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The Sugar Bowl national semi-final between No.2 Clemson and No.3 Ohio State got off to a wild start, and things got spicier towards the end of the second quarter when Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields was brutally harpooned from the back by Clemson linebacker James Skalski.
Fields lay down for several minutes before heading to the sideline for a game. Replay officials reviewed the shot and confirmed that Skalski, the Tigers’ defense quarterback, committed a penalty of targeting and had been disqualified for the remainder of the match. Fields went for a play before coming back and throwing a touchdown pass to Chris Olave to give the Buckeyes a 28-14 lead.
Coaches continued to deal with Fields after the touchdown pass. When he stepped out for the next series, he was clearly favoring his midsection and seemed reluctant to make contact on runs and scrambles.
Skalski’s absence is a big blow to the Tigers. He made 32 tackles in the game and is responsible for lining up the rest of the defense from game to game. The incident comes a year after Skalski made a targeting foul in the second half of the College Football Playoff National Championship against LSU. Coincidentally, this penalty also occurred in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.
The coincidences do not end there, however.
The Buckeyes and Tigers met in the national semifinals at the Fiesta Bowl last season, and a targeting foul played a big part in this one as well. Buckeyes defensive back Shaun Wade was sacked for a sack over Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence at the end of the first half with the Buckeyes 16-0. The Tigers, led by Lawrence, returned to claim a 29-23 victory in one of the PSC’s most spectacular games since its inception in 2014.
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