On Sunday, in the final week of the NFL regular season, a former Clemson standout found the end zone for the first time in his pro career.

Dallas Cowboys rookie and former Tiger running back Phil Mafah rushed for his first NFL touchdown on Sunday against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

Mafah’s score was a 1-yard plunge three seconds into the fourth quarter and cut the Cowboys’ deficit to 24-17 in their eventual 34-17 loss.

Sunday marked the NFL debut for Mafah, who was activated from injured reserve ahead of the contest. The 2025 seventh-round pick (No. 239 overall) was placed on IR back in August due to a shoulder injury.

Mafah finished Sunday’s game with five carries for 18 yards and his score. In the preseason, he ran for 59 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.

A punishing workhorse running back, Mafah earned third-team All-ACC honors as a graduate senior in 2024, when he rushed 216 times for 1,115 yards with eight touchdowns and caught 21 passes for 103 yards over 14 games (all starts).

Mafah was hampered all year by a preseason shoulder injury but still recorded the 24th 1,000-yard rushing season in Clemson history, and his 1,115 yards ranked 14th in a season in school history. He posted 981 rushing yards and eight touchdowns over the Tigers’ first nine games of the season before being severely limited down the stretch.

A former four-star prospect from Grayson High School (Loganville, Ga.), Mafah finished his Clemson career with 561 carries for 2,887 yards and 28 touchdowns, as well as 58 receptions for 309 yards over 50 games (21 starts) from 2021-24.

He finished his career ranked ninth in Clemson history in career rushing yards and tied for 10th in career rushing touchdowns.

–Photo courtesy of Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images