Phil Mafah sees Clemson offense work paying off, with more to come

Phil Mafah is getting rewarded for the work put in this offseason, and he's expecting more big numbers to come for the Tiger offense.

Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Wednesday, October 02 2024

CLEMSON — Senior running back Phil Mafah is on track for the best season of his career.

Through the first four games of the season, he has averaged 85.5 yards per game and currently ranks No. 5 in the conference for rushing yards with 342. Mafah attributes this success to his willingness to keep putting in the work and buying into the program.

“You can’t just go into a game and expect results. You just got to keep putting in the work, keep buying into what it takes. You may not get the results, but that’s what it takes,” Mafah said. “We signed up for this, and we’re willing to do what it takes, get better and when you are intentional about that, everyone’s going to get better, and that’s what I’ve seen over this past year. The guys just go to work this offseason, and it’s just paying off.”

The season started out rough for the offense, with only three points against the Georgia Bulldogs. Mafah only had 59 yards in that game and averaged 3.7 yards per carry, his lowest of the season. During their three-game homestand, the Tigers are undefeated and have outscored opponents 165-69. On the defensive side, Clemson has yet to allow any points in the first quarter.

These games give Mafah and the offense plenty of confidence going into their first road trip since the opener, at Florida State on Saturday (7 p.m. / ESPN).

“Definitely gave us confidence in our work,” Mafah said. “Goes to show that if we put in the work, we can produce the results and it just makes us work that much harder in practice and just keep that consistency and keep on encouraging each other so we’ll want to work hard and continue to so that we can keep producing.”

Clemson’s game against the Seminoles was supposed to be a rematch of sorts with the Tigers going against their former quarterback, DJ Uiagalelei. However, Uiagalelei has been ruled out with a broken finger. Luckily for the Tigers, they have their starting quarterback going into this game in junior Cade Klubnik. Klubnik has taken things to another level this season with the second-most touchdowns responsible for any player in the ACC so far this season with 16, four rushing and 12 passing. Against Appalachian State, he set the all-time Clemson record for highest passer rating in a game with 277.9. He also had five passing touchdowns in that game, one shy of DeShaun Watson’s all-time Clemson record.

Mafah says he has seen a lot of growth from Klubnik, especially when it comes to using his legs to make plays.

“I’ve seen so much from Cade,” Mafah said. “He’s just grown as a leader, grown in this offense. This being his second year in this offense, he just can get through his reads faster. He’s just feeling more confident. He has more chemistry between the different position groups. The timing is there, and we’re just clicking, and it just takes everyone to come together and work towards that common goal and we’ve just been flowing. I would say him just using his legs. I’ve seen that in the past years, but big-play touchdowns just from him creating and extending plays just shows his dual-threat ability, and I really feel like he’s displayed more of that, especially now early in the season and I truly believe he will further going down in the season.

“So, can’t wait to see it.”