Sloppy Sixth
FROM THE TIGER FAN SHOP: Click HERE for more in-season DEALS on officially-licensed CLEMSON apparel and gear!
CLEMSON -- What is it about the sight of Clemson that brings out the best in Syracuse?
Or what is it about the sight of Syracuse that brings out the worst in Clemson?
We don't know if it's one, the other, or a mix of both.
Regardless, it has to rank as one of the more bizarre phenomena of Clemson's reign of terror in the ACC.
Join Tigerillustrated.com subscribers on The West Zone message board!
A 47-21 win in 2020 certainly doesn't compare to a loss at Syracuse in 2017, or an excruciatingly narrow escape of the Orange in Death Valley two years ago.
ALSO SEE: Clemson's verbal commitments | What Clemson's coaches have told us this week | Late-week Clemson Football Nuggets | Our Final Word on CLEM-SYR
Some of the anguish and befuddlement over a 26-point win can be attributed to first-world problems, sure.
But when a previously horrible, decimated 1-4 Syracuse outfit comes here and is down just 27-21 in the third quarter with possession of the ball not just once but twice ... yeah, not remotely what we're used to seeing in these parts. And not remotely what anyone is used to seeing out of a No. 1 team and dynastic program.
Unless it involves Syracuse, of course.
The top-ranked Tigers snapped out of their sleepwalk by closing the game on a 20-0 run, highlighted by a game-turning scoop and score by Andrew Booth after Bryan Bresee and Mike Jones forced a fumble by Rex Culpepper.
Add a near pick-6 by Jones (he returned an interception of Culpepper 40 yards to the Syracuse 3, and Travis Etienne cashed in with a touchdown) and a four-play, 67-yard touchdown drive that made it 40-21, and the socially-distanced crowd was finally able to exhale and get closer to the dominance it's used to.
After you hang 73 on Georgia Tech and do whatever you want against Miami, it feels like everything is supposed to be easy. Well sometimes it's not, even for the guy who will be the top pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Trevor Lawrence was off his game and the offense as a whole was out of sync almost the entire day. The Tigers did produce 455 yards and 27 first downs, but something just felt funky.
Clemson's inability to gash Syracuse with the run the way Liberty and Duke did probably had something to do with it. The Tigers ran for 147 yards and averaged 4 yards a rush as the offensive line struggled to open holes.
Etienne missed substantial time with what appeared to be cramps and finished with 16 carries for 86 yards and three touchdowns.
The Syracuse touchdown that made it 24-14 late in the second quarter probably summed up the day for Clemson's offense.
Instead of leading Amari Rodgers on a skinny post route Lawrence threw it behind him. Instead of making a tough catch Rodgers deflected it and it sailed right into the hands of Garrett Williams, who took it 39 yards the other way for a score.
Lawrence completed 27 of 43 passes for 289 yards, two touchdowns and the pick.
The offense's best possession of the day came after three straight third-quarter punts. Dabo Swinney and Tony Elliott decided to give the ball to the two best horses, Rodgers and Etienne.
Two quick-game passes to Rodgers produced 31 yards. A screen to Etienne pushed the ball to the 9, and then Etienne ran it in for a score on the next play to make it 40-21 and cap the brisk 67-yard march.
Finally things felt normal again. And there were some abnormal sights on the other side of the ball as Brent Venables' defense soldiered on despite the absence of Tyler Davis, Jamie Skalski and Derion Kendrick.
Sean Tucker ran for 63 yards on 10 carries, and though Culpepper completed just 10 passes on 26 attempts, he did hit big for an 83-yard scoring strike to Nykeim Johnson in the third quarter.
Syracuse came in leading the nation in turnover margin at plus-11 but turned it over four times and Clemson made the Orange pay with 17 points off those miscues.
Add in a Jalyn Phillips interception in the end zone late, and Syracuse's turnover luck turned in a big way.
But even in their current sorry state, the Orange were able to put a scare into the No. 1 team in the country.
Syracuse averaged 5.6 yards per play, Clemson 5.4.
And the Tigers averaged a lot of headaches, which is a strange par for the course against the team from New York.
FROM THE TIGER FAN SHOP: Click HERE for more in-season DEALS on officially-licensed CLEMSON apparel and gear!
