The Clemson Tigers defeated the Virginia Cavaliers 62-17 on Saturday night to claim their fifth straight ACC Championship and 28th consecutive win in a row. Virginia is a talented team and they were able to put up a good fight in the beginning, however they were not able to keep up with Clemson’s talent for long.
The Cavaliers seemed to march down the field on their first possession with relative ease, but Nolan Turner put them to a stop by intercepting the ball in their end zone. That was just the first of a total of three turnovers Clemson would force; the other two coming from Isaiah Simmons and Keith Maguire. Virginia’s quarterback, Bryce Perkins, is a tough competitor, however his turnovers helped Clemson maintain their momentum throughout the game. Perkins main target of the night was Hasise Dubois, as he had 10 receptions for 130 yards and a touchdown. Interestingly enough, the Cavaliers had a longer time of possession than the Tigers, yet they still were only able to produce 17 points and 387 yards of offense.
Meanwhile, Clemson had 619 yards and put up a whopping 62 points. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence had another great night, throwing for 302 yards and four touchdowns to break an ACC title game record. Running back Travis Etienne was his normal self, rushing for 113 yards and a touchdown. The real star and MVP of the night was Tee Higgins, producing one of his best games of his career. His ability to get open, catch contested balls, and stay in bounds demonstrates why he is one of the best receivers in college football. Lawrence hit Higgins the most tonight, giving him nine receptions for 182 yards and three touchdowns. Because the Tigers had a comfortable lead in the fourth quarter, they were once again able to take their starters out and give other guys more playing time.
The Tigers wrapped this game up and put a bow on top with Keith Maguire’s interception as the last play of the game. With the 45-point win, Clemson picked up its eighth consecutive win by 30 points or more. They will be in the College Football Playoff for the fifth straight year, and rightly so. Now it is just a matter of what seed. After the game, Coach Swinney commented on the playoffs, saying “We don’t care, we just want to be in there somewhere.” Clemson is tired of people saying they are not any good because they do not play anyone who is good, referencing all of their blowouts this season, but Dabo and his team know that they are capable of more. As long as they get a bid to the playoffs, they will get the chance to show everyone that they are the No. 1 team in the country.
