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By Matthew Couden
Contributing Writer
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Despite a rough start to their season, the Clemson Tigers seemingly turned things around for college bowl eligibility with several wins at the right time. That included Saturday's solid victory over Furman, 45-10, on Senior Day at Death Valley.
It included a steady performance from starting quarterback, senior Cade Klubnik, who was 9-of-15 for 159 yards and two touchdowns. Three backup QBs also saw some time on the field. Freshman Chris Denson impressed not only with his four throws and a passing TD, but also on the ground, rushing for 106 yards and a touchdown on six carries.
The victory, arriving just before Thanksgiving, finally helped a Clemson team that had struggled earlier this season gain bowl eligibility. The Tigers were considered by many to be among the preseason favorites to contend for the College Football Playoffs and a National Championship. At the very least, most expected they'd take the ACC.
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Instead, they began the season 1-2, a dismal start out of the gates. Frustrations hit a season-high after Clemson's one-point loss to Duke earlier this month, prompting Swinney to blast the officiating, ultimately drawing a significant fine for his remarks and actions. They've won three games since then, including a one-point win at Louisville, and the Tigers are now 6-5.
Swinney's postgame remarks after Saturday's victory were obviously much more optimistic than they were several weeks ago, even though he indicated this wasn't necessarily what they'd hoped for at the start of their season.
"So now we'll look forward to a great week of prep. Enjoy this one tonight. We got a big one next week, but we're bowl eligible," Swinney stated, adding, "That's a big deal."
"Tim Bourret told me, it's 130 years there's been 30 teams at Clemson starting 1-3, and I think we're only the fourth team to rally back and get to the postseason. So it's not what we were shooting for coming into the season, but you gotta respond to where you are," he said, indicating they needed to "keep building momentum."
Last year's Clemson team competed in the College Football Playoffs. The follow-up wasn't quite what they wanted, but they persevered through a disappointing start. The Tigers visit the South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday, Nov. 29, before they learn which bowl game they'll participate in.
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