Following the Tigers’ 35-14 loss to Notre Dame last Saturday, many fans were left perplexed as to what Clemson’s offensive identity is. Three days later, head coach Dabo Swinney had an answer to that question.
When Swinney was asked on Tuesday what he thought the identity is, he pointed to a handful of areas in which his offense has found success during this season.
“Up until two games ago, it was an offense that was really, really good on third down, and we’re still good on third down,” he said. “It was an offense that was taking care of the football, an offense that was scoring, had some explosiveness built into it.”
Though the Tigers’ offense had some dynamic performances earlier in the year, the last two games have not reflected what Clemson put on display through the first half of the regular season.
Against Notre Dame, Clemson had just 281 total yards on offense, 82 passing yards through the first three quarters and two turnovers in the red zone. Two weeks prior against Syracuse, Clemson had four turnovers and needed a 17-point fourth quarter to come away with a comeback victory.
“We got to get back to doing what we need to do,” Swinney said. “We’re built to run the football and then build off of that. I think that we’ve been able to do that, and we’ve responded in all situations outside of this past game.”
As Swinney mentioned, when Clemson runs the ball effectively, the entire offense typically plays at a higher level, and it all starts with Will Shipley.
The sophomore running back has been at the forefront of Clemson’s rushing attack, recording 802 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns on 135 attempts. Right behind Shipley are Phil Mafah and DJ Uiagalelei, who have 373 and 294 rushing yards, respectively.
Still, with Clemson being sixth in total yards per game in the ACC, the Tigers aren’t at the top of nearly every offensive category as they have been in years past.
Much of that downfall has come from a weakened passing attack compared to when Trevor Lawrence and Deshaun Watson were the quarterbacks.
Throwing for 221.6 yards per game, Uiagalelei has completed 64.8 percent of his passes for 1,994 yards, 18 touchdowns and five interceptions as the starter for the first nine games of the year.
The junior-signal caller had a compelling first seven games of the season but has found himself in murky waters after getting replaced for freshman Cade Klubnik in the last two games. As a team, the Tigers are sixth in the ACC in passing yards per game with 231.1.
Swinney expressed on Tuesday that he still believes in Uiagalelei and was pleased with how he finished the game vs. Notre Dame but acknowledged the need for improvement.
“He’d be the first one to tell you he’s got to play better, and he’s got to get back on track to how he played the first seven games. That’s just the reality of the situation,” Swinney said of Uiagalelei. “He’s got to be accountable to that, and he is. I watched every play with him, and he knows what he’s got to do better, and if he doesn’t play better, then you got to give somebody else a chance. That’s just where we are. But this is always real-time as you move forward.”
Heading into a Week 11 matchup with Louisville on Saturday, Clemson will look to build on its past performances this year and continue to develop the identity that Swinney believes his team has.
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