The Clemson Tigers were better than everyone during the 2016 college football season —- except Pittsburgh that one time —- and that campaign ended in a national championship as a result. However, one prominent rival of Dabo Swinney and company didn't quite see it that way and, given the way that his team went down in flames, his words ring as rather absurd.
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TigerNet.com (referencing an interview with FOX Carolinas) brings word from South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley who seems to think that Clemson was "not that much better" than the Gamecocks when the two teams met at the end of the season.
"We just didn't play well that week. That's our big quote going into this year. We felt we got outworked so never again. So our big thing is never again we will be outworked. Never again will be outcompeted in a game like that.
"It all stems from that game because at the end of the game everyone knew that they were not that much better than us or better than us at all. It really just lit a fire in everybody since that week. Everyone has worked harder and wanted it more."
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It is (very) important to note that Clemson absolutely demolished South Carolina. For reference, the 56-7 final score represented the largest margin of victory in the history of the rivalry and, frankly, it could be argued that the game wasn't even as close as the final score indicated.
On one hand, Bentley deserves some credit for boldness in this regard, especially because he was wholly ineffective in his first crack at Clemson. On the flip side, this is borderline crazy given the way the game went and it will provide plenty of fodder moving forward.
