Clemson’s win over Ohio State last week in the Fiesta Bowl meant a lot to the Clemson football program for a number of reasons.

First of all, it advanced the Tigers to the College Football Playoff National Championship, where they will play LSU for an opportunity to win a second straight national championship. The win over the Buckeyes also proved a point to all the skeptics. It proved the 2019 Tigers are just as good as the other Clemson teams the program has produced the last five years.

All year, the Tigers were bashed by the national media and rival fans about their schedule. No one believed they were as good as their record indicated.

But when Clemson rallied from a 16-0 deficit to beat who many believed to be the best Ohio State team of all-time, the Tigers proved their worth.

“We’ve played somebody now,” head coach Dabo Swinney said sarcastically. “I think Ohio State was pretty good, a pretty good team. Our guys still found a way to win. So hopefully all that stuff can be put to rest and these guys can be recognized for just an incredible run. I mean, to win 29 games in a row is – it’s historic. I mean, it’s just unbelievable how hard that is to do in today’s world.”

Clemson (14-0) now has itself in position to win back-to-back national championships and three titles in the last four seasons, which would be just the fourth program in the history of the poll era to do so. It can also become the first program since Nebraska in 1994 and 1995 to win undefeated back-to-back national championships.

Those would be pretty good accomplishments for a team and program that supposedly had not played anyone.

“There were some people trying to diminish what these guys have achieved, and to be able to just get up every single week and play at such a high level, so consistently, it’s special to be a part of, and I was just really proud of them the other night and how they competed, handled the adversity, finished, and now we’ve got our hands full,” Swinney said. “It doesn’t get any easier, that’s for sure. But that’s the way it’s supposed to be. That’s the way championship football is.”

It definitely will not be easy. Clemson is playing an LSU team that is having a magical season, its best overall since Heisman Trophy winner Billy Cannon led the Bayou Bengals to an undefeated National Championship in 1958, which coincidentally they wrapped up with a win over Clemson in the 1959 Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.

This year’s LSU Tigers have an offense that leads the nation in scoring and is led by Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Joe Burrow. With Baton Rouge, Louisiana just 82 miles away from New Orleans, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome will be full of LSU fans and will be a tough environment to play in for sure.

“LSU pretty much dominated everybody they played all year, too. So, it’s a great match-up, the two best teams for this year, and we’re excited about being in it and having a chance to earn it on the field,” Swinney said.

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