Louisville vs Clemson recap: 3 things we learned

The Clemson Tigers survived in Death Valley in an absolute thriller over the Louisville Cardinals. What did we learn from this massive ACC matchup?

Whenever you hear about a college football matchup being billed as the best game of the season thus far, it feels like a rarity when said game lives up to the hype. That’s what the Clemson Tigers welcoming the Louisville Cardinals to Death Valley was being billed as, though, and it delivered in every possible way.

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After a sloppy first quarter between the two teams as both Deshaun Watson and Lamar Jackson struggled to find a groove with the pressure amped up, the former turned up the heat at home. He started finding a rhythm, as did the rest of the Clemson offense. That allowed the Tigers to jump out to a big lead as the Cardinals seemed to lose all momentum and composure. Clemson went into halftime up 28-10.

Coming out of the half, though, Jackson looked like the Heisman Trophy favorite that he has been all season. He got the offense into a groove and it seemed to throw Watson and Clemson out of their rhythm. Thus, the visitors were able to jump ahead with an improbable comeback. All of this, though, was just the prelude to a thrilling finish.

With Louisville ahead 36-28, Watson found Mike Williams for the score—but they failed to convert the two-point conversion. Out of nowhere, the Clemson defense found itself again, though, coming up with a big, quick stop. The Tigers were then able to get the rock back and they knew what to do with it. Watson delivered a touchdown before then converting on another two-point try. That left the Cardinals with one last shot. They came close, but ultimately fell just a yard shy on a fourth down inside the red zone. Clemson survived to pick up the 42-36 win and stay perfect.

1. Deshaun Watson is Still Good at Football

The predominant narrative entering this game was that Clemson had been disappointing and that Watson was no longer at his Heisman Trophy finalist form. As it turns out, that narrative was stupid. While his production may not be on par with last season, he’s the best quarterback in college football. Even when he started making mistakes that allowed Louisville to climb ahead in the second half, he turned things around in the game’s biggest moments and picked up the win. He’s an assassin in the most flattering possible way and anyone saying otherwise is suffering from serious denial.

2. Lamar Jackson, Louisville Aren’t Going Anywhere

After struggling in the first half, things looked bad for Louisville. They seemed to have lost all composure all the way from Bobby Petrino to Lamar Jackson to the guy who’s on the team because Jackson likes the kind of protein he uses. Considering that the Cardinals hadn’t been tested in this regard prior to this game, that seemed like a problem. However, they recovered and took control almost immediately in the second half. Even in a loss, that speaks volumes about just how good this team is. They’ll be in the mix as the season rolls on.

3. Wayne Gallman: X-Factor

Yes, Watson absolutely balled out and put Clemson on his back when it mattered most. However, the offense for the Tigers was at its best whenever Gallman was producing in the running game. Coming into Week 5, the running back had largely been silent in 2016. However, he showed just how important he is to the offense running on all cylinders. If they’re to get back to the College Football Playoff and title game, Gallman needs to be the player he was against Louisville.

Highlights

Louisville is off next week to gather themselves after this loss. Clemson, however, goes on the road to try and avoid a letdown game against Boston College.