As a referee threw the 11th penalty flag of the night following Billy McMullen's last-second touchdown catch, every Virginia fan probably held his or her breath. Was the Cavaliers' final series of unbelievable plays all for nothing? Was a comeback victory going to be taken away because of yet another illegal move on the part of the Cavaliers?
It seemed that on a night when penalties riddled Virginia's game, it would be rather appropriate if mistakes like holding, offsides and illegal substitutions cost the Cavaliers the game too.
Despite controversy that McMullen may have pushed-off Clemson cornerback Brian Mance to snag Spinner's loft, McMullen's touchdown was not called back. Instead, referees merely cited the Cavaliers for excessive celebration following the game-winning reception.
"The penalties made it harder on us than it might have been," Virginia coach Al Groh said.
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Both Clemson and Virginia suffered 81 yards at the expense of penalties. Virginia was flagged 11 times and Clemson eight. However, the Tigers could attribute most of those yards to two penalties called together early in the first quarter that added up for 30 yards.
That 30-yard penalty did not cost the Tigers because Virginia missed its field goal attempt a few minutes later.
On the other hand, many of Virginia's penalties resulted in crucial gains for Clemson.
On the Cavaliers' first drive of the game, tailback Tyree Foreman came out strong and ran for 29 yards in two plays. Then running back Arlen Harris gained another 11 yards, only to have his run pulled back on a 10-yard holding penalty. After an incomplete pass by Virginia quarterback Bryson Spinner, punter Mike Abrams came on the field to kick. Even then, Abrams' 34-yard kick was undermined by another 5-yard penalty against the Cavaliers.
Clemson's scoring drive late in the first quarter was jump-started by a penalty on the Virginia defense. On an otherwise unsuccessful third down conversion by the Tigers, the Cavaliers were called offsides, granting Clemson a first down and another crack at the end zone. This time, Clemson quarterback Woodrow Dantzler ran for a first down and with 39 seconds left in the quarter, Dantlzer handed the ball off to running back Terrance Huey, who ran it in for the score, surprising the 79,000 fans at Death Valley.
An illegal substitution penalty gave Dantzler an extra shot at the end zone with 2:06 left in the third quarter from just a half yard out. Dantzler, naturally, capitalized.
On an Alvin Pearman kickoff return, Virginia was called for blocking in the back, a penalty that should never happen. But it did, and the Cavaliers found themselves on their own nine-yard line, cautious and unable to convert. Abrams was called into punt and his 49-yard punt kept Virginia out of immediate danger.
Abrams must have made it his personal mission to keep his fellow Cavaliers from being strangled by their own mistakes. It was another one of Abrams' punts late in the fourth quarter that kept Virginia from being swallowed by the Tigers. Although Virginia defensive end Larry Simmons returned an interception for 26 yards, Spinner found himself with 26 yards to go on third down because of a holding penalty and a sack (Virginia committed another penalty on the sack, but Clemson declined it). Then Abrams came out to punt and sent the ball to Clemson's 4-yard line.
With all their penalties, the Cavaliers were lucky to escape Death Valley with a win.
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