SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant had to be helped off the field and did not return in the No. 2 Tigers' 27-24 loss to Syracuse after a hard tackle near the end of the first half Friday night.
Bryant suffered a concussion on the play, coach Dabo Swinney said.
Redshirt freshman Zerrick Cooper replaced Bryant in the second half.
Bryant was slammed to the turf by 6-foot-4, 315-pound Syracuse lineman Chris Slayton. He was attended to by athletic trainers before he got on his feet and slowly walked off the turf, with assistance from others.
Bryant missed most of the second half of last week's game against Wake Forest after suffering an ankle injury. Swinney said the injury did not bother Bryant significantly during the week, however, and that Bryant was 100 percent entering the game.
Swinney also said he had no regrets about playing Bryant.
"He was ready to play," he told ESPN's Heather Dinich via text. "Got slammed into ground and got concussion. Bad night. Moving on."
Bryant went through pregame warm-ups without showing any signs of the injury, but as the game wore on, he did appear to be laboring.
He was 12-of-17 for 116 yards, with four carries for minus-8 yards on the ground prior to exiting.
Clemson had a 92 percent change to win the game, according to ESPN's Football Power Index. The loss snapped the Tigers' 11-game winning streak, which was the longest active one in the Football Bowl Subdivision, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
Clemson entered the game as a 23.5-point favorite; it was the Tigers' biggest upset loss in the past 40 years.