CLEMSON FALLS TO 1-2 IN ATLANTA

Clemson proved it could climb off the mat Saturday.

But Clemson couldn’t close the deal.

And regardless of how good the No. 12-ranked Tigers might’ve made you feel for stretches of this game at Georgia Tech, a 1-2 start to what was supposed to be a great season is quite a tough deal.

BECOME A TIGERILLUSTRATED.com SUBSCRIBER!

All defeats are bitter. But this 24-21 loss to the Yellow Jackets (3-0) stings deeply.

Dabo Swinney recently told the media to start writing that his team sucks.

The Tigers didn’t suck Saturday. They were quite good at times on both sides of the ball.

Two weeks ago they probably didn’t deserve to be within such close range of the game-tying touchdown against LSU.

But they definitely felt like they played well enough to deserve to win this one.

Even after Tech erased a one-point Clemson advantage by going 90 yards on 13 plays for a touchdown and adding a two-point conversion, the Tigers responded by going 75 yards on 13 plays for a touchdown to tie it.

Clemson answered on this day, starting with not wilting after being down 13-0.

And not wilting in the third quarter after Cade Klubnik threw what felt like a disastrous interception with Clemson just 9 yards from a touchdown.

And not wilting in the final minute of the game when the defense stood strong with Tech trying to get into manageable field-goal distance.

Fifty-five yards is not typically manageable.

But 56 didn’t feel that manageable last year in Charlotte … until it did.

The Tigers seemed to figure some things out on offense Saturday.

They ran for 174 yards.

They had explosive plays, including a 73-yard catch-and-burn touchdown in the third quarter that put Clemson up 14-13.

They converted 7 of 12 third downs and averaged 6.2 yards per play.

And even though Klubnik committed both turnovers on a lost fumble and that interception, it felt like he played through the wobbliness and still managed to get himself and the offense to a good place.

But not a place that involved putting Georgia Tech on the mat.

The Tigers had two great chances to do that in the third quarter.

The defense forced a three-and-out after the Wesco touchdown, and Wesco returned the punt 15 yards to the Clemson 45-yard line.

But they had to back it up 15 because Jamal Anderson was flagged for unnecessary roughness on the return.

Even still, Clemson had a gem of an opportunity unfolding when tight end Josh Sapp took off up the seam and got inside of his man on a vertical route.

There was no one between him and the end zone.

But a secondary blitz brought a deflection of Klubnik’s throw and it was incomplete.

The Tigers had another opportunity when Tyler Brown ran down the seam and found a soft spot underneath two deep safeties and turned around.

Klubnik threw it deeper thinking Brown wasn’t going to break off his route.

Incomplete. Punt.

The defense came through again on the next possession, producing a fourth-down stop in Clemson territory that can define games.

But the offense could move it only 6 yards from its own 41.

The Tigers had an easy third-and-4 conversion when Klubnik threw to Wesco at the sideline but it … wasn’t so easy.

The ball sailed right through Wesco’s hands.

Punt.

Brent Key has won seven of his last eight games against ranked teams.

Haynes King (101 rushing yards, 211 passing yards on a 20-of-28 clip, zero turnovers) now has nine career wins when his team trailed or was tied in the fourth quarter.

Point is, you’re playing with some serious fire if you let a player like that and a team like that hang around.

Even when your coach is 162-8 when leading entering the fourth quarter.

Make that 162-9 for Swinney.

This was an evenly-matched battle. It was a physically grueling affair that drew blood and caused injuries and exhaustion.

But King and the Bees are right at home in that type of game.

Clemson is close. But Clemson has to learn how to close a team out.

DISCUSSION: Join Tigerillustrated.com subscribers on The West Zone Forum

Now a team that was supposed to contend for a national championship finds its margin for error at zero in its quest to make the 12-team playoff.

That 55-yard attempt by Aidan Birr initially sailed right, then left.

DISCUSSION: Join Tigerillustrated.com subscribers on our off-topics forum

It was good by a mile.

You could say inches separated Clemson from what it wanted and desperately needed Saturday.

But the Tigers had chances to make sure it didn’t come down to inches.

They got off the mat, but they didn’t put Tech on it.

Not a Tiger Illustrated member, Clemson fans? Join Today!

Tigerillustrated.com, established in 1999, is the No. 1 Authority On Clemson Football & Recruiting. A subscription, just $1 for our 7-day trial, is a must-have for hardcore Clemson Football fans. You won’t find more exclusive, detailed, info on Clemson football and recruiting anywhere else. We guarantee it! CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT OUR $1 SUBSCRIPTION PROMO!