I don't think the Clemson game does either team justice.
Clemson completely shut down Syracuse's run game, and while Dungey didn't have a bad game per say, he wasn't great. No TD's and a pick, 250 yards on 41 attempts, and his ground contributions were minimal. That being said, that's against Clemson's ludicrous front 4. I think ND has a comparable defense all-around, but Clemson's front 4 definitely made a huge difference in stopping Syracuse's offense. 23 points allowed isn't genuine either, as 10 of them came off of turnovers.
Also something that probably has to be factored in is the distraction factor. If there was ever a week for Clemson to go down in the regular season, it was that week. The whole Kelly Bryant fiasco was a mess, and it's practically a given that Clemson's preparation was sabotaged by that whole fallout taking place. Combine that with a true freshman making his first ever start, and then going down before halftime and having to bring in a guy who probably got zero legit reps in the offseason, it's no surprised they struggled to pass it at all.
