Dabo Swinney uttered the phrase almost as a public reminder to his team of what it was still capable of accomplishing this season.
“They remember November,” Clemson’s coach said two weeks ago leading up to the Tigers’ game against Miami.
For the first time in a long time, though, it’s turned into a month supporters of the program would rather forget after starting with so much promise.
Winners of its first seven games, Clemson sat at No. 4 in the initial College Football Playoff rankings released during the first week of November. But the thought that the Tigers were ready to return to college football’s biggest stage after a one-year absence was short-lived when Clemson traveled to Notre Dame on Nov. 5 and got bullied. The Fighting Irish ran for nearly 300 yards and scored on offense, defense and special teams in a dominant win that sent the Tigers crashing from the ranks of the unbeaten.
Clemson had a golden opportunity for a strong finish with a three-game homestand to wrap up the regular season and regrouped a bit against Louisville and Miami, though the turnover bug that began during the Tigers’ final win of October against Syracuse (season-high four) stayed with them. The Tigers combined for six turnovers in those wins.
Yet teams in front of them in the CFP rankings kept losing, and the Tigers, which initially fell to No. 10 after the Notre Dame loss, lurked at No. 8 heading into its rivalry game against South Carolina on Saturday. Clemson had the advantage of playing at home – a place it had won 40 straight games – in trying to extend its Palmetto Bowl win streak to a record eight straight. And if the Tigers could do that and have more chaos break out in front of them nationally, perhaps they could slide back into the CFP picture.
But Clemson doesn’t have to worry about that anymore after blowing leads of 14-0, 23-14 and 30-21 in a 31-30 loss to the Gamecocks. Clemson was a two-touchdown favorite at home, but more big plays allowed on defense, inconsistency in the passing game and another handful of turnovers made for the ingredients of an upset.
Two of the Tigers’ three giveaways came in the final 6 minutes, 37 seconds. And when Antonio Williams fumbled a punt return with just 2:09 left, it sealed the Tigers’ fate in the kind of November that Clemson hasn’t experienced in a while.
“I just hate losing. It sucks,” said quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, who went just 8 of 29 passing in the loss. “You put in all that work with the offense, and to come out and lose by one point, it definitely sucks.”
Finishing strong has normally been a trademark of Swinney’s teams during time as Clemson’s coach. The Tigers are 45-13 in November in those 15 years and had just five losses over the last decade during the regular season’s final month. This marks the first year Clemson has suffered multiple November losses since 2011.
“It was a tough day, but it comes with the territory,” Swinney said. “This is what we do. It’s my responsibility, and I didn’t get it done (Saturday).”
Clemson still has the ACC championship game to play against North Carolina next weekend when the calendar flips to December, which may be the best news for the Tigers at this point.