Clemson Football: The 5 Best Moments of the 2014 Season for the Tigers

While there have been some painful memories from this year, the Clemson Tigers have plenty to celebrate this holiday season from a 9-3 regular season campaign.

Countdown lists that look back on the best moments of the year are inevitable in December, and they are a great way to remember the good times. They can also bring back sour tastes, but we will focus on the good moments for this list.

5. Goal-Line Stand Against Louisville

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Little did the Tigers know, they would need goal-line stands to win in consecutive weeks, but this first one was the better of the two. Clemson went up 23-17 late in the fourth quarter, but a 73-yard reception put Louisville in prime position to win the game with a touchdown.

The most amazing part about it was that Louisville receiver James Quick would have scored on the play had it not been for Jayron Kearse’s game-saving tackle. The Tigers showed how tough and determined their defense was with that goal-line stand, and it was one of the moments that really stood out to me from 2014.

4. The Two Highlight Plays vs. N.C. State

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The Tigers had two highlight plays in the 41-0 blowout over North Carolina State. The first one came on a 31-yard touchdown pass to Mike Williams in which the 6’4” receiver used every bit of his frame to extend for the catch in the end zone.

The second play came on a five-yard touchdown run by Deshaun Watson that was capped off by him jumping completely over the Wolfpack defender.

The good times were rolling for the Clemson offense at this point in the season, and these two plays were perfect examples of that.

3. Vic Beasley Breaks the School Sack Record

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Vic Beasley has established himself as one of the best pass-rushers in school history, and he now has the numbers to prove it.

On October 11th against Louisville, the senior defensive end recorded sack No. 29, setting the school career record.

He finished the season with 11 sacks, pushing his career total to 32.

2. Deshaun Watson's Performance for the Ages

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Watson’s first career start was one that won’t be forgotten. The true freshman finished with 435 yards passing and six touchdowns against North Carolina.

The six touchdown passes in one game broke the school record that was previously held by former Tiger Tajh Boyd, and he broke a ton of freshman passing records along the way.

The excitement for the young signal-caller had started before the season began, but Tigers fans were extremely anxious about watching his first career start. This ranks so high on the list because of how the freshman quarterback took his opportunity to start and ran away with the job.

1. Breaking the Streak vs. South Carolina

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The best moment of the year was knowing that the streak was over. The Tigers had lost five in a row to their in-state rival, but that mark came to an end with the 35-17 win.

The Gamecocks were down this year, so seeing that streak move to six games would have been really painful—really, really painful. It was so important that Watson actually played that game with a torn ACL, per Sports Illustrated.

But it was the defense that won the game for the Tigers. It held Steve Spurrier’s offense to 319 total yards and only 17 points. The Gamecocks’ struggles had been well-noted on defense, but holding their offense to those totals was an impressive achievement.