A slew of miscues in the secondary and a big mishap on special teams cost Clemson in its loss to Duke on Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
The Blue Devils outlasted the Tigers, 46-45, and multiple coverage busts/poor secondary play on Clemson’s end were to blame in large part. A kickoff return touchdown allowed by the Tigers certainly didn’t help their cause, either.
On the Blue Devils’ second touchdown of the game, Cooper Barkate got behind the secondary on a coverage bust. Cornerback Avieon Terrell let Barkate go, thinking he had help from safety Ronan Hanafin, but there was no help as Hanafin bit on the play action, and Duke quarterback Darian Mensah found his man all by himself down the field for a 77-yard touchdown.