple weeks ago. They replaced Van Dyke with freshman
QB Jacurri Brown and rebounded with a 35-14 win at Georgia Tech last week.
Brown, a 6-4, 210-pound native of Valdosta, GA, basically
hadn’t played at all until he entered the FSU game a couple weeks ago, but his first
career start was a good one. He was 14-19 for 136 yards and 3 touchdowns
without an interception. He also ran 19 times for 87 yards, and you can expect
the Canes to utilize his dual-threat skill set on Saturday.
WR Frank Ladson (#8) will return to Death Valley after transferring
last January. The Miami native has been one of the Canes’ top receivers with 27
catches and a touchdown this season. 6’5, 215-pound sophomore Colbie Young
(#88) also has 27 catches this season to go along with 5 touchdowns. 6’1,
182-pound sophomore Key’shawn Smith (#5) has just 13 catches but averages 15.3
yards per catch, and 2 of them have gone for touchdowns. No other Miami receiver
has more than one score this season. Perhaps the biggest threat in the Canes’
passing game is 6’5, 245-pound senior tight end Will Mallory (#85), who has 29
catches and 2 TD’s.
Henry Parrish, Jr. (#21) leads the rushing attack for the
Canes. The 5’10, 190-pound sophomore has rushed for 569 yards and 4 touchdowns
this season on 4.7 yards per carry. They have another 5’10, 190-pound sophomore
in Jaylan Knighton (#4), who has rushed for 341 yards and one score on 5.4
yards per carry. Sophomore Thaddius Franklin, Jr. (#22) is a 6’0, 240-pound wrecking
ball in short yardage situations. He only has 50 carries this season at 4.2
yards per but has reached the end zone 5 times, more than any other rusher.
Defensively, look out for Kamren Kinchens (#24) in the
secondary. The alliterative sophomore safety has 6 interceptions this season,
including 3 at Georgia Tech last week. He took one of those 99 yards for a
touchdown. Junior CB Tyrique Stevenson (#2) has 2 interceptions and is the only
other player with multiple INT’s. Sophomore DT Akheem Mesidor (#90) leads the
team with 5 sacks. Fellow sophomore DE Jahfari Harvey (#12), freshman DE Nyjalik
Kelly (#32) and senior DE Mitchell Agude (#45) have 4 sacks apiece. Interestingly,
no one in the Miami front seven has forced a fumble this season, and the Canes
have just 5 fumble recoveries. The Canes are No.5 in sacks, though, and No.10
in tackles-for-loss.
The Canes have a solid kicker in sophomore Andres Borregales,
brother of Groza Award finalist Jose Borregales, who transferred to Miami for
the 2020 season and went on to play in the NFL. Andres is 15-18 this season
with a long of 49, but he made a 55-yarder as a freshman last season. The Canes
have a couple of dangerous punt returners in Jacolby George and Tyrique Stevenson.
George averages 10.9 yards per return with a long of 92, and Stevenson averages
9.8 per return with a long of 47. The Canes have allowed 2 kickoff returns for
touchdowns this season.
Miami is ranked No.84 in scoring offense (25.7 points per
game), No.83 in rushing offense (140.40 yards/game), No.47 in passing offense
(252.2 yards/game) and No.65 in total offense (392.6 yards/game). The Canes are
No.48 in scoring defense (23.9 points per game), No.36 in rush defense (125.60
yards/game), No.74 in pass defense (229.5 yards/game) and No.42 in total
defense (355.1 yards/game). They are No.5 in sacks (34), No.10 in
tackles-for-loss (76) and No.15 in interceptions (12). They are No.35 in
turnovers gained (17) No.117 in turnovers (20) and No.89 in turnover margin
(-.30 per game). The Canes’ offense is 45th on 3rd down, converting 42.25% of
the time. Their 3rd down defense is 50th, allowing conversions 37.04% of the
time. Their red zone offense is 62nd, scoring 85% of the time with a 57.5%
touchdown rate, and their red zone defense is 31st, allowing scores 78.95% of
the time with a 50% TD rate.
