Clemson Tigers @ North Carolina Tar Heels Football Recap

North Carolina 21, Clemson 16

There are lies, damn lies, and statistics.

There are also inexplicable questions which persist throughout a lifetime.

Clemson and North Carolina offer two football programs that lead serious pundits and casual fans – and everyone else in between – to explore the more mind-blowing dimensions of competitive collegiate athletics.

Just how is it that the homestanding Tar Heels could turn back the visiting Tigers this past Saturday at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill. North Carolina? In terms of both the box score and the larger circumstances enveloping the UNC program, it seems almost impossible that coach Butch Davis – thought by many to be a dead coach walking – could lead the Tar Heels to a significant ACC win against the defending Atlantic

Division champions. Yet, that’s exactly what happened on a sunny Saturday that dispelled the darkness hovering over Carolina football… at least for a brief time.

The Clemson program, on the other hand, fell deeper into the abyss in the kind of loss that leaves a fan base reeling.

First, let’s tackle the lies, damn lies, and statistics part of UNC’s five-point win. Clemson converted 7-of-16 third downs, while North Carolina succeeded on only 3 of 14 such plays. Normally, that kind of reality would make a difference in a 60-minute backyard slugfest, which is exactly what these two bare-knuckle ballclubs produced over the weekend. Moreover, third-down efficiency would also stand to be a big development in a game when neither side committed a single turnover. Yes, it’s not as though Clemson imploded in this contest. It’s not as though the Tigers didn’t display an appreciable degree of ball security. The boys from the state of South Carolina had reason to think they could outclass a UNC squad which had (at least) 10 players suspended, stemming from a combination of recruiting and tutoring violations of NCAA regulations. A turnover-free game – in the eyes of almost every pundit – certainly figured to break in Clemson’s favor.

Not so.

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Someway and somehow, Clemson defied the statistics on hand for any box score reader to absorb.  Coach Dabo Swinney’s club fought to the bitter end and put the pressure on a depleted UNC roster, but even without turnovers, the Tigers couldn’t break through on Tobacco Road.

Once again, Clemson fell short, one week after enduring a wretched home-field loss to Miami. All the goodwill Swinney created at Clemson by winning the 2009 ACC Atlantic title has been washed away at this point. Losing to Miami (on Oct. 2) hurt the Tigers on one level; now, however, losing to a decimated North Carolina team will cause fresh waves of embarrassment to roll over the Clemson program. It all raises the cosmic question hinted at in the beginning of this piece: Why can’t certain programs ever grow past bad habits and shake off chronic histories of failure?

If anyone can answer that question with respect to Clemson, well, good luck.

Speaking of good luck, that’s exactly what the Tigers will need for the remainder of their 2010 season and for the 2011 campaign to come.

By: Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer