With star quarterback Trevor Lawrence isolated at home because of COVID-19, Clemson Tigers needed a double-digit second half rally to beat Boston College Eagles 34-28 on Saturday.
The Tigers did not resemble the No. 1 team in the country through two quarters as they struggled to make many positive plays with Lawrence and three defensive starters out for the game. They found themselves trailing by as many as 18 points before starting the largest home comeback in school history.
They did it behind freshman quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, making his first career start in place of Lawrence, and two time ACC Player of the Year Travis Etienne as they took over the game in the second half. Uiagalelei went 30-of-41 for 342 yards with two touchdowns, while Etienne set the ACC career rushing record and had a career-high 264 all-purpose yards from scrimmage with two touchdowns to help the Tigers stay undefeated.
Clemson has now won 36 straight regular-season games, passing Boise State (35, between 2008-10) for the longest such streak dating back to 2005.
Uiagalelei got the rally going, leading Clemson on three straight touchdown drives to start the second half. His 30-yard touchdown run opened the scoring in the second half. On the next possession, he threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Amari Rodgers to narrow the gap to 28-26.
Etienne, who also set the NCAA record for most games with a touchdown (42), put the Tigers ahead with a 17-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter. Boston College had several opportunities to take the lead in the fourth quarter, but came up short.
With 1:18 left in the game and deep in its own territory, Boston College quarterback Phil Jurkovec was called for intentional grounding in the end zone, resulting in a safety.
In all, Clemson scored 24 unanswered points and shut out the Eagles in the second half.
The first half, however, could not have gone any differently for the Tigers.
Boston College jumped out early behind Jurkovec and its rejuvenated passing game, as he threw two first-half touchdowns. The Eagles also took advantage of a major Clemson mistake down on the goal line, when Etienne mishandled the snap from Uiagalelei. Brandon Sebastian returned the fumble 97 yards for a score, and the Eagles led 28-13 at halftime.
Clemson really missed starters James Skalski, Mike Jones and Tyler Davis on defense, all out due to injury. But what is more, Boston College took advantage of some weaknesses that Clemson has been able to mask in the early start to the season — including its pass defense and run game. Clemson simply could not run the ball in the first half, but that all changed behind Etienne when the rally began.
It was obviously a different look for the Clemson offense, playing for the first time since 2017 without Lawrence — 31-1 as a starter. But with Uiagalelei — the top quarterback recruit in the 2020 class — and Etienne, the Tigers were able to eventually find their way with No. 4 Notre Dame looming next week.
It is unknown whether Lawrence will be able to play in that game after testing positive for COVID-19 this week. Defensive end Xavier Thomas will miss the first half against the Irish after being ejected for targeting in the first quarter. Skalski may also not be available after undergoing surgery on his groin, while Davis and Jones’ statuses will be updated later in the week.
But after the comeback win, the stakes in the game against the Irish remain as high as they were when the season began.