Clemson Football: Phil Mafah comments on his career day against Notre Dame
Everything was seemingly going against the way of the Tigers leading into their matchup with 15th-ranked Notre Dame. The momentum over the last few weeks had many wondering how Clemson could bounce back against a solid Fighting Irish team.
Starting running back Will Shipley was ruled out due to the concussion he suffered in the previous week against N.C. State which left a large load to carry for Phil Mafah. Not only did he carry it he took the load and ran with it to the tune of 186 yards rushing and 2 touchdowns earning him ACC Running Back of the Week.
Phil Mafah carried the ball 36 times for Clemson on Saturday.
"It was what we needed. I knew what I had to do in order for this team to succeed and I couldn't have done it without the guys up front, without the coaches, without just fighting for my brothers, that's really what I was just trying to focus on today," said Mafah of his performance.
Mafah's longest run of the day came at the perfect time with the Tigers down 3-0 early and the stadium growing nervous once again. The senior broke loose for 41 yards and a touchdown. He knew how much that meant, "They blocked it up very well up front so the gap was just wide open. I was ecstatic. Just glad we got to get a point up on the board and I knew it would get the stadium rocking so that really gave us great momentum."
The day didn't end perfectly however, as Notre Dame had worked their way back into the game to be down only one possession late in the 4th quarter. Mafah then fumbled it just as Clemson was driving, trying to run the clock out on the game.
Luckily, the Tigers' defense stepped up and on the next possession, Garrett Riley didn't shy away from putting the ball back in his running back's hands when he needed to run down the clock. What did that mean to him?
"The ball just got away from me. He had a good hit on the ball and that was me, I should've had two hands on the ball but Coach Swinney and Coach Spiller had faith for me to go back out there and finish the job and that's just what I did."
Whether Shipley comes back next week or not Phil Mafah will be carrying a lot of confidence, for himself and from his coaching staff, into the game against Georgia Tech and that's a good thing for the future of this offense.
