It’s been a while since Clemson’s running backs got a workout like they did over the weekend.
While the passing game has produced plenty of big plays throughout the season, the Tigers’ running game has picked it up the last handful of weeks. Clemson has rushed for at least 167 yards in four of its last six games.
But even with a backfield that’s thinned out for now, at no point this season has the running game been more productive for the Tigers than it was Saturday. Clemson’s primary mode of transportation against Syracuse was the legs of Will Shipley and Phil Mafah, who spearheaded a 293-yard rushing effort, a season-high for the Tigers.
Shipley and Mafah each set career-highs in the comeback win. Shipley went for 172 yards and two scores while Mafah finished with 94. With Kobe Pace sidelined with an ankle sprain for the time being, both got plenty of opportunities, combining for 45 carries on a day when Syracuse couldn’t stop much of anything coming downhill, which Mafah said played right into the ability of Clemson’s top two running backs to get stronger as the game wears on.
“I feel like, for running backs especially, once you get in the swing of things in the game, you start to see things differently and see things faster,” Mafah said. “When you’ve just been through it already, you can just tell. It’s just a feeling you get after all that repetition in games.”
Clemson hadn’t attempted more than 45 rushes before they continued to feed Shipley and Mafah on Saturday. The Tigers averaged nearly 5 yards a pop on 60 carries. And after leaning on the Orange’s 3-3-5 defense for much of the day, Clemson finally broke it midway through the fourth quarter when Shipley ripped off a 50-yard touchdown run that gave the Tigers the lead.
It was the kind of day running backs dream of, but Mafah said he was grateful that the coaching staff is at a point where it feels comfortable enough to repeatedly put their ball in the running backs’ hands.
“When the challenge is in our hands, we’ll always accept it, do our best and do what’s best for the team to win,” Mafah said. “Of course we were excited to run the ball, and I really feel like we were appreciative of the coaches and everyone just putting that much faith into us.”
Mafah also suggested he’d be remiss if he didn’t mention the room with which he and his backfield mate had to operate that was created by the offensive line, a group that Mafah said he feels like is improving each week.
“They’re the reason we’re able to do what we do, so all glory goes to them first,” he said.