Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller writhed on the ground and clutched his right shoulder, a grimace of pain visible through his face mask.
A jarring hit had just caused Miller to lose a fumble, one of four turnovers by the Buckeyes in the final 20 minutes of the Orange Bowl, and they all hurt. Clemson took advantage in a game with four lead changes and won 40-35 Friday night.
The Buckeyes’ final turnover was the most costly. They took over at midfield with 1:27 to go trailing by five points, and on second down Miller threw his second interception to seal the defeat.
“It’s going to sting for a while, probably a long while because we didn’t finish,” coach Urban Meyer said. “It was right there.”
No. 7 Ohio State (12-2) lost its second game in a row after winning its first 24 games under Meyer. No. 12 Clemson (11-2) achieved back-to-back 11-win seasons for the first time.
“That was a lot of fun, man,” Tigers coach Dabo Swinney said.
The Buckeyes totaled 27 first downs and 427 yards, and they had a six-minute edge in time of possession. But they had twice as many turnovers as Clemson, embarrassed by West Virginia 70-33 in the Orange Bowl two years ago.
Miller said he played the last part of the game with a bruised shoulder and “slightly cracked rib,” which may have affected his performance.
“He’s a fighter,” Meyer said. “He fought through it. I asked him and he said, `I’m fine.’ He’s a warrior.”
The Buckeyes rallied from a 20-9 deficit against the high-powered Tigers and scored 20 consecutive points before the flurry of turnovers began when Corey Brown fumbled a punt return to set up a Clemson touchdown.
“We lost momentum after that one play,” Miller said. “It’s kind of hard to bounce back from stuff like that.”
On the next series, Miller threw his first interception, and Clemson had to drive only 38 yards to score and lead 34-29.
The Buckeyes regained the lead when Miller led a 75-yard drive and capped it with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Carlos Hyde. Miller was shaken up when he was hit on the final play of the drive and came out of the game for the two-point conversion, which was unsuccessful.
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