The Year of the Tiger: Clemson Athletics’ 2016 In Review
2016 was certainly an eventful year for Clemson University athletics. It started with the concluding football game for the 2015 football season, which ended in heartbreak. The College Football Playoff Championship saw the Tigers fall short to the juggernaut that is the Alabama Crimson Tide, despite a valiant effort from talismanic quarterback Deshaun Watson and his teammates. This would prove not to be a downer, however, and the football team as well as the rest of the Clemson athletic program went on to prove that 2016 would be a great year.
The 2015-16 Tiger Men’s Basketball team had an up and down season, however it was marked by some marquee wins for the program. Playing away from Clemson in nearby Greenville due to renovations made to Littlejohn Coliseum, the Tigers still pulled out and made news.
Brad Brownell’s squad had an absolute gauntlet of a conference schedule, and a brutal stretch proved to be fruitful for the young team. This stretch included five straight matches against ranked teams, and Clemson won four of these. These included upset wins over No. 16 Louisville, No. 9 Duke, No. 8 Miami, and No. 23 Pittsburgh. Their only loss in that stretch was a valiant effort at No. 13 Virginia. While the Tigers evaded the postseason, play from returning star Jaron Blossomgame left the team encouraged for the future.
As winter passed, a new era of Clemson baseball began. The previous season, Clemson athletic director Dan Radakovich decided to part ways with long term skipper Jack Leggett. Leggett’s Tigers had been struggling for roughly five seasons or so, and the new hire of former College of Charleston skipper Monte Lee breathed new life into the program.
Lee saw success at a much smaller school in Charleston and was rumored to be the favorite for multiple openings across the country. Immediately, there was new life in the Tiger baseball program, especially after the major renovations at Doug Kingsmore Stadium were finished for the beginning of the 2016 season.
Clemson opened the season with a bang, and the emergence of one player dominated the Tigers: Seth Beer. Recognized as the Deshaun Watson of Clemson baseball, he took the conference and college baseball world by storm with his batting prowess. Beer hit multiple walk-off homeruns in his freshman year and frustrated managers all across the Atlantic Coast Conference. Beer elevated his teammates’ play, which led to a drubbing of Florida State in the ACC Tournament Final at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. Clemson was able to host their first region in the NCAA tournament in years, having won high scoring affairs against a frequent adversary, Western Carolina from nearby Cullowhee, NC.
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While the Tigers saw elimination at the hands of a strong Oklahoma State squad, everyone knew that the baseball team had risen from the ashes. Beer went on to win the Dick Howser Trophy, which is the Heisman equivalent for baseball. Beer was the first ever freshman to win the award, further highlighting just how good that young man was.
Going into the summer, Clemson’s focus turned to football. Clemson returned an absurd amount of talent from the previous year’s championship appearance, aided by the returns of wide receiver Mike Williams, whom missed most of the 2015 season with a neck injury he sustained against Wofford; and Deon Cain, whom was eventually reinstated to the team after being suspended before the Orange Bowl for team rule violations. While Clemson saw the departures of many great players on both sides of the ball such as Charone Peake, Shaq Lawson, Kevin Dodd, Mackensie Alexander, Jayron Kearse, and TJ Green, the bulk of Clemson’s stars returned. Deshaun Watson came back hungrier than ever, as did Wayne Gallman, Artavis Scott, Jordan Leggett, Hunter Renfrow, Ben Boulware, Cordrea Tankersley, Christian Wilkins, and Carlos Watkins. A strong recruiting class helped bolster some of the losses to the draft, with players like Clelin Ferrell, Dexter Lawrence, and Sean Pollard earning starting positions as true freshmen.
The 2016 season was a bit of a roller coaster- a great deal of Clemson’s wins came at margins of 6 points or less. A great victory at frequent SEC rival Auburn started the season on a good note, although Auburn nearly completed a Hail Mary throw to win the game in the last seconds. The roller coaster was especially seen when Clemson struggled at home against both Troy and North Carolina State, the latter of which missed a game winning field goal as time expired and ended up losing to Clemson in overtime. However, Clemson did have some huge landmark wins both at home and on the road.
The Louisville game was Death Valley at its best: a night game under the lights with College Gameday present, and Clemson found a way to stop Heisman winner Lamar Jackson on the last possession of the game. Clemson also won in places that have been traditionally difficult for them: Atlanta and Tallahassee. Bobby Dodd Stadium has typically been a house of horrors for the Tigers, but Clemson stifled Georgia Tech’s triple option and won handily. The Florida State game was again a roller coaster, with Clemson leaping out to an early first half lead before multiple lead changes occurred. A battle that’s become the hallmark of this rivalry, Clemson went on to victory after a Watson to Jordan Leggett touchdown gave the Tigers the lead. It was the first win at Doak-Campbell since 2006, and Clemson seemed to be rolling to another Atlantic Division title. The perfect season was foiled, however, at the hands of Pat Narduzzi and the Pittsburgh Panthers.
