No. 15 Notre Dame fell behind early and never recovered in a 31-23 loss at Clemson that provides a spark of optimism in the midst of a difficult season. The Tigers took charge of the game with big defensive stands in the red zone and a pair of interceptions, while the offense was mostly powered by a huge day from running back Phil Mafah, who finished with 36 carries for 186 yards and two touchdowns.
Mafah's ascension to the starting job in the backfield comes as star Will Shipley was ruled out prior to kickoff due to a concussion suffered in last week's loss to NC State. Shipley was not the only significant injury issue hovering over the Tigers offense, however, as starting guard Marcus Tate was also a late scratch prior to kickoff. But while the offense was a mix-and-match grab bag of personnel, it was able to establish the line of scrimmage to get Mafah going in the first half to build an 18-point advantage.
Defending that advantage late in the second half came down to a defense that absolutely answered the call. After Notre Dame cut the lead to 31-23 midway through the third quarter, the Fighting Irish did not even cross midfield on any of their final six possessions of the game.
- Dabo Swinney elaborated on Clemson's depth issues after the game, telling the broadcast they had "10 or 11 starters out" by the end.
- Swinney is now 1-1 against Marcus Freeman after losing at Notre Dame when Clemson was 8-0 and No. 5 in the country. He was 3-1 against Brian Kelly with a victory in the College Football Playoff semfinals and another in the 2020 ACC Championship Game.
- For Notre Dame, the loss is going to hurt their standing in the College Football Playoff Rankings, and in doing so decrease the chances the Fighting Irish are going to be able to make it to a New Year's Six bowl game.
- Linebacker Jeremiah Trotter was the star of the day for the defense with 11 tackles, two sacks and a pick six.
- Swinney passed Frank Howard as the winningest head coach in Clemson history (166 wins).
CBS Sports was with you throughout the game bringing you live updates and highlights. Read on below for takeaways as the Tigers picked up a much-needed upset win over the Fighting Irish.