Clemson Tigers lose close game to South Carolina in Palmetto Bowl

The Clemson Tigers were unable to defeat the South Carolina Gamecocks in rivalry week as they fell by a narrow score of 17-14.

With a lot at stake, the Tigers fell short against their in-state rival. Had Clemson been able to get a win over the 15th team in the College Football Playoff rankings, they likely would have secured their spot in the playoffs.

However, the loss drops the Tigers to 9-3 on the season, and their hopes of making the CFP are slim depending on what happens with the Miami Hurricanes in their final game of the season.

The loss saw Clemson lose a seven-point lead in the fourth quarter, while South Carolina was able to score 10 unanswered points in the win.

Like most of the season, the Tigers can look at their run defense as something that really let them down. Gamecocks quarterback LaNorris Sanders absolutely destroyed Clemson’s defense on the ground as he totaled 166 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in the win.

On 3rd-and-16, with just over a minute left, Sanders completed a 20-yard touchdown run to give South Carolina the lead.

Cade Klubnik and the Tigers’ offense moved the ball down the field well in limited time, but the junior quarterback was intercepted at the Gamecocks’ 18-yard line with just under 20 seconds left in Clemson’s game. Overall, Klubnik was very good against strong defense, but the late interception was obviously a tough end to the game.

The loss will be remembered as tough for the Tigers, as a win could have sent them straight into the CFP without having to worry about the conference title. Now they will wait for the results of the Hurricanes’ matchup to see if they can sneak into their conference title game against the SMU Mustangs.