Keys to Victory: No. 2 Clemson vs South Carolina

Clemson is looking to complete a perfect regular season for the second time in four years as South Carolina arrives in Death Valley.

100: Clemson enters this week in search of its 100^th win of the decade. Clemson would become only the third FBS program to win 100 games this decade, joining Alabama and Ohio State.

70: A win Saturday would be Clemson's 70th all-time win against South Carolina. Currently, Clemson's 69 all-time wins against South Carolina are its most against any opponent.

52: Clemson's senior class enters its final game at Death Valley with a 51-4 record since 2015. A 52nd win would add to the school and ACC records set by the class with its 51st win last week.

17: Sophomore running back Travis Etienne tied Clemson's single-season school record by recording his 17th rushing touchdown of the year last week. With one more rushing touchdown this week, he can break the deadlock with Lester Brown (1978), James Davis (2006) and Wayne Gallman (2016) to take sole ownership of the school record.

5: After dropping five straight Palmetto Bowl contests to South Carolina from 2009-13, the Tigers are looking to return the favor with a five-game streak of their own. Clemson can earn a fifth consecutive win against the Gamecocks for the first time since a seven-game streak from 1934-40.

Entering this week, Clemson has...

• Won 54 of its last 58 overall, dating to 2014
• Won 62 of its last 64 when leading at halftime
• Gone 83-2 since 2011 when leading after three quarters
• Gone 36-0 when scoring first since 2015
• Posted an 84-2 record when recording more first downs than its opponent since 2011

The Match Up:

Clemson (11-0, 8-0) vs. South Carolina  (6-4, 4-4)

Clemson vs. South Carolina 2017 Highlights:

Clemson vs. South Carolina 2016 Highlights:

All-Time Series:

Clemson leads: 69-42-4
at Clemson:  Clemson leads 18-10-1
at South Carolina: Clemson leads 51-32-3
Neutral: N/A
Last Meeting: Clemson won 34-10 in 2017 in Columbia
Streak: Clemson has won four in a row and 5 out of the last 10.

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Stat of the Week:

Clemson attempting to complete its seventh undefeated regular season in school history, joining the
1900 (6-0), 1906 (4-0-3), 1948 (10-0), 1950 (8-0-1), 1981 (11-0) and 2015 (12-0) Clemson squads. A win would make it Clemson's fifth time finishing a regular season without any losses or ties.

Clemson is also attempting to open a season 12-0 for only the third time, joining a 12-0 record in all 12 games of the 1981 season and a 12-0 mark in the first 12 games of 2015.

A win would give Clemson a perfect regular season for the second time under Head Coach Dabo Swinney (2015). Swinney would become the first coach in Clemson history to coach the school to multiple 12-0 starts, as Danny Ford accomplished the feat once during Clemson's 1981 national championship campaign.

If the 2018 Tigers win their 12th game they would tie the 1981 and 2017 squads for the third-most wins in a season in school history.

Key 1: ETN the End Zone

Running back Travis Etienne needs only one touchdown to set a new single-season touchdown mark with his 18^th of the season. The explosive Etienne had a slow start last week against Duke, but still managed to average 9.0 yards per carry with two scores in the second half. 

South Carolina gives up 190.0 yards per game on the ground while the Tigers rush for 247.7 yards per game. Add to that, Clemson’s ability to push the ball downfield and you can expect to see plenty of running lanes for the stable of backs. 

Clemson’s had two games this season with three backs hitting 100+ yards each, that could happen tonight if things go well early on the ground.

Key 2: Protect the football

It’s no secret that South Carolina will have to find some extra possessions during this game in order to stay in range of the Tigers late. Clemson’s offense has been outstanding this year averaging 44.1 points per game. Add to that, the stingy Tiger defense, only giving up 12.1 points per contest and you begin to recognize why the Gamecocks will need extra possessions to put pressure on the Tigers.

If Clemson wins the turnover battle or just plays even in that statistic with South Carolina, it’s hard not to imagine a Tiger win. Since 2011, Clemson is 44-3 when winning the turnover margin. If South Carolina wants to shake up college football, they need to force several turnovers.

During the Gamecocks’ five-game winning streak, turnovers were a big problem for Clemson when the teams were relatively close in talent and it cost the Tigers. Given the talent gap between the two programs now, South Carolina has no chance to win the game if they don’t win that battle tonight.

Key 3: Wreck the Bentley

South Carolina’s junior quarterback, Jake Bentley, hasn’t been nearly as good as advertised during his career. Two years ago, after being pummeled 56-7 in Death Valley, Bentley had some strange thoughts on the blowout.

“Our big thing is never again will we be outworked, never again will we be out-competed in a game like that,” Bentley stated. “At the end of the game, everyone knew they weren't that much better than us or better than us at all.”

Those words stuck with Clemson and last season it was Ryan Carter’s pick-six that kicked off another big Tiger win in the series. 

Clemson’s monsters on the defensive line will be under the lights one final time in Death Valley and rest assured they are interested in reminding Bentley that they are indeed ‘that’ much better.

Prediction:

During South Carolina’s five-game winning streak, which seems like eons ago, Clemson was on par with the Gamecocks in terms of talent. The gap was never as wide as it has been since the Tigers kicked off their run as one of the top two programs in college football back in 2015.

While South Carolina has narrowed the divide a bit, the Tigers are not just the class of the ACC, but they have put together one of the best runs in college football in recent memory.

Dabo Swinney had to contend with the best Gamecock teams ever, losing to teams that went 11-2, 11-2, and 11-2 three consecutive years, no doubt impressive. However, the Gamecocks have had to take on Tiger teams that have put together one of the greatest runs of success in college football history. 

Don’t believe us? Think about it like this. In an era where the best record possible in a four-year career is 60-0, the Tiger seniors are currently 51-4, with a national title, two title game berths, and three playoff trips. They also have a maximum of four games remaining and could push their win total out to 55-4 before wrapping up their time in Tiger Town, possibly adding a second national title. By comparison, Alabama’s best record would be 56-3 in that same span if they were to win out. 

Final Score Predictions: 

Perfect Prediction = 5 points              Best Prediction = 3 Points         Correct Prediction = 1 Point 

**Pick of the Week: Indicates the best prediction given for that game.