The Clemson football team was beaten by the LSU Tigers in the National Championship. Here are some studs and duds from the loss.
The Clemson football program lost its first game in more than two years Monday night when the Tigers were beaten 42-25 by the LSU Tigers in the National Championship game in New Orleans.
Clemson had some opportunities early in the game and in the second half to make a run, but just couldn’t come away with the momentum-shifting plays when needed.
Here’s a look at some studs and duds from the loss to LSU.
Studs
Will Spiers and BT Potter
First, we’ve got to give a little bit of love to the specialists.
Throughout the entire season, Clemson football fans have complained about the inconsistency of both Will Spiers and BT Potter, but neither were the problem Monday night.
Spiers did an excellent job pinning LSU deep in its own territory on several occasions and really only had one, maybe two, bad punts all night. Even those “bad punts” weren’t shanks, they just didn’t travel quite as far as Tiger fans may have wanted.
Potter was put on the field in a big situation early and nailed a 52-yard field goal attempt, a new career long. Potter also continued to kick touchback after touchback on kickoffs, not allowing an LSU return.
Lots of things went wrong Monday, but it certainly didn’t have anything to do with the specialists.
Travis Etienne, when he was utilized
Travis Etienne didn’t have eye-popping stats, but anyone that watches the game knows he was a huge threat to that LSU defense.
Etienne was underutilized for sure, but he still found a way to make some plays. He powered ahead and got some tough yardage and made some plays out in space.
He was really the only offensive option that was clicking all night and you have to give credit to the running back for doing his part.
More Studs
Isaiah Simmons
Isaiah Simmons was all over the field Monday night against that prolific LSU offense.
He finished the night with seven total tackles, two tackles for loss and two pass deflections. Simmons did an excellent job getting in on plays even when LSU went away from him and he created pressure on Joe Burrow.
Tee Higgins’ reverse TD
One of the brightest moments of the night for Clemson football came on a reverse that resulted in Tee Higgins sprinting down the sideline, bulldozing a defender on his way into the end zone.
That score actually put Clemson up 17-7 in the second half and the Tigers had all the momentum. It was a great call and was executed perfectly.
Braden Galloway
Just like Etienne, Braden Galloway was vastly underutilized.
Galloway caught two passes for 60 yards and was a major mismatch for those LSU linebackers on those two receptions.
Unfortunately, the Tigers didn’t do anything to try and get the ball back to him over the middle in the second half and he went silent.
Nolan Turner
The only play Clemson football fans remember from Nolan Turner in this game was the pass deflection that likely should’ve been a pick-six.
Though Turner couldn’t come away with that play, he did lead the Tigers in tackles with 10 total. He did an excellent job finishing off plays and, honestly, probably played one of the best games of his career in terms of coverage and run-support.
Duds
Empty Drives
You can’t go 1-of-11 on third downs and expect to win at any level, much less in the National Championship game.
The most unfortunate aspect of this stat is the fact that on more than half of these third down conversions, Clemson had less than five yards to gain.
The Tigers came up with empty drive after empty drive when they needed points the most. Any time the defense got a stop and it looked as if momentum could swing in favor of Clemson, the offense would go three-and-out. It was disheartening and disappointing.
A.J. Terrell’s performance
We want to stress that A.J. Terrell is not a dud, but his performance against LSU Monday night certainly was.
Terrell was beaten on several occasions by WR Ja’Marr Chase. As a matter of fact, Chase’s big plays from Burrow was the only thing that kept LSU in the game early.
Had the Bayou Bengals not converted on those two big passing plays- where Terrell was in coverage, but was just beaten- the outcome could’ve been very different. Terrell just didn’t seem like his focus was completely there, for whatever reason.
Abandoning the run
The best offensive threat of the game for Clemson didn’t touch the ball in the fourth quarter. Travis Etienne’s last designed run came with 10:49 left in the third quarter.
Despite the fact that Clemson got the ball back trailing by three in the second half, the Tigers elected to go air-Trevor and make their offense one-dimensional, getting behind the sticks on early downs.
Abandoning the run was a costly mistake in this one and it’s something that needs to be closely looked at by the coaching staff as they look to get back to the CFB Playoff in 2020.
More Duds
Trevor Lawrence’s performance
Just like Terrell, Trevor Lawrence is not a dud. However, he probably played the worst game of his career Monday night against LSU.
Lawrence completed just 18-of-37 attempts and didn’t have a passing touchdown all night. He had a QB rating of just 38.1.
Lawrence just continuously overthrew his targets and couldn’t find a way to settle down and make accurate throws against an LSU secondary that was allowing receivers to get open at times.
Defense in critical situations
The defense put up a great fight against one of the best offenses in the history of College Football, but ultimately the unit couldn’t get off the field when it mattered most.
The Tigers had LSU backed up in 3rd-and-long situations on several different occasions and allowed Burrow and Co. to continue converting.
One of the costliest came right before halftime. LSU faced a 3rd-and-23 and Burrow underthrew his man on a ball that likely wouldn’t have been a first down even if it were caught. Derion Kendrick picked up a pass-interference, though, and that gave LSU new life. The Tigers would later score to take a 28-17 lead into halftime.
That was the story of the night for the defense and, ultimately, it proved to be a major reason why Clemson didn’t come away with the victory down in New Orleans.