By Will Vandervort.
Cole Stoudt did not practice all week leading up to Saturday’s Louisville game and for three quarters it looked that way.
The Clemson quarterback was rusty and was off the mark for much of the afternoon in the 25th-ranked Tigers’ 23-17 victory over the Cardinals. He was picked off once and could have been intercepted at least three more times had Louisville defenders not dropped passes that were right in their hands.
But Stoudt stayed the course and fought through the adversity. When the game was on the line, the senior—who three weeks ago lost his job to freshman sensation Deshaun Watson—led the Tigers on a 12-play, 68-yard drive that took five minutes and 34 seconds off the clock and ended with an Ammon Lakip field goal.
“I just can’t say enough about Cole Stoudt,” Swinney said.
Swinney and offensive coordinator Chad Morris were hoping he did not have to play against Louisville. After injuring his AC joint in his left shoulder in last week’s win over NC State, Stoudt was held out of practice all week. He was cleared to play by the trainers earlier in the week and on Saturday he was shot up to take away some of the pain and discomfort he was feeling.
But keeping the senior on the shelf so he could heal a little more did not go according to plan. Watson was injured on Clemson’s fourth possession as he broke the bone between his index and middle fingers. He is expected to miss at least four weeks.
Though he was not totally prepared, Stoudt was the Tigers’ best and really only option at quarterback.
And though it was not pretty, he got the job done in crunch time. On Clemson’s final drive, he was 3-for-3 for 27 yards.
“I did not take very many reps, in fact I did not take any until Thursday’s practice,” Stoudt said. “I just stayed focus in the meeting rooms and out there at practice. I just wanted to make sure I was ready if anything happened, and today my time came.”
Stoudt led the Tigers (4-2, 3-1 ACC) on three scoring drives in the second half, including two on the team’s last four possessions. He finished the game 20 of 33 for 162 yards.
“We are proud of Cole,” Morris said. “He was a young man that played hurt tonight. He did not practice all week long and he was able to come out and help us. He did not play perfect and he made some mistakes.
“But it was a gutsy performance and he continued to play hurt through the course of the game. That says a lot about Cole. He has been a guy that has been a champion through this whole process.”
It’s because of Stoudt’s attitude Clemson was able to rally around him on Saturday. He stayed upbeat and positive through it all the last three weeks despite being benched after losing his job to Watson in the Florida State game.
“The thing I want to say about Cole and what I told the team – he lost his job. He is a senior and he got beat out. He did not take his helmet and throw it up in the stands. He did not call mama and cry. His parents did not call me. There was no woe-is-me and all this stuff.
“What he did was still continue to lead as if he was the starter. His exact words to me were, ‘Coach, I don’t like it but I will be ready if you need me.’ All he has done is come to work every day with a smile on his face and he has continued to be the same Cole Stoudt he has been since he has got here. I’m just so proud of him.”
And Clemson should be too.