CLEMSON – The win over Notre Dame led to a celebration for the Clemson Tigers, and players were thrilled coming into their postgame interviews. Graduate senior defensive end Xavier Thomas came in with some teary eyes, representative of the “fun is in the winning,” which can be the catalyst for more success.
Thomas returned to Clemson this season to win, and it hasn’t gone the way he may have hoped. That doesn’t mean this moment doesn’t mean a lot, and he deeply described the scene Monday, five days before the Tigers handed the No. 12 Irish a loss. Head coach Dabo Swinney challenged everyone in the building, and it paid off.
“Coach challenged the whole team on Monday. Everyone, all the way down to the people who cut the grass. He’s challenged everybody in the building so that’s what this team needed,” Thomas said. “It was really if you’re all in or you’re all out. That’s what it came down to…guys who were in the building, he just challenged them to be inside-out and if you wanted to be here and you wanted to fight and compete, then come bring it every day.”
That message was heard loud and clear by Thomas, who showed out yet again in a big game. He finished the game with four quarterback hurries and forced a holding call in the fourth quarter.
Thomas’ performances don’t always show up in the box score, but his presence is felt often and Notre Dame was forced to send extra help his way Saturday. Taking on a lot of 12 and 13 personnel, pressure was on the Clemson defensive line and they delivered
“We had different personnel packages. We wanted to try to mix it up and confuse them a little bit, throwing some different things at them. We executed our plan very well,” Thomas said.
The mixup was crucial, as Wes Goodwin’s defense froze the Irish in the fourth quarter, giving up just 41 yards and creating a late interception. Clemson has a championship defense, and it finally got to lead the Tigers to a win.
Dear Old Clemson has just added limited edition cornhole boards to our store. Get these custom pro-style boards signed by Xavier Thomas, Jeremiah Trotter, Barrett Carter and Peter Woods. Thanks for your support of Clemson football.
