Time after time the Clemson football offense had chances to put the game away, but failed to do so.
Time after time the Clemson defense came up big against Louisville as the Tigers won their 39th consecutive game on Frank Howard Field extending the nation’s longest winning streak.
Jeremiah Trotter led Clemson with 12 total tackles, while Barrett Carter had 3.5 tackles for loss.
D.J. Uiagalelei was 19 of 27 for 185 yards and a touchdown and ran 15 more times for 32 yards in the victory.
That touchdown pass went to Antonio Williams who collected 10 passes for 83 yards in a game that felt like his coming out as WR1 for the Tigers moving forward.
No other wide receiver caught more than 2 passes.
Phil Mafah ran for 106 yards on 10 rushes with a score and Will Shipley gained 97 yards on 19 carries with a touchdown as he hurdled one defender and split two others as the Tigers tallied 248 yards on the ground.
However, Shipley fumbled twice, losing one as the Tigers were putting the Cardinals out of their misery.
At times the offense looked mediocre, but it’s difficult to argue with a 439-yard performance after what we saw last week.
Clemson lost three fumbles on the day, but also got two takeaways.
Postgame I have conflicting feelings about the performance. I doubted the Tigers would reach 30. They did.
That said, three lost fumbles and plenty of other miscues leave much to be desired moving forward.
Clemson football played well on defense in the 31-16 win over Louisville
The defense played well overall, but gave up a couple of long third down conversions and a touchdown on the final play of the game, which means nothing, except for effort and finishing, something this team has struggled with all season.
Still the Tigers bounced back and with two home games left – Miami and South Carolina – the pendulum is swinging back in favor of the Tigers finishing the regular season 11-1 and facing the North Carolina Tar Heels in the ACC Championship Game.
Here’s the thing: With this Clemson team it is week to week and you’re never quite sure what you’re going to get.