CLEMSON STATUS
With his back to the wall, DJ bounced back nicely last week
and looked more like the DJ from the first 7 games of the season. It was do or
die for him because Dabo was ready to make a change to Cade if DJ played poorly
again. Really, the bounce back began in the 4th quarter at Notre Dame when he
led two touchdown drives. He looked much more confident against Louisville
after running for a touchdown on the opening possession. He was 19-27 with a
touchdown pass with no interceptions while rushing for 32 yards and another
score. He did have a sack fumble, but at least he didn’t give up any scores
like he did against Syracuse and Notre Dame. Incidentally, Dabo said the
pick-six at Notre Dame was on Ngata for not sticking to the back shoulder
route.
Phil Mafah is coming off his first career 100-yard game and
has been tremendous ever since Kobe Pace went down. Pace, by the way, should
see the field on Saturday for the first time since he was injured in the NC
State game. He might not get many touches, other than mop-up duty, with the 1-2
punch Shipley and Mafah have provided over the last several games.
The defense was outstanding last week despite the absence of
Trenton Simpson, who had a concussion. Barrett Carter stepped up to fill his
role and had his best game of the season with 8 tackles, 2 sacks, 3.5
tackles-for-loss and an interception. Trotter had a great game as well, and
freshman Wade Woodaz was impressive in his most prominent role to date. Simpson
should be back in the lineup on Saturday, as will OG Walker Parks, who missed
the Louisville game. Sadly, Xavier Thomas is done for the season after
re-injuring his foot while hurdling a running back in practice last week. He
was primed to have an All-American senior season, but that was derailed when he
injured his foot in August camp and played just a few games this season. He
still has a year of eligibility left, so he will have a big decision to make
after this season whether to take his chances with the draft. If he decides to
return to Clemson, he could make a lot more money for himself like KJ Henry has
this season, and it would be a huge boost for the Tigers to get him back next
season.
Beaux Collins will be out again with his separated shoulder,
and Tyler Venables will be out as well with a pulled hamstring. CB Malcolm
Greene is out for the season with a groin injury. Also, Dabo told us that
center Mason Trotter has retired from football because of a fluke back injury.
You may recall that Trotter was pegged as the starting center but was suspended
for the better part of the season last summer, forcing Putnam to move from
guard to center. They were expecting Trotter to play the last few games of the
season, though. I asked Dabo if he might look to the portal for a center again,
as he did last summer, but he feels good about the depth behind Putnam with
Linthicum and Howard.
With Collins out, EJ Williams and/or Brannon Spector will
need to step up on Saturday. It will also be interesting to see if freshman
Cole Turner comes into the game early. Dabo raved about him in August camp, and
he’s still learning how to be a receiver, but he’s long, has great speed and
catches everything. He hasn’t played yet this season because they are
red-shirting him, but he can play in 4 games without losing his red shirt status.
If he doesn’t play early, you can expect to see him if the Tigers get a big
lead. I keep waiting for fellow freshman Adam Randall to make a big splash.
This could be the week for it! Of course, the third of the freshman receiver
trio, Antonio Williams, seems to be getting better by the week. He has become
the Tigers’ most reliable receiver, for sure, and he could make a big play in
the punt return game.
The biggest thing I need to see from the Tigers is a
reversal of the turnover trend. They were among the best in the nation at
protecting the football in the first 7 games of the season but have 9 turnovers
in the last 3 games! If they are minus in the turnover margin again on
Saturday, it will be the first time since 2011 that they’ve done so in 4
straight games. Shipley lost his first career fumble against Syracuse and put
the ball on the ground twice last week, losing one of them. The 3 turnovers didn’t
hurt them as badly last week because they created 2 of their own, plus 2
turnovers on downs, and the defense didn’t allow any points after the 3 fumbles.
However, they have got to get out of that funk here in the next couple home
games before the ACC Championship! Miami is tied with Colorado for the
third-most fumbles lost (11) this season, so maybe the Tigers will be able to pounce
on one or two.
PREDICTION
Freshman QB Jacurri Brown is making his second career start.
While his debut was a good one on the road last week, Bobby Dodd Stadium is
nothing like he will encounter in Death Valley on Saturday. I expect Wes
Goodwin will bring all kinds of exotic pressure to rattle the young quarterback,
and you can expect the crowd to cause a few pre-snap penalties. As long as the
Tigers come out even or on the plus side of the turnover margin, this one
shouldn’t be close. Make it 40 straight home wins and a 12th straight 10-win
season for the Tigers!
The Prowl toward a 20th ACC Title continues…
CLEMSON 34 Miami
13
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