Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney with players for the Walk of Champions before the game at Williams Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina Saturday, November 27, 2021.
The Cyclones are headed back to Orlando.
Iowa State will take on No. 19 Clemson in the 2021 Cheez-It Bowl in Orlando on Dec. 29 at 4:45 p.m., as reported by Action Network‘s Brett McMurphy on Sunday. The Cyclones appeared in the same game, formerly known as the Camping World Bowl, two years ago, losing 33-9 to Notre Dame.
Much like Iowa State, Clemson’s season has been defined by significant ups and downs after starting the year inside the top-10. The Tigers were No. 3 in the initial poll then started the season 2-2 with close losses to Georgia and NC State marred by significant struggles offensively.
Dabo Swinney’s team responded strong, winning seven of their last eight games, and scoring 30 or more points in each of their final six games, all of them wins.
Clemson’s success can largely be attributed to continued success by Brent Venables’ defense as they held opponents to just 15 points per game, which ranked second nationally behind only Georgia. The unit also ranks No. 8 nationally in rushing defense and No. 9 nationally in total defense (one spot ahead of Iowa State).
It will be interesting to see who is calling the plays for that defense as Venables is considered the favorite to be named the next head coach at Oklahoma. It is widely known Venables and his defensive staff visited Ames several years ago in order to learn, and ultimately implement, Iowa State’s 3-3-5 defensive scheme.
The Tiger offense is led by one-time Heisman hopeful sophomore quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, who finished the regular season completing 54.7 percent of his passes for 2,059 yards, nine touchdowns and nine interceptions. He also added 296 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.
The rushing attack is bolstered by a pair of runners with 500-plus yards on the ground in true freshman Will Shipley (678 yards, 10 touchdowns) and Kobe Wade (590 yards, six touchdowns).
This will be Iowa State’s 17th bowl appearance and program-record fifth consecutive under head coach Matt Campbell. The Cyclones hold a 5-11 record in those games with two wins under Campbell coming in the 2017 Liberty Bowl and the Fiesta Bowl last year.
Stay tuned to Cyclone Fanatic for much more on Iowa State’s bowl destination in the next few hours.
