The Clemson Tigers defeated the Louisville cardinals by a score of 77-16 on Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Tigers improved to 9-0 on the season and 6-0 in the ACC. The win over the Cardinals gave the Tigers a 5-0 record all time against their ACC rival.
Clemson dominated from the first snap of the game as Travis Etienne lead the Tigers down the field for a four play, 75-yard touchdown drive that took just 1:15 off the clock. On the ensuing Louisville drive, the Clemson defense forced a three and out after a sack from Austin Bryant on third down. The defensive line was a force all throughout the first half, creating penetration on both running and passing plays. The defense racked up six tackles-for-loss in the first half alone. 
On the very next play for the Tigers, Tavien Feaster gashed the Louisville defense for a 70-yard touchdown run. It was clear early on that the Louisville defense that has struggled to stop the run all year would not be able to compete with the Clemson offense. The Tigers took a 14-0 lead before three minutes had come off the clock. The Louisville offense responded well with their best drive of the half as they compiled 73 yards and a field goal. Aside from the one drive however, the Louisville offense was unable to make any consistent progress on the Clemson defense. 
The Tigers closed out the half with a touchdown pass from Lawrence to Tee Higgins, a pick-six from Isaiah Simmons, and another touchdown pass to Amari Rodgers. On the two scoring drives, the Tigers accumulated 135 yards over just 5:59. The pick-six was the first of the season for the Tigers and Simmons’ first interception as a Tiger. Lawrence and Rodgers connected for the third time in two weeks to give the Tigers a 35-3 going into the half.
Louisville opened the second half by allowing three straight sacks. Clemson responded by taking the ball all the way to the goal line in just over a minute. After a few failed rushed up the middle, Dabo Swinney called upon the big men to punch the ball into the end zone. For the second straight week, the backfield of Dexter Lawrence and Christian Wilkins put six on the board, this time with Lawrence getting the score. On the very next play after the kick off, Tanner Muse jumped a route over middle and came up with Clemson’s second interception of the day. Just over a minute later, Feaster notched his second rushing touchdown of the game to put the Tigers up 49-3. The Tigers added to the lead again when Chase Brice connected with Trevion Thompson for a six yard score. 
Perhaps the prettiest touchdown of the day came on a high-arcing pass from Chase Brice that hit receiver Justyn Ross in stride for a 60-yard score. The excitement was short lived however as Louisville returned the following kickoff for their first touchdown of the game. The fourth quarter consisted of a back and forth battle between Clemson’s backups and Louisville’s starters. The Tigers added two more scores including a 55-yard run for Lyn-J Dixon and Will Swinney’s first career touchdown reception.  
The Tigers will be back in action next week on the road against the Boston College Eagles. The Eagles are currently ranked No. 24 in the nation and second in the ACC. In last season’s matchup the Eagles gave Clemson an early-season scare as they kept the score tied at seven entering the fourth quarter. While the Tigers blew the game open late, expect the Eagles to be a more competitive opponent than the Cardinals.