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CLEMSON | Clemson's players probably didn't have to be reminded to be socially distant from their head coach in the locker room Saturday night.
Best to stay as far away as possible from Dabo Swinney after the sloppiness that unfolded in a 41-23 victory over Virginia under the lights.
The final score might suggest things weren't that bad; an 18-point win over a solid and smart Cavaliers team isn't the worst thing in the world.
But the score didn't tell the whole story. If not for two interceptions thrown by Brennan Armstrong -- one that led to a Clemson touchdown, and another in the end zone that prevented one for the Cavaliers -- this game might've gone down to the wire.
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And that creates an uncomfortable feeling for a team that isn't supposed to have as hard a time against an unranked and overmatched visitor to Death Valley.
"We're a team that hadn't had adversity yet," Swinney said. "There are going to be things on tape we're going to need to learn from, and quickly."
This much is for sure: There should be no worries about complacency as Clemson readies for a showdown against red-hot Miami. If the ideal recipe for a great performance in a big game is a team that feels edgy and not very good about itself, then Saturday's events provided the desired ingredients.
"We're in a pretty good position," Trevor Lawrence said, "when we're kind of disappointed in an 18-point win."
The defense couldn't generate a consistent pass rush and had trouble covering. The offense couldn't run the ball consistently or produce on first or second down. Lawrence wasn't always at the top of his game, and Clemson had eight penalties and a few drops.
Bottom line: If everyone thought going in that this team was clearly the best team in the country, that notion seems less clear after Virginia gave Clemson all it could handle.
Again, the final score doesn't resoundingly tell that story but the final statistics did.
Clemson had 466 total yards to Virginia's 417.
Virginia out-rushed the Tigers 147-137.
The Cavs had more first downs, 25 to 22, and 81 total plays to Clemson's 70.
But the 3-0 Tigers won the turnover battle, committing zero while Virginia had two. And that was probably the most important statistic of all.
Deep in his own territory late in the first half, Brennan Armstrong sailed a pass while rolling to his left and Nolan Turner picked it off at the Virginia 36.
At the time it seemed the pivotal momentum shift, as Clemson quickly capitalized with a touchdown to make it 24-3.
But after forcing a punt and calling a timeout, Clemson couldn't apply the real dagger. The Tigers went three-and-out, and Virginia followed by going 72 yards on three passing plays and scoring when Armstrong hit Terrell Jana for a 23-yard catch-and-run touchdown with 41 seconds left.
The Cavs were still in it, down just 24-10. And then they got the ball to start the second half and marched right down the field again.
Things were coming unglued when Armstrong found 6-foot-7 Lavel Davis down the left sideline for a 31-yard gain to the 19 on third down (Lannden Zanders covering).
Clemson couldn't cover the Cavs at the end of the first half, and now the same exact thing was unfolding to start the second.
That's when Andrew Booth came to the rescue, making a marvelous one-handed stab of a ball Armstrong threw to the right end zone for Davis.
That wasn't the end of the game; after Clemson drove for a field goal, Virginia answered with a touchdown drive to trim the margin to 27-17.
But the Tigers' offense seemed to have all the answers when pushed to the edge. Lawrence and Co. converted third-and-long all night, and after the Cavs cut the margin to 10 Lawrence guided the offense down the field with ease on a six play, 65-yard touchdown drive.
Clemson converted on third and 16 twice, third-and-15, third-and-12 and third-and-9. The Tigers would've converted a third-and-12 in the fourth quarter but Lyn-J Dixon dropped a pass with no one around him.
Travis Etienne was the answer on a lot of those third downs. He caught five passes for 114 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 73 yards and a score on 14 carries.
Amari Rodgers was at the top of his game, totaling 72 receiving yards and two touchdowns on six catches (and coming extremely close to hauling in another deep-ball touchdown).
Lawrence threw for 329 yards and three touchdowns on a 25-of-38 clip. His counterpart threw for 270 yards and three touchdowns on 24-of-43 passing while rushing for 89 yards on 22 attempts.
Virginia looked like a pretty good team. Clemson looked like a team that has some work to do if it wants to be a great one.
Swinney: "Honestly it was a challenge I think we needed that's going to serve us well when we get back to work on Monday."
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