ESPN Holds High Hopes for Clemson in ACC Title Defense

For the last decade, the Clemson Tigers have been the team to beat in the ACC, and ahead of the 2025 season, they will be the frontrunner again.

ESPN writer Bill Connelly broke down the conference with his projections and preview for the upcoming season, and Clemson found itself at the top of many of the presented lists that he provided.

“I've been pretty skeptical about the latter hype -- we'll talk plenty about that below -- but there's no question the Tigers enter 2025 as the ACC's most likely champion,” Connelly wrote on ESPN. 

A significant reason for the Tigers' hype over this offseason has been the amount of talent that head coach Dabo Swinney was able to retain. The team returned 80% of its production, the most by any team in the country this offseason, according to ESPN.

When going into the projections themselves, Clemson holds the highest SP+ out of the conference with a 23.3, a unit of measure that is a "tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency." Using this measure, there are only three other teams in the ACC who have a double-digit measure: Miami, SMU, and Louisville, respectively.

Connelly projected Miami to finish second in the conference, spearheaded by another high-powered Mario Cristobal offense that picked up former Georgia quarterback Carson Beck in the transfer portal. The Hurricanes recorded a SP+ of 18.8 with a 17.9% chance to take home the ACC this season.

Clemson's opponent in the ACC Championship, the SMU Mustangs, took the No. 3 spot with a 10% chance to win the ACC this season, perhaps doing the impressive feat in only two years since joining the conference.

The Mustangs return top quarterback Kevin Jennings, who will look to build on an outstanding sophomore campaign. Though many didn't predict SMU to run the table and secure a berth to Charlotte last season, let alone make the College Football Playoff, the Mustangs have the capability to do it again in 2025.

The only team to give Clemson an ACC loss last season, Louisville, comes in with a SP+ of 12.1. The Cardinals have an 8.7% chance to win the conference, and under head coach Jeff Brohm, the program has rebuilt its program in a strong way.

The Cardinals retained 56% of their roster, keeping top skill players with running back Isaac Brown and receiver Chris Bell. USC transfer Miller Moss is set to take the reins at quarterback.

Connelly gives the Nov. 14 matchup between Clemson and Louisville one of the spots of the Five Best Games of 2025, which marks one of the toughest in-conference matchups for the Tigers this season.

Other teams like Florida State, Duke, North Carolina, and Georgia Tech are marked as a tier below the previous four, with Connelly describing the teams as being a few pieces away from being a top team in the ACC.

The Tigers were able to keep many of their players while adding pieces when needed through the transfer portal. With a top quarterback in Cade Klubnik, a hungry defense led by new defensive coordinator Tom Allen, and a supporting cast that is ready to take the next step in the College Football Playoff, Clemson is in prime position to rule the ACC in 2025.