Let's take a look at Clemson Football.
Best / Worst Case Record for :
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Clemson
From 2015 – 2020 Clemson stood at the mountaintop of college football football along with Alabama. Since then Clemson has gradually slipped bit by bit. Last season at 9-4, Clemson had their worst season since 2010. Last year they sat 4-4 and,the season was on the brink of disaster. They won their final 5 games, playing the second half of the season like a top-15 team. So what are we to make of Clemson? A program in gradual decline or just a few breaks from returning to nationally elite status. Dabo Swinney’s aversion to the transfer portal is well documented. He made Clemson great his own way once. Can he do it again?
Will Go 12-0 (8-0) if:
They beat Georgia in their opening game. Georgia is who Clemson once was, the only program that is Alabama’s peer. In the last three years, you could argue Georgia has surpassed them. If Clemson could somehow find a way to beat the Bulldogs, they are more than capable of running the table. How could they do it? The Tiger’s offense has been OK, but it’s struggled in recent years with the inability to stretch the field. There hasn’t been a lot of team speed at the skill positions, and the QB position has been inconsistent. QB Cade Klubnik needs to play more often like he did in the 4th quarter of the Gator Bowl. The defense doesn’t need to regress at all. There are still enough pieces remaining that a special season isn’t out of the question.
Will Go 7-5 (4-4) if:
Clemson reverts to early – mid-season 2023 form. Through 8 games last year Clemson was a decent defensive team, but hardly dominant. The offense was mistake-prone, without much game-breaking speed, and easy to defend for good defenses. That Clemson team doesn’t beat Georgia, could lose to either NC State or FSU or both, will lose at Virginia Tech, and could get upset by someone else. The Tigers don’t have enough talent anymore to win playing bad football. If Clemson is 2-3 on October 5 after playing at Florida State, I don’t see them recovering this year.
