Clemson's defense on goal line: 'They're not getting in this end zone'

There was incredible intensity on Clemson’s defense.

Facemask-to-facemask confrontation in huddles. Frantic movements of pre-snap alignment. Players shouting at the top of their lungs just so they could hear each other above the roaring crowd.

And yet, at the same time, the Tigers had a sense of calm.

It was a familiar spot.

In a way, it was a rocking chair on the porch during a lightning storm.

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They were backed up to their own 2-yard line with barely a minute remaining. Louisville was that close to the winning touchdown Saturday night in front of 50,000 fans who seemed to be already celebrating what was about to happen in Cardinal Stadium.

But it didn’t happen.

Somehow, remarkably, four tries to get six feet proved impossible against a confident Clemson defense stubborn in that way. The Tigers held on for a 30-24 victory.

“We muscled up,” said Clemson senior linebacker James Skalski, who is the captain of frantic calmness. “It’s just a bunch of guys in the huddle talking to each other like, ‘They’re not getting in this end zone.’ That’s kind of what we did. We just made a decision. We were screaming and yelling. I can’t share some of the words that were actually being said.”

The Tigers were in this same position last month against Georgia Tech, which had a first-and-goal from the 3-yard line with 34 seconds left, trailing 14-6. It was nine feet and a two-point conversion from overtime. But the Yellow Jackets got nothing and Skalski was in on three of those last four plays to hold them out.

“Man, I’ve been a part of countless goal-line stands since I’ve been here, which is pretty cool,” he said. “It was great to be a part of that again.”

Defensive coordinator Brent Venables, who had thoroughly answered every question Monday about that goal-line stand to beat Louisville, circled back after a switch to a different subject to reiterate his thoughts on this group of players and what those four plays really meant.

“The more pressure there is, the better they respond,” Venables said. “I just think that’s the best compliment I can give them. The harder it is, the better they play. … They’ve got the right mindset in those situations and they’re not afraid of them. They look them dead in the eye.”

Clemson seemed to have wrapped up the victory on a go-ahead touchdown with four minutes left and a field goal two minutes later. But Louisville quarterback Malik Cunningham threw a 45-yard pass, and then on fourth down, an apparent incompletion was overruled by a replay that proved wide receiver Justin Marshall indeed toe-tapped in-bounds at the 2 with 1:14 left on the clock.

From there, all focus was on Cunningham, the dynamic playmaker who passed for 174 yards and ran for 134, accounting for all three Louisville touchdowns.

“We knew Cunningham was their go-to. They were going to get the ball to him,” Skalski said. “I made the (second-down) tackle on Cunningham and I didn’t even pay attention to the running back. Cunningham is keeping the ball. We knew he was keeping the ball.”

Indeed, Cunningham was the runner on the last three plays, rolling out wide and looking for a receiving option while doing so.

“From a defensive standpoint, you’ve got the comforts of the sidelines and the back of the end zone,” Venables said. “They’re not throwing 50-yard post routes down there. .. Guys are anticipating what’s coming. Most offensive playbooks will shrink dramatically with what they do down there. Against good people, (Cunningham) was the guy holding the ball.”

Strategy and anticipation, however, are worthless without execution.

“The most important elements, I think,” Venables said, “are belief and attitude and toughness and fight.”

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Clemson's serves strong defense in win against Louisville