CLEMSON -- Dabo Swinney was hard on Tyler from Spartanburg earlier this week.
He was a lot harder on the Tigers from Clemson.
Privately, the head coach basically told everyone in the building to put up or shut up -- or maybe shape up or ship out.
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The Tigers rose from that scorched earth for a 31-23 victory over No. 12 Notre Dame on Saturday, proving that there's still some fight and grit left in this program despite four losses.
Significantly wounded psychologically and physically after back-to-back losses at N.C. State and Miami, the Tigers returned home and held off the Irish to improve to 5-4.
A game over .500 in November has never felt so good in these parts.
Eight years ago, a Clemson program on the rise to elite status brought its own guts in the wind and rain.
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A slight underdog Saturday, the Tigers had to bring their guts again on a brilliant, cloudless afternoon.
The defense rose to the challenge time and again late as Clemson's offense couldn't get out of its own way.
After forcing four consecutive Irish punts and snaring an interception, Wes Goodwin's group was put on the field yet again after a Phil Mafah fumble gave Notre Dame the ball at its own 22 with 1:47 left.
The Tigers forced a turnover on downs, and the celebration was basically on with 58 seconds left.
"They battled their asses off today," said Swinney, who sent out a patchwork offensive line and secondary amid an agonizing bout with injuries.
"We had 10 or 11 starters out. ... I know we're down and everybody's throwing dirt on us. But if Clemson is a stock, you better buy all you freaking can buy right now."
For so long this season, Clemson has put up impressive statistics but seen them devoured by a habit of self-impaling turnovers and other mistakes.
The Tigers had more of those moments in this one, most notably Mafah's lost fumble and an interception return off a dropped ball by Beaux Collins that set up a touchdown to start the second half.
But the tone for this one was really set early when Notre Dame made the big gaffes, and Clemson took advantage.
A muffed punt by Chris Tyree helped Clemson take a 10-3 lead early, and a 28-yard interception return for a touchdown by Jeremiah Trotter put Clemson up 24-6 halfway through the second quarter.
Notre Dame's Sam Hartman has had plenty of nightmarish days against the Tigers, and this was no exception. He finished 13-of-30 for 146 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions.
Clemson has five wins over Hartman over his career. The last Power 5 quarterback to lose to the same opponent five times in his career was Florida State's Chris Rix to Miami.
Punter Aidan Swanson had a marvelous afternoon in helping Clemson control the field-position battle. Cade Klubnik also pitched in with a quick kick of his own as the Tigers forced the Irish to start inside their 15-yard line five times.
Mafah, carrying the load with Will Shipley out with a concussion, was brilliant until his late fumble. He ran for 186 yards and two touchdowns on 36 carries, averaging 5.2 yards a carry and helping settle the offense.
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Clemson rushed for a total of 132 yards in its previous two games combined. The Tigers had 176 on the ground against the Irish, who had shut down the run in the previous two games against Pittsburgh and Southern California.
The Tigers had zero penalties on the day. Notre Dame had five for 40 yards.
Klubnik was 13-of-26 passing for 109 yards. His 9-yard touchdown strike to Tyler Brown against the blitz put Clemson up 17-6 with 9:11 left in the second quarter.
Clemson had two sacks and six tackles for loss as its defensive front overcame some early shakiness and controlled the line of scrimmage.
Audric Estime rushed for 87 yards on 17 carries, but 82 of those yards came before halftime.
Hartman did get loose for 68 rushing yards on seven carries, including a 26-yard rushing touchdown that trimmed the deficit to eight points with 6:05 left in the third quarter.
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Clemson's defense buckled down the rest of the way, allowing just 60 yards on the Irish's next six possessions.
Swinney passed Frank Howard on the career wins list, and some tough, old-school love during the week might've been the difference.
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