COLUMBIA, S.C. — Clemson knew it was going to be shorthanded at the skill position for its annual showdown with the Gamecocks with the news on Wednesday that receiver Beaux Collins would miss the game with a torn plantar fascia.
With Dutch Fork grad Antonio Williams and Cole Turner on the sidelines with injuries for most of the year, that meant the Tigers were on the field Saturday with all three of their original starting wideouts from week one on the shelf.
But injuries were part of the off the field issues the Tigers had to overcome. After the game, head coach Dabo Swinney announced that the team had battled the flu with a number of players and a few assistant coaches falling ill this week.
“I think we had 12 guys on IVs after breakfast this morning,” Swinney said after the game.
“We looked like a dadgum mash unit in there, just trying to get them to the game,” Swinney said. “We had coaches out. Broken hands, broken thumbs, bad feet. It was just wild, and I’m just really proud of the staff and our players for just finding a way to get it done. It was just a great, great response by all these guys tonight.”
Running back Will Shipley didn’t practice until Thursday and backup quarterback Hunter Helms from Gray Collegiate Academy also battled the flu along with offensive line coach Thomas Austin from Camden and defensive line coach Nick Eason.
Still, the Tigers were able to grind out a 16-7 win, the eighth win in the last nine meetings with the Gamecocks. It was also their fifth straight win in Columbia.
With an 8-4 record and a four-game winning streak, the Tigers will learn their bowl game assignment after the completion of the conference championship games.