Former Notre Dame Quarterback Lets Off Steam Against Clemson

Former Wake Forest and Notre Dame quarterback Sam Hartman took out some anger on video game Clemson

Nov 4, 2023; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Sam Hartman (10) runs against Clemson Tigers defensive lineman Peter Woods (11) for a touchdown during the third quarter at Memorial Stadium. / Ken Ruinard-USA TODAY Sports

Former Wake Forest and Notre Dame quarterback Sam Hartman accomplished a ton in his college career.

Hartman threw for the fifth-most yards in college football history in his time between schools, helped turn Wake Forest into a relevant football program, and called signals for a Notre Dame team that ended the 2023 regular season with a 9-3 record.

One thing Sam Hartman never did in his college career though?

Beat Clemson.

Clemson Had Their Way With Hartman

It didn't matter which gold or black helmet Sam Hartman was wearing, when he played against Clemson it didn't end the way he wanted.

Hartman made four appearances against Clemson while at Wake Forest. The Demon Decons went 0-4 in those games, losing the 2018 contest 63-3. The 2022 battle was a classic with Clemson coming back late to prevail 51-45 in double-overtime. Hartman had himself a day with six touchdown passes and no interceptions in that game, but it still wasn't enough for Wake Forest to knock off the powerhouse Tigers.

Hartman's one game against Clemson at Notre Dame didn't go any better than his previous four. A second quarter pick-six thrown by Hartman helped to give Clemson a 24-6 advantage in a game that finished 31-23 in the Tigers favor.

Put all five games together and Hartman's teams went 0-5 as he completed 78-143 pass attempts for 1,051 yards, seven touchdowns and four interceptions.

Hartman's frustrations with Clemson were clearly front of mind when he opened the new College Football '25 video game by EA Sports for the first time.

Sam Hartman's Video Game Revenge

Hartman doesn't post to social media a whole lot but put his first post on X (formerly Twitter) in months on Tuesday he he was celebrating playing the popular new video game. In it he was finally extracting some revenge on his bitter rival all those years.

Just blowing off some steam… 😅😂 @EASPORTSCollege pic.twitter.com/XR406xjLMR

— Sam Hartman (@sam_hartman10) July 16, 2024

Hartman must have been taking a break from getting ready for his first NFL training camp with the Washington Commanders.

105-34 with almost five minutes still to play and Wake Forest holding the ball.

Dare I ask if any pick-sixes helped account for Clemson's 34?

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