Down but not out: Clemson falls to Florida in NCAA super regional opener

Clemson baseball loves a comeback but couldn’t muster one Saturday.

Now, the Tigers face some fearsome odds to get back to the College World Series.

Florida, one of the hottest teams in the NCAA Tournament, roared back from an early deficit on Saturday with a fifth-inning explosion and downed Clemson, 10-7, in the opening game of this weekend’s best-of-three super regional.

The Gators trailed 4-2 entering the top of the fifth inning before star two-way player Jac Caglianone hit a three-run home run and Florida added four more runs to go up 9-4 in a stunning frame.

After the Gators went up 10-7 on a home run in the top of the ninth inning, star closing pitcher Brandon Neely shut out the Tigers in the bottom of the frame to secure the win.

“Too many free passes today,” Clemson coach Erik Bakich said postgame. “Outside of the one inning, it was not a bad game. Lotta good players on that field. We just got the bad inning. ... But, hey, chin up. Chest out. We’re still alive, and we’ll do everything in our power to fix this thing up tomorrow.”

Now, the Gators (33-28) have two tries to win one more game against the Tigers in their home ballpark and reach Omaha a second straight year after finishing as the CWS runner-up last year and sneaking into this year’s field as a No. 3 seed.

The Tigers, meanwhile, dropped to 44-15 and must win back-to-back elimination games against Florida on Sunday and Monday if they want to reach their first College World Series since 2010.

The odds are against Clemson: Since the NCAA Tournament went to its current format in 1999, the winner of Game 1 of a super regional has advanced to the CWS 78% of the time (148 out of 190) entering the 2024 tournament, according to ESPN.

But, as Bakich correctly pointed out postgame, the Tigers have a solid history in these situations. He was a volunteer assistant on the 2002 Clemson team that lost its opening super regional game at home to Arkansas before winning two in a row to advance to the College World Series.

And the 2010 team, led by then-coach and current special assistant Jack Leggett, did the same with two straight super-regional wins after a Game One loss to Alabama.

“It’s a series for a reason,” Bakich said. “We’ve been in this position before.”

Game recap

It was another packed house at Clemson’s Doug Kingsmore Stadium, and the bottom of the first inning gave those thousands of fans lots to cheer about.

The Tigers were all over Florida starting pitcher Liam Peterson from the start and chased him after one inning. Peterson walked four of the 10 batters he faced and allowed three earned runs (two on wild pitches) as Clemson took a 2-0 lead through two innings and bolstered that to 4-2 through four innings.

But “we kept at ‘em,” Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan said.

The bottom of the first inning felt like the most chaotic frame of the afternoon until the top of the fifth, when Florida and its best hitter blew the game open.

Clemson starter Tristan Smith had been pitching good, but not great, before stepping to the mound with a 4-2 lead and promptly issuing a walk and allowing a single.

With runners on first and third, Bakich and his staff declined to switch pitchers or intentionally walk Florida star hitter/pitcher and top MLB prospect Caglianone.

Bakich said the Tigers weren’t in an ideal situation to intentionally walk Caglianone (as they did later in the game) since Florida had runners on first and third and a walk meant a bases-loaded situation.

Instead, starting pitcher Smith went right at him — and Caglianone smashed a three-run homer to deep left field (his 32nd this year) to give Florida a 5-4 lead.

The Gators roared in the opposing dugout as their offense added five more runs in the top of the fifth against Clemson relievers Lucas Mahlstedt and Reed Garris.

The final damage: a whopping seven-run inning for Florida and a 9-4 lead.

“He did what good players do and got a hit, but it was a one-run game,” Bakich said of Caglianone. “The dagger was we allowed four more runs to score. Nobody on with no outs (after the home run) and then four more score. That was a tough one.”

Facing elimination

Clemson entered this game with 25 comeback wins under its belt, including five when it trailed by five or more runs. And down 9-4 after a disastrous fifth inning, the Tigers hung tough. The offense delivered three straight unanswered runs while freshman pitcher Jacob McGovern had three straight shutout innings.

But Clemson continued to hit poorly with runners on base (2 for 13) and in scoring position (0 for 8), and McGovern’s magic eventually ran out as he allowed a solo home run to Florida catcher Luke Heyman in the top of the ninth inning.

“The home run by Luke there in the ninth was huge,” O’Sullivan said.

Facing a three-run deficit, Clemson got a ground-out and a strikeout before Neely, who’s essentially a starting pitcher playing as a closer for Florida, walked center fielder Cam Cannarella.

Catcher Jimmy Obertop stepped to the plate with two outs and a chance to get Clemson within a run, but he struck out swinging against Neely (seven strikeouts) and the Tigers couldn’t pull off their 26th comeback win of the year.

In Sunday’s elimination game, Clemson will start All-ACC freshman Aidan Knaak on the mound, and Florida will go with Caglianone, who on top of being an elite hitter has a 4.57 ERA in 14 starts this year.

The Tigers recognize — and embrace — the tall task ahead of them.

“I’d say our confidence isn’t altered at all,” senior outfielder Alden Mathes said. “We know we’ve gotta win a series for a trip to Omaha. Obviously, losing Game 1 isn’t ideal. But just like we’ve been all year, our backs against the wall, I think that’s when we thrive and when we play our best.”

Added Bakich: “We’ll do it or die trying.”

Clemson Super Regional schedule

Who: Florida at No. 6 Clemson (Gators lead series 1-0)

When: 2:30 p.m. Sunday and, if necessary, TBD Monday

TV: ESPN on Sunday, TBD on Monday

Stream: ESPN+