What We Learned From Clemson's Win Over Miami

Dabo Swinney said Saturday night after No. 9 Clemson secured its 12th consecutive season with at least 10 wins that he's never tried to build perfection, just consistency.

It's quite an accomplishment for this program, and the word "consistency" is what the Tigers are built on.

Coming off of a 40-10 victory over Miami, this year's version of Clemson football also showed consistency, but not entirely in a positive manner. The Tigers played stellar defense and used a hot-starting offense that flashed big plays and efficiency but eventually succumbed to foot-shooting mistakes and another string of turnovers.

"That’s what they can do," Swinney said when asked about the offensive flashes and building a 24-0 halftime lead. "Ability to be explosive and balanced. It was awesome. That was as much complementary football as we've played all year. It was good for them to get a glimpse of that. Motivates them even more to believe in what we do and correct those mistakes. Think the belief is really, really high."

This is who Clemson is through 11 games. That much was clear on Saturday against the Hurricanes.

But what the Tigers are is a team that still has a chance at doing something special this season. No matter how they've gotten here, Saturday proved that they have enough elements to keep their College Football Playoff dreams alive.

Here's what else was learned about the win over Miami:

ACC perfection

Clemson did it. After all the downs of 2020 and watching Wake Forest end the streak of six consecutive ACC Atlantic titles, the Tigers placed themselves back atop of the conference. They'll head into the ACC title game in Charlotte on Dec. 3 as a favorite over UNC and in great shape to claim their eighth conference championship under Swinney.

The Tigers put themselves in that position by going a perfect 8-0 in ACC play, something only three other Swinney-led teams had done before Saturday. Clemson did it in 2015, 2018 and 2019. And now they've done it again in 2022. The only loss on the season came at Notre Dame in a non-conference game. No matter how the league ranks or is viewed in the eyes of analysts and college football pundits, undefeated is undefeated. And Clemson is just that in the ACC after a down year.

Still in the CFP hunt

There are metrics out there that will tell you what percentage the Tigers have of making the playoff, and there will be plenty of talking heads discussing it this week. But there's no doubt that things fell in Clemson's favor over the weekend. Tiger fans found themselves in a catch-22 with South Carolina upsetting No. 5 Tennessee 63-38. Clemson really needed the Gamecocks to win and clear a little bit of a path, but it also meant South Carolina winning a key game and giving them momentum coming into rivalry week.

Regardless, the Vols were Clemson's biggest obstacle in getting a chance to reach the top 4, and now with them out of the way, Southern Cal and the loser of Michigan-Ohio State this week is what the Tigers will keep an eye on. That should lift the spirits of a team that appeared too far back after the ND loss, but Saturday proved a lot more can still happen to get Clemson higher in the committee's rankings.

Turnover bug

Clemson turned the ball over three more times Saturday night. All came in the second half and all three came consecutively. There's just no way to understand why this keeps happening. Clemson has now given the ball away 12 times in the last four games. The Tigers have 17 on the season.

The rash of mistakes is unexplainable. It's not like they don't work on it in practice. Every coach understands the importance of ball security. A lot about turnovers are luck, but it's such a recurring thing that you almost count on it happening at some point in the game. It's really stifling drives and bogging down this offense's rhythm and overall production.

Offense can be great (it just isn't)

While we're on offense, it feels like this side of the ball is destined to show a high ceiling but just find a to not reach it. DJ Uiagalelei can look so good on one drive and then struggle the next. Ball carries inexplicably start putting the ball on the turf. The receivers can make a few spectacular plays but then run the wrong route or simply stop running and it leads to an interception.

Tight end play, though, has been really good. And the one constant has been the offensive line which has played pretty well in the second half of the season but combined with turnovers, penalties and leaving too many plays on the field, this offense has become one that will be remembered as one that is so close to being really good. It just can't quite get there.

Defense turned a corner

There have to be some opponent adjustments when evaluating the Tigers, but holding a team to 98 total yards is a really big deal. Miami was on its third quarterback. The Hurricanes had a recent stretch of nine quarters without a touchdown, so they're very limited when it comes to scoring. However, there is a different mental edge to this Clemson defense, something that just wasn't there even against lesser opponents early in the season.

Maybe it's the finality of the season or the loss at Notre Dame in which this group was embarrassed. Whatever it is, there have been signs the last two weeks that this defense is the dominant group they were heralded as before the season began. And it's not too little too late. If Clemson is to earn a spot in the playoff, it'll be the defense that supports the committee's argument for inclusion.

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