Clemson will struggle to even make bowl game after SMU loss

When the 2025 college football season began, the Clemson Tigers were expected to be a national championship contender. They had what was thought to be a top-tier quarterback in Cade Klubnik, were the No. 4-ranked team in the country and a head coach (Dabo Swinney) with a championship resume in a very winnable conference that he has mostly dominated.

Those national championship dreams for 2025 were shattered just a couple of weeks into the season. Now, after Saturday's 35-24 loss to SMU, simply getting to a bowl game may be a problem for the Tigers as they continue on what has been a completely lost season.

Can Clemson even get to a bowl game?

It seems like an insane question to ask given Clemson's recent program history, as well as its preseason ranking, but it is going to be significantly harder than anybody would have anticipated before the season for this team to even get to bowl eligibility.

After Saturday's loss, Clemson is 3-4, with its only wins coming over Troy, North Carolina and Boston College, with the latter two being the only power-four conference wins on the schedule. Both teams are among the worst Power Four teams in the country. 

For Clemson to get bowl eligible, it is going to need to win at least three of its remaining five games.

The remaining teams on the schedule are Duke, Florida State, Louisville, Furman and South Carolina.

While none of those teams are currently ranked (that will probably change on Sunday), it's still not an easy schedule. Especially for a team that has not shown it can beat even above-average competition this season. 

Duke and Florida State are at least formidable opponents, while Louisville has emerged as a serious ACC contender, especially after its Friday night win over No. 2 Miami. 

Furman should be a win, but then South Carolina is a season-ending rivalry game where anything can happen. 

If Clemson drops one of these next two games to the Blue Devils or Seminoles, it is going to put a lot of pressure on those remaining games. 

It is an incredible fall for a team that was hoping to win a National Championship this season to just be hoping for a trip to the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl or the Gasparilla Bowl. If they are lucky.