Clemson Tigers' Schedule is Deceptively Difficult

The Clemson Tigers are looking to get back to the College Football Playoff, and with chances of making an at-large bid as well as being the ACC favorite, anything can happen in 2025. 

While the AP Poll only included two other ACC teams with the Tigers, the out-of-conference schedule could provide the toughest tests of them all. With the chance of other ACC teams rising into the leaderboard, Clemson can end up playing 5-6 ranked teams, despite having just three ranked in the preseason.

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Of course, the biggest game of the season will be Week 1 when Clemson hosts No. 9 LSU at Memorial Stadium. Head coach Dabo Swinney and his team were 0-3 against the SEC a year ago, including a relatively rare loss to South Carolina. They have only won one of their last four Week 1 games, a 2022 41-10 win over Georgia Tech. 

Facing a high-octane LSU offense while defensive coordinator Tom Allen is making his debut on the Clemson sideline, will be a game made of many different statements that will be a clear indication of what the Tigers can do. 

While Georgia Tech currently isn’t ranked, a strong beginning of the season could see the Yellow Jackets being a ranked matchup on Sept. 13. They are 31st in the AP Poll and are favored against Colorado and Gardner-Webb before taking on Clemson. A 2-0 Georgia Tech team will likely sneak into the back end of the top 25.

The team has played spoiler to many historically and is an upset candidate for Clemson, especially with the game being played at Bobby-Dodd Stadium. 

After the Yellow Jackets, a three-game stretch against Syracuse at home, North Carolina in Chapel Hill, and away at Boston College could end up being Clemson’s easiest stretch of games next season.

All three of the teams received no votes of consideration, and while newly-added Tar Heel head coach Bill Belichick could play spoiler in his home stadium, the Tigers will have the quality to leave with an away win. 

Five of Clemson’s last six games could also all be against top 25 teams.

First, on Oct. 18, the Tigers will host the SMU Mustangs in a rematch of last season’s ACC Championship game. The Mustangs return with vengeance, being the No. 16-ranked team in the country in the poll, and return many key players from last year’s team. 

Two weeks later, the team hosts Duke, who has something brewing under head coach Manny Diaz. The Blue Devils received six votes of consideration and will be a difficult matchup for anybody in the conference with a strong defense and the acquisition of the top transfer quarterback, former Tulane signal-caller Darien Mensah. 

On Nov. 8, while still unproven, the Florida State Seminoles come into town. Mike Norvell’s team was able to get the best of the Tigers two seasons ago in Death Valley, winning in overtime.

With a competitive team led by Boston College transfer quarterback Tommy Castellanos, the Seminoles historically play closely with Clemson and could see that again. The team received eight votes of consideration. 

A Friday night game in Louisville will be the team’s final in-conference game of the season, and head coach Jeff Brohm’s teams have gotten better with every year. The Cardinals whipped the Tigers at Memorial Stadium last season with a heavy run attack, and if Clemson can’t plug the problem again, it could spell trouble. 

That run defense saw losses to Georgia, the Cardinals, Texas, and South Carolina, who will round out the season in Columbia. The Gamecocks are ranked No. 13 in the poll and return top signal-caller LaNorris Sellers.

It could be a top-15 battle going into the final game at Williams-Brice Stadium. After stealing a Palmetto Bowl victory a year ago in Memorial Stadium, Clemson will look to get it back in a hostile environment. 

Even with all this, if the Tigers make the ACC Championship game, the team is aiming for a crash course with No. 10 Miami, though SMU and Georgia Tech, among others, are viable options. 

Regardless, it won’t be easy to go back-to-back in the league. 

The ACC is in a difficult spot for an at-large spot in a two-bid league. Unless Clemson is able to go at least 1-1 against LSU and South Carolina, they may have to win the conference. However, a tough schedule will only improve its chances of receiving an at-large bid.

That Clemson only has three teams on its schedule in the preseason is deceptive. By the end of the year, that number could double as the season plays out.