Cade Klubnik addresses final play in overtime against Miami
The Clemson Tigers lost a heartbreaker on the road to the Miami Hurricanes in overtime, 28-20. The Tigers had a chance to potentially send the game into another overtime period. But the Hurricanes defense slammed the door on them on a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line.
After the game, there was some confusion on whether or not Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik ran the correct play on fouth down. Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney addressed it after the game, saying that wasn’t how that play was supposed to be executed. And on Monday, Klubnik addressed the final play during the Tigers Monday press conference.
“Yeah, like I said after the game, and I think Coach Swinney said it too, it was supposed to be a run. But, you know, I was just trying to make a play. Thought I saw something, but I was wrong. Kind of like what I said after the game,” said Klubnik.
Klubnik may have botched the final play of the game, but it was his play through the air that had Clemson in control for much of the game and within striking distance during overtime. The sophomore quarterback from Austin, TX, completed 18 of 34 pass attempts for 314 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
Clemson’s Achilles heel against Miami was their emphasis on the running game, most notably attempting to use Klubnik’s dual-threat ability. The Tigers leading rusher on the night was running back Will Shipley, who carried the ball 15 times for 44 yards while averaging 2.9 yards per carry. Outside of that, as a team, Clemson finished with 31 yards on the ground on 34 attempts, averaging less than one yard per rush.
Swinney says Clemson got ‘exactly what we deserved’
Swinney isn’t making excuses for his team after Saturday night’s collapse against Miami. The Tigers found themselves clinging to a 10-point lead entering the fourth quarter but allowed the Hurricanes to come back and force overtime to win 28-20.
It was another frustrating loss in what has been a downward decline for Clemson this season, bringing its record to 4-3 (2-3 ACC). Swinney took the podium with a tired look on his face to address what went wrong, saying his team got what it “deserved” given the way it played.
“You got a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter and you can’t finish,” he said. “So you just gotta give (Miami) credit. We could not stop the run there in the fourth quarter. They earned it. We got exactly what we deserved.”
Clemson committed three turnovers, including a costly one on the goal line in the first quarter that prevented it from adding a touchdown. All three of the miscues took place in the first half, but the Tigers somehow still found themselves tied at 7 with a chance to win.