In a clash between two of the top five ranked teams in the country, the Clemson Tigers defeated the Louisville Cardinals 42-36 in an instant classic at Death Valley.
The game lived up to the hype, with the two Heisman hopefuls Deshaun Watson and Lamar Jackson skaking off slow starts to play their part in an incredible contest.
It was Watson and the Tigers who eventually claimed the victory to move to 5-0, behind his five touchdown passes, the last of which went to tight-end Jordan Leggett with three minutes remaining.
Clemson build hefty half-time lead after both sides incur slow starts
Billed as a contest between two high-powered offences, the players on the defensive side of the ball wanted to remind people of their capabilities.
The free-running Louisville quarterback Lamar 'Action' Jackson was bottled up early, surrendering three sacks in a pointless first quarter which saw each side punt the ball on all three of their opening drives.
Jackson started to find his groove at the end of the first quarter, and an 11 play 82-yard drive was finished off by Jeremy Smith from a yard out to give the Cardinals a seven-point lead.
After both sides turned the ball over, Clemson finally got on the board when Watson linked up with Deon Cain for a 33-yard touchdown to level the scores.
The turnovers continued, with three plays in a row seeing each side cough up the ball, and the Tigers took advantage of a short field to take the lead for the first time, with Wayne Gallman rushing for a touchdown from 24 yards out.
A Louisville three-and-out was then followed quickly by Clemson's third touchdown with Watson linking up with Cain once more, this time from 37 yards.
Blanton Creque knocked over a field goal to give the Cardinals three points in the final minute of the half, but they left too much time on the clock, with Watson leading four-play 73 yard drive, finished off by a dart thrown to Artavis Scott in the endzone.
Jackson comes to life as Cardinals score 26 unanswered
The third quarter could not have been much worse for the Tigers on either side of the ball.
Defensive back Chucky Williams picked-off Watson, setting up Louisville in good field-position, with Jackson making them pay, hitting James Quick for an eight-yard touchdown.
A Clemson three-and-out was followed by another long drive, capped by a Creque field-goal, with the Tigers next drive looking good to add points before Leggett fumbled close to the redzone, and before long Louisville were in the endzone again.
This drive was all about Jackson. Hitting Smith and Quick for big gainers, he then pulled of an incredible juking run through the heart of the Tiger defence to move the ball to the one, before dashing into the endzone on the resulting play to cap a 77 yard drive in less than three minutes.
Creque added another field goal following a long possession, with the first touchdown in the fourth quarter going Louisville's way following another turnover. Jaire Alexander intercepted a Watson pass which he returned to his own 44, with Jackson picking off a 38-yard run to switch the field, before he ran into the endzone from 11 yards out two plays later to extend the Cardinals lead to 36-28.
Scott return sparks Clemson comeback win
Down eight points, and with just over seven minutes left on the clock, Clemson were seemingly headed for defeat.
The turnovers which had crippled them had handed Louisville all the momentum up until the moment of Artavis Scott's 77-yard kickoff return. Setting up the Tigers just outside the 20, Watson ran for three yards before firing to Mike Williams for Clemson's first points of the half.
After forcing a three-and-out, Watson then led a brilliant go-ahead drive, hitting Cain for 24 yards on third-down, before completing a pass to Leggett who weaved his way into the endzone from 31 yards.
The game all came down to Louisville's final drive which showcased everything which is great about the 19-year-old quarterback Lamar Jackson. One run, and three straight complete passes moved the ball into Clemson territory with consumate ease, and soon they were down to the 20-yard line thanks to some more Jackson magic.
With the clock down to 33 seconds, Jackson and the Cardinal offence was at the Clemson 14, facing a fourth-and-12. Jackson dropped back and went through his reads, hitting Quick on the underneath route. The wide receiver was in a lot of space and heading toward the Clemson endzone but inadvertantly was forced out at the three-yard line, one short of gaining a first down.
The Quick error had forced a turnover on downs and ended Louisville's hopes, meaning they dropped to 4-1 on the season.
Clemson meanwhile, remain undefeated and having outlasted one of their toughest challenges of the season there will be hope that they can reach the playoffs once more.