Clemson’s workhorse running back, Phil Mafah, has been just that for the Tigers this season.

Mafah has handled a heavy workload in 2024, and over the last two games against Virginia Tech and Louisville, the senior has logged a combined 176 snaps.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney was asked about that snap count and whether he would like the Tigers’ other running backs to get more snaps.

Swinney had a simple response, and he clearly isn’t concerned about Mafah’s workload.

“Mo Mafah, mo better. That’s what I like. I ain’t worried about anything else,” Swinney said during his weekly Tuesday press conference.

“A little Mafah’s good, mo is better. This is the championship phase, man. We have all the confidence in the world in our other guys. But why would you not want to give the ball to Mafah more? We only got him for a few more weeks. He’s going to be gone, and he’s a horse, man.”

Mafah has started all nine games for the 20th-ranked Tigers (7-2, 6-1 ACC) this season, tallying 497 total snaps entering Saturday’s game at Pitt (12 p.m., ESPN).

As for Clemson’s reserve running backs, redshirt freshman Jay Haynes has accumulated 101 snaps across nine games, while redshirt sophomore Keith Adams Jr. has played 59 snaps in seven games. True freshman David Eziomume has recorded 16 snaps over two games, and redshirt freshman Jarvis Green has gotten nine snaps in four games.

Mafah has 161 rushing attempts this season, with Haynes’ 31 carries the most among Clemson’s backup running backs.

Swinney is high on the Tigers’ other running backs, but says “heavy is the crown” for their “best player” in Mafah.

“It’s not like we’re just blowing everybody out. Games are on the line – you’re going to put your best,” Swinney said. “If I had another guy out there, y’all would say, ‘Why is Mafah on the sideline, why would you have your best player on the sideline and you got this guy in there?’ We’re trying to win the game, and we’ve got our best players in the game.

“We love our guys. We love them. We love Jay Haynes, we love Easy E (Eziomume), we love Jarvis, we love Keith Adams – we love our guys. But Mafah’s our best player. So, heavy is the crown. It’s just where he’s at. He’s been on that sideline enough. This is his time to be that guy, and we’ve needed him and he’s come through for us in a big way. So, mo Mafah.”

Clemson has certainly been feeding Mafah this season, especially over the last handful of games. After he got 43 total carries over the Tigers’ first four games, he has received 118 carries over the last five games.

Mafah has gotten at least 25 carries in three of the last five games and rushed for more than 100 yards four times during that span. He is coming off back-to-back 100-yard games against Virginia Tech and Louisville, with a combined 56 carries for 299 yards and two touchdowns in those two games.

For the season, Mafah ranks 12th nationally and second in the ACC in rushing yards (981), while he is 13th nationally and second in the ACC in rushing yards per game (109.0). The 6-foot-1, 230-pounder has eight rushing touchdowns and is averaging 6.1 yards per carry.

“Phil’s just steady, man. He’s just such a smart player,” Swinney said. “He understands patience and how important that is in the run game and setting your blocks up, and he understands all the run schemes. He understands defense. He sees it and he feels it. So, just a really, really talented player, man. I’m really proud of him, the type of season that he’s had. It’s been awesome.”

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