Clemson 24-20 Pittsburgh (Nov 16, 2024) Game Recap

PITTSBURGH — — Cade Klubnick wanted to get off the field. Necessary to get out of bounds.

The clock ticked. Clemson trailed Pittsburgh and all the Tigers’ timeouts were gone. So the junior quarterback broke into the secondary on a designed run, then swung right for the safety on the sideline.

Klubnick never got there. He never had to. A well-timed block from wide receiver TJ Moore gave Klubnick a field that offered nothing but green grass and victory. Klubnick’s instincts led him to cut up the field for one clear 50-yard touchdown run with 1:16 remaining, lifting the 17th-ranked Tigers past the Panthers 24-20 on Saturday.

“It doesn’t feel right at a moment like this,” Klubnick said. “You’re like, ‘Oh my god, I’m loose.’ The last 15-20 yards was definitely a crazy feeling.”

Also a familiar one. The Tigers practice the exact situation — field goal ties the game, touchdown wins it — every Wednesday in practice. And head coach Dabo Swinney emphasized that it wasn’t the first time Klubnick finished one of those drives with his legs instead of his right arm.

“He’s just a relentless competitor,” Swinney said. “He has a big heart on him. It was pretty special.”

And necessary. Klubnick’s streak kept Clemson’s outside hopes of reaching the ACC title alive. The Tigers (8-2, 7-1 ACC) need No. 12 Miami to drop one of its last two games or No. 14 SMU to drop its last two contests to reach the championship game in Charlotte on 7. December.

Regardless of how it turns out, Swinney believes the program took a significant step forward this season after going 4-4 ​​in the conference a year ago. Asked if the Tigers deserve to be in the College Football Playoff conversation, Swinney pointed to his team’s 4-0 mark in true road games, its long resume of playoff success in the CFP era and its resilience.

“I think we have a team that’s really just finding its way right now,” he said.

Even amid a rash of injuries on the offensive line, having Klubnick helps. He passed for 288 yards and two scores to Antonio Williams, who had 13 receptions for 149 yards — both career highs. Sophomore defensive end TJ Parker tied a school record by collecting four of Clemson’s eight sacks.

Still, the Tigers needed Klubnick’s heroics after the Panthers (7-3, 3-3) dominated the second half. Pitt erased a 10-point deficit to take the lead late behind an 11-yard touchdown pass from backup quarterback Nate Yarnell to Gavin Bartholomew with 7:05 left and Ben Sauls’ 47-yard field goal with 1:36 left.

Yarnell finished with 350 yards passing while filling in for injured starter Eli Holstein, but his 55th and final pass attempt fell into the arms of Clemson’s Khalil Barnes just in front of the goal line as time expired.

“He made some great throws,” Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said of Yarnell. “I don’t like the eight sacks. Is it on him? Is it on the O line?”

Either way, the Panthers will have to find out soon if they want to end their season on a high note. Pitt has dropped three straight since a 7-0 start, though a moment to add a signature win to a promising season seemed at hand when running back Desmond Reid (176 total yards) helped put the Panthers in position late.

However, Pitt gave Klubnick and the Tigers a little too much time.

“We never backed down,” Klubnick said. “You know (time is running out, but) we knew what we could do. We just had to go out and do it.”

Takeaways

Clemson: The Tigers aren’t the lean they were at the start of the decade, and Klubnick’s season likely won’t end with him becoming a Heisman Trophy finalist, but he provided a signature moment that helped Clemson survive on a day where the Tigers had managed all 8 yards on the ground until their final offensive snap.

Pitt: The Panthers played with passion, if not precision. It cost them in the end. Pitt was penalized 13 times for 100 yards. The most damaging flags came early in the fourth quarter when a first-and-goal from inside the Clemson 5 turned into a short field goal by Sauls after illegal formation, delay of game and false start penalties.

Out of measure?

Swinney admitted he has no idea what “targeting” is anymore after linebacker Sammy Brown was ejected for the foul in the second quarter following a high hit on Yarnell.

“I might have to go to a seminar in the offseason, ‘Targeting Anonymous,'” Swinney said. “I don’t know what (targeting) is. I really don’t. I have no idea.”

Consequences of the vote

Don’t expect the Tigers to move up too much in either the AP Top 25 or the CFP rankings (they were 20th this week) after struggling to do much of anything over the final 30 minutes against Pitt.

Next

Clemson: hosts The Citadel next Saturday.

Pitt: travels to No. 22 Louisville next Saturday.

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