CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Clemson’s improbable season took a stunning turn Saturday night as freshman kicker Nolan Hauser nailed a 56-yard field goal as time expired, delivering a 34-31 victory over No. 8 SMU to claim the ACC title.
In front of a roaring crowd, Hauser, a local product whose parents are Clemson alumni, jogged onto the field with confidence. Moments earlier, the Tigers had nearly seen their playoff hopes crumble after SMU tied the game with 16 seconds remaining. But a 41-yard kick return from Adam Randall—initially intended as a fair catch—set the stage for Hauser’s heroic boot.
“I was just thinking about how I was going to celebrate after we made it,” Hauser said. “The trust I have in [this team] — it’ll go down in history.”
A Season of Twists and Turns
Clemson’s path to this championship was anything but smooth. The Tigers started the season with a blowout loss to Georgia, stumbled against Louisville at home, and fell to rival South Carolina in Week 14, seemingly ending their College Football Playoff hopes.
But a series of fortuitous events gave Clemson new life: Syracuse’s 21-point comeback against Miami handed the Tigers a second chance, and they capitalized on it with a hard-fought performance against SMU.
Despite earlier struggles—including eight missed kicks this season and a wide 44-yarder in the first half—Hauser’s confidence and execution in the clutch left no doubt among his teammates.
“I was nonchalant about it,” said defensive end T.J. Parker. “The confidence in him is through the roof. This definitely won’t be his last.”
Triumph Amid Criticism
The victory marked Dabo Swinney’s ninth ACC championship and secured Clemson’s seventh berth in the College Football Playoff. It also silenced critics who had questioned Swinney’s approach, including his reluctance to embrace the transfer portal and struggles against top opponents.
“We’re at a point now where we don’t win a championship, and we’ve got to fire everybody,” Swinney said. “Same ol’ tired narratives that come up every single year when we lose a game. But you can check our record versus the SEC, the Big Ten, and Notre Dame—because that’s who runs college football.”
Looking Ahead
Clemson will likely enter the playoff as an 11th or 12th seed, facing a daunting path to a national title. But this is a team that thrives on proving doubters wrong, Parker said.
“Everybody counts us out, everybody talks down on Clemson like, ‘Oh, they play in the ACC,'” Parker said. “We don’t listen to none of that. The more we win, they’ll change the narrative. The ceiling is through the roof. We just need to keep our head down and keep working.”
With Hauser’s legendary kick, Clemson’s season lives on, and the Tigers head into the postseason with renewed belief and momentum.