DEATH VALLEY: There was plenty of blame to go around following Clemson’s 46-45 loss to Duke, Saturday, but it’s hard to lay much at the feet of Cade Klubnik and the Tigers’ offense. Klubnik led his unit to 560 yards and six straight scoring drives to give Clemson a late lead, only to see it slip away in the final moments as a leaky pass defense and a highly controversial pass interference penalty led to a gut-punch loss.
After Klubnik (385 yards, two touchdowns) hit TJ Moore for a 75-yard score, Clemson looked poised to overcome its defensive lapses and pick up a conference victory. With Clemson holding a 45-38 lead, punter Jack Smith pinned Duke on its own six-yard line with just 4:39 remaining. However, Blue Devils’ quarterback Darian Mensah, who had already produced a highlight-reel performance, was up to the challenge. Mensah marched Duke down the field before facing a fourth and 10 at the Clemson 18.
On the next snap, Clemson’s front got pressure, forcing Mensah (361 yards, 4 TDs) to fire off his back foot. His intended receiver, Que’Sean Brown, initiated contact with Avieon Terrell. The pass fell incomplete but the penalty marker signaled that Terrell’s day was about to go from bad to worse. Clemson was flagged for defensive pass interference, drawing all the boos, jeers and ridicule the Death Valley crowd could summon. Head coach Dabo Swinney said it was “one of the worst calls he’s ever seen.”
Duke scored on the next play to close the gap to a single point. And so, despite the Tigers’ secondary looking lost for four quarters, the suspicious penalty and Mensah’s heroics, Clemson had an opportunity to make one stop on the two-point try to bring their record back to .500. But it wasn’t in the cards on this day. A receiver broke open off the line and Mensah’s pass was true, sealing Clemson’s fate.
For the first time in program history, a 45-point outburst wasn’t enough to claim victory. Antonio Williams led all pass catchers with 10 receptions for 142 yards. Williams was also a part of the rushing attack as he, Adam Randall (89 yards) and Gideon Davidson (51 yards) combined for 162 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.
Those numbers won’t soften the blow of falling to 3-5, however. Clemson has completely lost its aura, dropping six of its last eight games in the Valley, having just beaten Troy in front of its home fans this season.
The Tigers, seemingly in disarray, will look to regroup before playing host to Florida State next week.
Final Stats
My view from Death Valley
Clemson postgame
Dabo Swinney
Cade Klubnik
Wade Woodaz
Dabo – go get Sellers. Put him back there with your receivers and your offense will be elite again.