CHARLOTTE — SMU QB Kevin Jennings won’t be forgetting last year’s ACC Championship Game anytime soon.

With his Mustangs team trailing Clemson 24-7 at halftime, things looked rather bleak. However, Jennings rallied SMU, leading the Mustangs to 24 second-half points to tie the game at 31-31 with just 16 seconds remaining.

With the game looking like it was heading for an overtime period, what happened next was almost unthinkable. Adam Randall returned the ensuing kickoff 41 yards, setting Cade Klubnik and the Tigers’ offense up at its own 45-yard line. Klubnik then connected with Antonio Williams for a 17-yard reception that put the ball at the SMU 38 with just three seconds left on the clock.

“It definitely wasn’t the greatest experience, or great on my emotions,” Jennings told The Clemson Insider at the ACC Kickoff. “I mean, I’m glad that our guys fought back to come back to the level and to tie the game up. I mean, I’m proud of those guys for that. It just shows how good a team we are to come back from that deficit and come back to tie the game up.”

Nolan Hauser then drilled a 56-yarder to win it, sending Clemson back to the College Football Playoff for the first time since the 2020 season. Despite the distance, Jennings had his back turned to the field of play, just in case the ball happened to go through the uprights.

“That was a pretty long field goal,” Jennings added. “I mean, didn’t really peep at it. I was kind of like turned around. I didn’t want to see it go in. The kicker did a good job of hitting a 56-yarder.”

On October 18, Jennings and SMU get another shot at the Tigers, as the Mustangs will visit Death Valley for the first time ever, and it’s a game the veteran quarterback says is already circled on the calendar.

“Taking it week-by-week, but that’s definitely a game that’s circled on our schedule,” Jennings said. “They beat us in the championship. Our goal is to kind of get our revenge tour this coming year.”

Photo courtesy of Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images