Pitt came into the game as a two-touchdown underdog and facing Clemson with both a massive home winning streak and a winning streak against unranked teams dating to 2011, the last loss to an unranked team at the hands of North Carolina State. Pitt ended both streaks that night in November. Give credit where credit is due, Pitt offensive coordinator Matt Canada’s game plan proved to be the Tigers’ kryptonite with quarterback Nathan Peterman and running back James Conner both having stellar games against the Tigers’ defense. A shovel pass run frequently for long yardage proved to be the most successful play. Pitt’s defense also intercepted Watson three times, including two in the end zone that surely would have resulted in scores. Pitt found themselves with the ball after one of these interceptions in position to win the game on a last second field goal, and did just that. The stunned Tiger faithful were angry, but in hindsight this game did wonders for the Tigers. Both Coach Dabo Swinney and his players had said that losing to Pittsburgh woke the team up and helped them shed the complacency that dogged the team for a great deal of the season. Clemson didn’t really look back after that, with dominant performances in every game following the loss. It also helped that both Michigan and Washington lost that week, so Clemson did not fall far in the rankings after Pittsburgh’s upset.
Clemson’s major highlights came at the very end and they peaked at the perfect time. Going into the last week of the season, the most anticipated match of the year against South Carolina proved to be a lopsided affair. Although South Carolina came into the game riding the play of true freshman Jake Bentley and upsetting Tennessee at home, the Tigers absolutely trounced the Gamecocks and first year head coach Will Muschamp. From the opening series, Clemson scored at will (pun intended) with Watson finishing with six touchdown passes, having three caught by his favorite target Mike Williams. The play of the game ended up being one of these three, where Williams literally carried Gamecock defensive back Jamarcus King on his back en route to the end zone. This rout was the worst in the history of the rivalry, eclipsing the 63-17 margin in 2003 with the 2016 score being 56-7. The Gamecock fans became incensed at certain happenings from this game, notably when Clemson called timeouts to put Watson and the starting offense back in when the game was already sealed for a standing ovation from the Clemson fans. After the game, certain South Carolina players claimed that racial slurs were shouted to them first by Clemson players, later by Clemson fans. None of these claims have been substantiated, however, and the Clemson players on the field at the time when this supposedly happened alongside Coach Swinney have denied any such slurs were said.
The ACC Championship was a bit of a roller coaster as well; Clemson jumped out to a dominant lead in the first quarter as they had in plenty of games this season. However, a targeting call on Dorian O’Daniel on a three and out stop gave the Virginia Tech Hokies new life, which led to a fake punt and eventually a score and kept VPI alive. Tech kept the game fairly close, but bowed out at the end with Clemson winning 42-35. Tech gave the Tigers a good run, but in the end Watson would not be denied his second straight conference title and a second straight College Football Playoff appearance. Clemson ended up receiving the No. 2 seed in the playoffs, paired against Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl. No. 1 Alabama had No. 4 Washington in the Peach Bowl in the other semifinal. All in all, it was a fantastic season for the Tigers. 12-1 was the final record before bowl season, with landmark wins over Auburn, Louisville, Florida State, Virginia Tech, and drubbing their hated arch rivals South Carolina. A lot of people still doubted Clemson, however those doubts were erased come bowl season.
The Fiesta Bowl was highly anticipated, given Ohio State finished with only one loss and was a CFP favorite for a large part of the season; however their appearance was controversial. They lost to Penn State in the regular season, whom went on to win both the B1G East division and conference title. However, the playoff committee did value Clemson’s conference title thus vaulting them above Ohio State. The matchup seemed intriguing due to Urban Meyer’s loss to the Tigers in 2014 at the Orange Bowl, as well as Ohio State’s strong defense. The Fiesta Bowl was probably the most shocking result of bowl season- Clemson won 31-0. It was Urban Meyer’s first ever shutout loss, a rare bowl loss for him as well. It was also Ohio State’s first shutout in any game since 1993 and first shutout loss in a bowl since the 20s. Clemson’s defense dominated the Buckeye offense, never allowing their rushing attack to get going and JT Barrett’s passing game proved to be anemic. While Watson did throw two interceptions, Ohio State was unable to capitalize on them. Clemson eventually wore down the Buckeye defense and shocked the football world with their dominating performance against a team favored to make the championship. Alabama did what Alabama does in the Peach Bowl and the rematch was on. Themes of redemption, revenge, and the nation’s best offense against the nation’s best defense (a defense that was in discussion as being named the best defense in college football history, no less) and Watson’s snub in the Heisman trophy balloting. Again, the championship was one for the ages.
As everyone already knows, Clemson struggled at the beginning and it looked like the Tide were going to stomp the Tigers as they had to nearly every other opponent in the season. However, one play in the third quarter changed everything. Clemson had fumbled on a running play from Wayne Gallman, and the Tide seemed poised to score yet another defensive touchdown, their hallmark the entire season. However, speedy Hunter Renfrow made a last ditch tackle at Ryan Anderson’s feet, which saved seven points. The Tigers defense recollected yet again, and held Bama to a field goal. Normally the Tide brutally punish opponents for mistakes like these, but Clemson was able to evade this fate. As the game went on, Clemson’s offense began to gas the Alabama defense and cracks began to show. Watson exploited these weaknesses with accurate throws, with his final two drives accounting for 65+ yards each on a defense that rarely gave up anything. Watson gashed them yet again; scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter alone and finishing with 420 yards passing and leading the Tigers to 521 yards of total offense. The final drive became his moment. With 6 minutes left in the game, he led the Tigers down the field, carving up the Alabama defense with ease. Buoyed by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, Gallman punched in the score to give Clemson their first lead of the game. Alabama had some tricks up their sleeve, however, and new offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian deserves credit for the drive that saw Alabama retake the lead. Converting on 4th and 1 and later running a trick play to get deep into Clemson territory, the Alabama offense finally got out of their own way and eventually scored with 2 minutes left on a Jalen Hurts 30 yard run. However, those that knew Clemson and Watson knew that this was plenty of time for him to work his magic.
Watson looked up at the scoreboard, smiled, and got ready for his shining moment. CJ Fuller returned the kickoff to a solid field position, and Watson got to work. With pinpoint accuracy, Watson hit every one of his passes on his way to the red zone. Mike Williams and Jordan Leggett were able to make some acrobatic catches, and the Alabama defense was finally falling apart due to fatigue from 90+ plays. Leggett got the Tigers within striking distance and Alabama was forced to give up a pass interference penalty on Williams in the end zone, given he more than likely would have scored had he not been interfered with. Clemson called a timeout and had 6 seconds on the clock left. Co-Offensive Coordinator Jeff Scott called the final offensive play- dubbed “Crush”. This play utilized what was called a “Rub” technique, wherein the wide out would run a slant route and draw the defenders into each other. Artavis Scott ran this route to perfection, drew Alabama’s defensive backs into nearly tackling him and hitting each other, leaving Hunter Renfrow wide open in the flats for the score. Watson made his easiest pass all game, and sealed the win with a second left.
This performance has garnered comparisons to Vince Young’s performance against Southern California in the 2006 Rose Bowl, which finished similarly to this title game. Even better, Swinney savagely called an onside kick with a second left to erase any possibility of a crazy ending a la the Kick Six in 2013 or Georgia Tech’s Miracle on Techwood Drive. Harkening back to when Alabama kicked an onside kick which helped lead them to victory the year before, Clemson kicker Greg Huegel recovered and Watson took the final knee. The wait was over. Although this game was in the year 2017, it was the cap to a fantastic 2016 season that Coach Swinney, Deshaun Watson, and all of the Clemson faithful knew was possible and was coming. Having sealed the first Clemson title since 1981, Watson goes out probably as the greatest Clemson player of all time and Swinney is now one of the nation’s premier head coaches, if he wasn’t already. Like the Fiesta Bowl, this championship was the first of multiple occasions for Alabama and Nick Saban. Nick Saban had never lost a championship game before, nor had he ever lost any game when leading by double digits going into the fourth quarter. He is now 97-1 in that stat. Also, Swinney became the first and only coach to ever defeat both Urban Meyer and Nick Saban in consecutive weeks. It was also Alabama’s first loss to Clemson in 112 years; with Clemson’s last win dating back to 1905, with Bama winning 13 straight against the Tigers until this last match. Consistent with themes throughout this season, it was full of firsts for the Tigers.
That game was the perfect cap to the 2016 season. Looking ahead to 2017, a lot of players will be heading onto the NFL, Watson included. However, Swinney has a very strong recruiting class coming in this year and is building on a strong one in 2018 as well. If his recruiting success and development in previous years is any indication, it appears as if Clemson’s success will not be just a flash in the pan like other programs have suffered. The future certainly looks bright with “that boy” heading up Clemson’s football program.
In other sports, the 2016-17 Clemson men’s basketball team has already looked solid. With a 10-2 out of conference record, they’ve looked strong and complete as ever. They finished with their first ranked road victory ever, in Columbia against South Carolina no less. Clemson men’s sports finished dominating the Gamecocks, with the men’s soccer team defeating USC twice in 2016, including a knockout win in the NCAA Tournament. Combine this with the series win over the Gamecocks in baseball, it seems order has been restored in the Palmetto State rivalry. Clemson’s athletic investments over the past five years are finally paying off, and dusting the in-state rivals in doing so has made it even sweeter.
With the offseason and baseball coming quickly as well as the meat of the Tigers’ basketball conference schedule, 2017 looks to be a great year as well. Let’s hope it repeats as another Year of the Tiger.