Instant analysis: 5 takeaways from Clemson's 48-27 win against Wake Forest

CLEMSON -- In the home finale of a struggle-filled football season, Clemson played its best game.

The Tigers put together a complete performance Saturday afternoon with a 48-27 win against previously ACC-unbeaten Wake Forest at Memorial Stadium.

"Today was a great day," Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables said. "It was probably our best as a football team."

Clemson (8-3, 6-2) stayed alive for a chance to win a seventh straight ACC championship and at the same time put Wake Forest (9-2, 6-1) in a must-win next week for its first title-game appearance since 2006, when the Demon Deacons beat Georgia Tech.

The Tigers had more than 300 yards rushing and four touchdowns against Wake Forest behind running backs Kobe Pace (24 carries for 191 yards) and Will Shipley (19 for 112). Quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei was good enough to complement the ground game with 200 yards and a touchdown through the air. Clemson had its best day of the season third downs, converting 7 of 10 chances.

Meanwhile, the Tigers’ defense held Wake Forest down until allowing two touchdowns in the fourth quarter when the game was all but decided in Death Valley.

Clemson will finish the regular season at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 27 at South Carolina.

Here are some takeaways:

Clemson can reach ACC title game

It seemed a longshot when Clemson lost Oct. 23 at Pittsburgh to fall to 3-2 in the ACC, but the Tigers can still win a seventh straight league championship.

After the Pitt game, even the victories were nothing to brag about. The Tigers beat Georgia Tech and Boston College by six points each and Syracuse by three. But by finishing the ACC schedule with three straight wins, Clemson still has hope.

"Today was a championship game," Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. "If we had any hopes at all, we had to win the game to stay alive. We definitely didn't want anybody to come here in the Valley and have a trophy handed to them. Our guys took a lot of pride in that today."

To make it back to Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte for the title game Dec. 4, the Tigers need Wake Forest (6-1) to lose next week at Boston College and for N.C. State to lose at home to North Carolina. Clemson would have a tiebreaker on Wake Forest but not the Wolfpack because of a 27-21 double-overtime loss Sept. 25 in Raleigh.

The ACC championship comes with an automatic berth in a New Year’s Day bowl game.

Clemson held Wake offense in check

Wake Forest’s offense marched into Memorial Stadium as the second-highest scoring team in the country, 44.7 points per game, but struggled early against the Clemson defense and never recovered enough to put a scare in the Tigers.

"They were averaging over 50 points a game, I believe, in their last five or six games," Venables said. "... We knew we would be in some strain and stressful situations. They put you in a lot of conflict. We felt that conflict and made some plays."

The Demon Deacons had just 10 total yards of offense on their first three possessions of the game. To begin the second quarter, they had first-and-goal on the 6 but had to settle for a field goal. A pair of turnovers on fumbles by Wake Forest in the third quarter prevented any kind of comeback.

Demon Deacons quarterback Sam Hartman, a redshirt sophomore who already holds career and season records for touchdown passes for the program, had to work under constant pressure. And they couldn’t run at all. In the fourth quarter, Clemson ahead by 19 points, Wake Forest had 24 rushing yards.

Turnover tradeoff was turning point

Clemson fumbled the ball away on first-and-goal from the 7-yard line on the Tigers’ first-possession of the second half, but their defense got it right back and it led to a touchdown.

Wake Forest defensive lineman Rondell Bothroyd made a remarkable play, swatting down a backwards pitch by Uiagalelei to a running back and then recovering the ball.

"That one was on me," Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said. "The option there, we were just trying to change it up. We probably should have just handed it off and went straight downhill. .. But I tried to pick the guys up and say, 'Listen, our defense is playing good. We'll get an opportunity. And when we get an opportunity, let's go capitalize.' "

That opportunity came immediately. On the first snap by Wake Forest, defensive lineman Myles Murphy of Clemson punched the ball away from Wake Forest running back Christian Turner and Braylon Spector recovered for the Tigers.

Three plays after that, Pace ran for an 8-yard touchdown and a 24-10 lead. The Demon Deacons seemed deflated. Instead of a possible tie game if they had marched downfield, there were in catch-up mode.

TE Davis Allen most reliable receiver

With so many injuries at wide receiver, Clemson turned to tight end Davis Allen more than ever to set the tone. He had six catches for 53 yards and a touchdown in the first half. No wideouts had more than one grab.

Allen scored for the third time in four games and took over second place on the team for catches on the season with 26. That trails only Justyn Ross (46) and is more than Joseph Ngata.

"(Allen) has been our most consistent player," Swinney said. "... He had an onside return (on a kick in the fourth quarter), he's on punt team ... He does everything. He is as complete of a football player as we've come through here. ... He's become one of our best leaders."

Ross, Ngata and Frank Ladson are all injured. They were expected to be the big three among the pass-catchers. Earlier this season, Allen had eight receptions for 49 yards at Syracuse. His playing time and value to the offense has picked up considerably because tight end Braden Galloway has been injured and hasn’t caught a ball since the third week of the season.

Clemson seniors never lost at home

Clemson honored its seniors prior to the game and all those except the sixth-year Super Seniors can say they were never a part of a loss at Memorial Stadium.

The four-year players went 26-0 and the fifth-year players went 33-0 in Death Valley.

"Five years in row undefeated at home. That's just unbelievable," Swinney said. "I've never been a part of that. Back-to-back senior classes walking out of here undefeated for the first time since 1941. That's just unthinkable in today's football."

During the past four years, Clemson has 39 wins against teams from Power Five conferences. That is tied with Alabama for most in the country.

Among the players honored Saturday were OL Matt Bockhorst, WR Will Brown, DE Justin Foster, TE Braden Galloway, CB Mario Goodrich, DE K.J. Henry, LS Jack Maddox, PK B.T. Potter, RB Darien Rencher, WR Justyn Ross, LB James Skalski, LB Baylon Spector, P Will Spiers, WR Will Swinney, DE Xavier Thomas, S Nolan Turner, LB Jake Venables. Some of these players have another season of eligibility because of the COVID redshirt granted by the NCAA last year to all student/athletes.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Recap: Five takeaways from Clemson's win vs. Wake Forest