Clemson Tigers Need to Address Missed Chances for Future Success

The Clemson Tigers need to focus on limiting missed chances moving forward

Nov 30, 2024; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney talks at a press conference after the game at Memorial Stadium. / Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers suffered a tough loss in Week 14 at the hands of the in-state rival, the South Carolina Gamecocks. 

As expected, the Palmetto Bowl did not disappoint—it was a close game throughout. Despite holding a lead late in the fourth quarter, the Tigers were unable to get the statement win that they have desired this year. 

This game certainly felt like a missed opportunity for a Clemson team that played quite well throughout. Obviously, not scoring in the fourth quarter wasn’t ideal, but what was worse was the 10 unanswered points they allowed. 

While the Tigers caught a lucky break in the big picture of getting to play for an ACC Championship after the Miami Hurricanes lost to the Syracuse Orange, this is still a team that needs to clean some things up. 

After the loss to the Gamecocks, head coach Dabo Swinney highlighted some missed opportunities in the game. He emphasized a key play on a 4th and short that did not go Clemson’s way. 

“We thought we would get it,” Swinney said after being asked about it in his postgame press conference. “If I kicked the field goal, you are probably asking, ‘Why didn’t you go for it on fourth-and-inches?’ We just made a decision in the moment that we believed in and it did not work. They made the stop. Missed opportunity. They made a good play, and it was a huge missed opportunity right there, Swinney said to Will Vandervort of the Clemson Insider. “That is one of them. Those are things that, when it comes down to two plays, those are things that you look back on. Man, it is frustrating. So, that was a huge play for them.”

Decisions like Swinney had to make in those situations are never easy, and if things turned out differently it would have been considered a great move. However, the Tigers should have been capable of getting a yard in that situation, and it was a massive opportunity missed. 

In what seemed like it was going to be a low-scoring game, a touchdown on a drive where they had a ton of momentum would have been excellent, as field goals never put teams away. 

With a big matchup coming in the ACC Title Game against the SMU Mustangs, the Tigers can't afford to miss opportunities like that. Good teams certainly don’t have those types of blunders, and Clemson needs to be better if they want to compete in the ACC Title Game and potentially the College Football Playoff.