A former Clemson and all-conference offensive lineman weighed in on the Tigers after their latest victory at Death Valley, a 40-10 drubbing of Miami on Saturday.
Eric Mac Lain, who earned first-team All-ACC accolades in 2015 and joined ACC Network as a studio analyst in 2019, spoke about the Tigers’ remarkable run of double-digit win seasons and the historic home winning streak.
With Saturday’s win, Clemson extended its nation-leading and ACC-record home winning streak to 40 games while becoming only the third FBS program ever to post 12 consecutive 10-win seasons, joining Florida State (14 from 1987-2000) and Alabama (14 from 2008-21).
“It’s just such an impressive thing when you can have a weapon like that, or a home field advantage that Clemson does,” Mac Lain said during ACC Network’s ACC Huddle show. “40 straight at home. Unbelievable consistency. Just an absolute model of it, and for their 12th straight season of 10 or more wins.”
Although the Tigers (10-1, 8-0 ACC) romped over the Hurricanes (5-6, 3-4), things weren’t pretty for Clemson’s offense after halftime when it committed three more turnovers. The giveaways occurred on three straight possessions, pushing the Tigers’ turnover total to 12 over the last four games.
Clemson’s attack did bounce back over its final two possessions against Miami, scoring a pair of touchdowns to put the game away after Miami cut its deficit to 26-10 thanks to a touchdown off the third turnover.
“A little bit of problems here for Clemson,” said Mac Lain, who played at Clemson from 2011-15, when the Tigers captured two conference championships and made a national championship appearance. “This is now a couple games in a row where they’re having multiple, multiple turnovers. That was their third in a row. Just second half, a real funk for the Tigers starting off. They eventually figured it out, though.”
Clemson’s balanced offense compiled 207 rushing yards and 240 passing yards for 447 total yards. DJ Uiagalelei led the Tigers in rushing with 89 yards, threw for 227 yards and accounted for three total touchdowns, two through the air and another on the ground.
Meanwhile, Clemson’s defense posted five sacks and held the Hurricanes to just 98 yards of total offense (68 passing, 30 rushing) – Miami’s third-lowest offensive output in school history and its fewest since Nov. 27, 1965.
Clemson will conclude the regular season this Saturday against rival South Carolina at Death Valley (12 p.m., ABC) before facing North Carolina in the ACC Championship Game in Charlotte on Saturday, Dec. 3 (8 p.m., ABC).
“The Tigers, they’re peaking at the right time,” Mac Lain said, “and this is what you want to see – that defense playing at a high level, DJ playing very confidently right now.”
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