Dabo Swinney must've told Clemson they actually have something to play for at halftime

Clemson, particularly the offense, looked like a different team in the second half on the road in Blacksburg against the Virginia Tech Hokies.

Following a humiliating blowout loss to Louisville in Death Valley last weekend, many had left Clemson for dead, including Tiger fans. Clemson looked like a poorly-coached team and mediocre, at best, against the Cardinals.

As a result of that loss, Clemson fell to No. 23 in the College Football Playoff Rankings and the Tigers sit on the outside-looking-in for any backdoor College Football Playoff hopes late in the season. That disappointment could be felt in the first half, particularly as the offense struggled to get into any kind of a rhythm.

Virginia Tech blocked a Clemson field goal attempt and took it back for a touchdown, the lone score of the first half, taking a 7-0 lead into the third quarter. Then, it felt like the Tigers came alive. Clemson scored 24 unanswered, and the defense never allowed a Virginia Tech touchdown until less than two minutes remaining in the game, on their way to a 24-14 victory.

What did Dabo Swinney tell his team, especially the offense at halftime?

Well, just minutes after the Clemson game had started, something happened that might have given the Tigers a smidge of hope looking forward. Miami was upset on the road by Georgia Tech, now creating a situation where, if Clemson wins out and the Hurricanes lose one of their remaining two — vs. Wake Forest or @ Syracuse — the Tigers would backdoor their way into Charlotte and have a chance to lock up that automatic berth the College Football Playoff.

It's a longshot, for sure, but there seemed to be a different sense of hope and confidence on that Clemson sideline in the second half compared to the first half. Could it be that Dabo Swinney told his team the news and made the point that anything can happen in college football?

While a 10-2 Clemson team without a conference title likely won't be getting an at-large bid, that's not totally off the table either. Kansas already beat No. 17 Iowa State, and we're going to see either LSU or Alabama come away with their third loss on Saturday night, as well.

If a certain amount of chaos unfolded with the teams in front of Clemson —like Notre Dame, Alabama, Boise State, SMU, Texas A&M, LSU, Ole Miss, Kansas State, Colorado, Washington State, and even Louisville — the Tigers might could find a way to even still play in an at-large game with wins over a Top-20 ranked Pittsburgh team and, potentially, a ranked South Carolina team to close the year.

Is any of that likely? No. But, the Tigers are hanging onto their postseason dreams by a thread and they, at the very least, didn't let go in Blacksburg.

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