ORlANDO, Fla. — A new era of Clemson coordinators got off to a slow start during the Cheez-It Bowl on Wednesday at Camping World Stadium, but things picked up during the second half.
After depending on B.T. Potter to score all of the team’s points after two quarters, both the offense and defense had at least one touchdown in the second half for the wild 20-13 win over the Cyclones.
Clemson (10-3) ends the season with its 11th straight double-digit win season and a six-game winning streak in the debuts of offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter and defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin.
The Goodwin-led defense mirrored Brent Venables’ in that the game fell in its hands. With the Tigers up 20-13 and Iowa State facing fourth-and-2 at its 36 with 42 seconds to go, Cyclones quarterback Brock Purdy had picked up a first down but fumbled. He recovered it with Mario Goodrich on his heels, but lost yards in the process, allowing the Tigers to get the victory.
“Ten wins, 11 years in a row. That’s historic,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney told ESPN afterward. “I don’t think people realize how hard that is to do.”
A more amped second-half was a far cry from a sluggish offensive first half ended with Clemson leading Iowa State, 6-3. Streeter’s playcalling involved getting running backs Will Shipley and Kobe Pace more involved as pass catchers. Both had at least one catch during Clemson’s scoring drive at the beginning of the third quarter.
Shipley had two catches for 15 yards before scoring on a 12-yard run at the 4:54 mark of the frame.
Meanwhile, Clemson’s Goodwin-led defense held the Cyclones without a touchdown for the majority of the game even without several of its veteran players. Safety Nolan Turner and linebacker Baylon Spector were out of the game with injuries, while the Tigers lost linebacker James Skalski late in the second quarter and cornerback Andrew Booth in the third.
Just before Booth’s exit, Goodrich scored on a pick-six to put the Tigers up 20-3 with 4:01 left in the third quarter. After it was hit in the air at least twice in a volleyball-like manner, the senior corner came down with the ball and ran 18 yards for the touchdown.
Iowa State finally broke through with Brock Purdy’s six-yard touchdown to Charlie Kolar with 9:42 left in regulation, though the Cyclones still trailed, 20-13.
When the Cyclones were backed up on their side of the field with less than five minutes to go, Clemson defensive lineman KJ Henry added a quarterback sack on third down to force them to punt.
The Tigers then ate up as much of the rest of the clock as they could and ended the game winning the time of possession, 32:10-27:50. With 1:52 left, Iowa State had one last drive that ended with Purdy’s fumble.
Streeter and Goodwin begin their tenures with wins and positive momentum heading into the offseason.
Clemson recent bowl, postseason history
2005: 19-10 win over Colorado in Champs Sports Bowl
2006: 28-20 loss to Kentucky in Music City Bowl
2007: 23-20 loss to Auburn in Chick-fil-A Bowl
2008: 26-21 loss to Nebraska in Gator Bowl
2009: 21-13 win over Kentucky in Music City Bowl
2010: 31-26 loss to South Florida in Meineke Car Care Bowl
2011: 70-33 loss to West Virginia in Orange Bowl
2012: 25-24 win over LSU in Chick-fil-A Bowl
2013: 40-35 win over Ohio State in Orange Bowl
2014: 40-6 over Oklahoma in Russell Athletic Bowl
2015: (CFP) 37-17 win over Oklahoma in semifinals; 45-40 loss to Alabama in nat’l title game
2016: (CFP) 31-0 win over Ohio State in semifinals; 35-31 win over Alabama in nat’l title game
2017: (CFP) 24-6 loss to Alabama in semifinals
2018: (CFP) 30-3 win over Notre Dame in semifinals; 44-16 win over Alabama in nat’l title game
2019: (CFP) 29-23 win over Ohio State in semifinals; 42-25 loss to LSU in nat’l title game
2020: (CFP) 49-28 loss to Ohio State in semifinals
2021: vs. Iowa State in Cheez-It Bowl
