Clemson remains unbeaten heading into the final third of the regular season, a reality still intact after the Tigers overcame an uncharacteristic day of turnovers to erase an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter to escape Syracuse.
The rally happened in large part because of an offense that held on to the ball for the final 21 minutes and change and a defense that forced six straight punts to start the second half. But, as is usually the case, the third facet of the game quietly played a significant role in the comeback, too.
“To me, the key two weeks in a row was special teams,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “I think special teams have been the answer for us.”
Special teams have been anything but at times this season for Clemson. There have been some highs such as four blocked kicks, a number that ranks third nationally. But the Tigers also rank 95th in the FBS in punt return yardage (5.71) while the punting in the first year of the post-Will Spiers era has been hot and cold.
But with Clemson in a 14-point hole midway through the second quarter Saturday, a deficit that came after Syracuse scored 21 unanswered points, it was the special teams that first helped stop the bleeding. Veteran kicker B.T. Potter booted a 44-yard field goal just before the half to give the home team some much-needed momentum.
Aidan Swanson kept it going.
With Clemson moving the ball with regularity on a day the Tigers finished with 450 yards of offense, the Tigers’ junior punter wasn’t particularly busy. He punted just twice, but his first came at the end of Clemson’s first possession of the second half.
He boomed a 54-yarder that pinned Syracuse at its own 4-yard line. Later, with Clemson clinging to a 24-21 lead, Swanson got off a 51-yard punt that again pinned the Orange inside their own 20. Syracuse ended up punting at the end of both possessions.
After averaging just 40 yards per punt during the first half of the season, Swanson has gotten off four punts of 50-plus yards the last two weeks. He had a pair in the previous game against Florida State.
“Aidan Swanson came up big for us,” Swinney said.
Part of Will Shipley’s career-best 242 all-purpose yards Saturday came on a 32-yard kickoff return, pushing Clemson’s kickoff return average to 25.7 yards, ninth-best nationally. That came a week after the Tigers’ sophomore running back returned the opening kickoff of the second half against Florida State 69 yards, setting up a touchdown that ultimately proved to be the difference in that 34-28 win for the Tigers.
Potter came back late in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game and connected on another 44-yarder to extend Clemson’s lead to six, a critical kick that forced Syracuse to have to drive the length of the field for a touchdown in just 90 seconds. The Orange threatened by marching to Clemson’s 30 in just plays, but that touchdown never came after safety R.J. Mickens intercepted Garrett Shrader’s final pass with just 15 ticks remaining.
“Two weeks in a row, I think special teams has won the day,” Swinney said. “Really proud of that.”