After Dabo Swinney and Clemson fell to South Carolina on Saturday, they needed some help from Fran Brown if they wanted to make the ACC Championship. If the Tigers wanted to make the ACC Championship, they needed Syracuse to defeat Miami.

The Orange delivered. Afterward, Brown made sure to shout out Clemson and Swinney for sending them to Charlotte. He also said he got a message from his old boss, Kirby Smart, before the biggest game of the year.

Syracuse rallied from 21 points down to complete the comeback and seal the 42-38 victory on Saturday. As a result, Clemson will now take on SMU in the ACC Championship next week. Miami, meanwhile, will await its College Football Playoff fate.

“This is a championship game,” Brown said in his postgame interview. “We worked our butts off for it. … Hey, Dabo Swinney, congrats. I got you in, baby.”

The Hurricanes jumped out to a 21-0 victory over the Orange, but Syracuse didn’t back down. Kyle McCord and the passing attack rose to the occasion, outscoring Miami 35-14 over the second and third quarters before taking a 42-35 lead in the fourth quarter. The Hurricanes later got a field goal and looked to get a stop, but couldn’t follow through. Syracuse got the 42-38 win, and the Clemson faithful rejoiced.

Fran Brown – the Orange’s first-year head coach – spent the previous two years under Smart at Georgia as defensive backs coach. Prior to the Miami game, which he previously called a championship game, Brown got a call from his old boss. The student made sure to thank the teacher, as well, amid the sea of Syracuse students who stormed the field.

“Hey, Kirby Smart, thank you for that message earlier Kirby,” Brown said. “You mean so much to me, Coach Smart. I appreciate you. I love you. Thank you.”

But most importantly, because Syracuse won, Brown gets one important reward. He gets to take a shower.

“Guess what? I’m getting washed!” Brown said before turning to the camera and disappearing into the crowd.

With Miami’s loss, Clemson will now advance to the ACC Championship next week against SMU. Kickoff is set for Dec. 7 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade was many things during his Hall of Fame career. All-Star. Prolific scorer. Champion. 

Longtime NBA guard Michael Carter-Williams isn’t inclined to include the word “leader” on Wade’s extensive resume. 

Carter-Williams and Wade played together for the Chicago Bulls during the 2016-17 season. The Bulls hoped a Big Three of Wade, Jimmy Butler, and Rajon Rondo could make some noise in the Eastern Conference. 

Things didn’t go to plan. Chicago barely snuck into the playoffs as the eighth seed, and Wade missed time with a fractured elbow. Wade and the Bulls agreed on a buyout ahead of the 2017-18 season. 

Carter-Williams reflected on his lone season playing alongside Wade during a recent appearance on FanDuel TV’s Run It Back show. MCW said he believes Wade didn’t know his role and found himself in a “tough position.”

“There was times where he would be a leader and speak on his past experiences and try to put us on game to certain things and try to lead the best way he could,” Carter-Williams said. “And then there was times where maybe we thought he could’ve been a better leader.”

The Bulls fined Butler and Wade for criticizing their teammates’ effort in January 2017. Rondo ripped the two veterans in an Instagram post and was also fined. 

“I think that havin’ Jimmy [Butler] and havin’ [Rajon] Rondo, I just, again, I just think [Wade] was tryna figure it out,” Carter-Williams said. “At times, I could see why people would say that, like, ‘He’s not bought in.’ He was injured a lot of the times. I think us as players needed to realize, like, ‘He is older.’”

ESPN reported in August 2017 that the Bulls’ younger players “really can’t stand” Wade. 

Wade ended his career with the Heat in 2019. Miami retired his No. 3 a year later, and he received a statue earlier this year. 

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Jake Elman works as a contributing writer to Miami Heat on SI. He can be reached at jakeelman97@gmail.com or follow him on X @JakeElman97.