Clemson has missed the College Football Playoff each of the last three seasons following six straight playoff appearances from 2015-20, and the Tigers didn’t win the ACC title in 2023 after claiming the conference crown in seven of the previous eight campaigns.
However, for those who may be doubting and discounting Dabo Swinney’s program entering 2024, ESPN college football analyst Greg McElroy has a different opinion.
McElroy believes Clemson will be squarely in contention for the conference title once again this season.
“Clemson is very much in the mix in the ACC,” McElroy said during an episode of his Always College Football show . “People that are saying they’re dead, they’re done — I disagree. Clemson has a chance, definitely, to win the league this upcoming year.”
McElroy released his preseason top 25 rankings and put Clemson inside the top 15 at No. 14.
The Tigers (9-4, 4-4 ACC in 2023) open the 2024 season against Georgia (13-1, 8-1 SEC in 2023) in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 31 (12 p.m., ABC).
Rising junior Cade Klubnik is entering his second full season as Clemson’s starting quarterback, and his second year in offensive coordinator Garrett Riley’s system.
McElroy likened Klubnik to former Auburn and Oregon quarterback Bo Nix, who went on to be selected by the Denver Broncos in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft.
“We’re going to find all we need to know about Clemson Week 1,” McElroy said. “They play Georgia. I think sometimes when we evaluate quarterbacks like Cade Klubnik, we anticipate way too much. The guy has only started 13, 14 games in his career. And the expectation level is for him to just be the second coming of Deshaun Watson, for him to be the second coming of Trevor Lawrence. That is not fair, nor is that reasonable. But I look at Cade Klubnik and I look at his skillset, and I look at what he played like at times last year – do you know who he reminded me of? Auburn’s version of Bo Nix.
“The skillset is comparable. He’s got some twitch, he can run around, he can create, he’s got some athleticism, but sometimes you’re kinda left scratching your head. Then, Bo Nix went to Oregon and became the player he was always poised to become — 12th overall pick, it just took time. And I think Cade Klubnik might have needed some time. Now he has that entering into Year No. 2 with Garrett Riley his offensive coordinator — I feel pretty optimistic about what he’s going to be able to achieve this year.
“I look at last year and it was very inconsistent. I’m hoping this upcoming year there’s gonna be more consistency and more predictability at the quarterback spot because No. 80 ranking in QBR in this style of offense is not going to be a long-term solution.”
McElroy spoke optimistically about the Tigers while assessing some of the pieces and talent they have on both sides of the ball entering 2024.
“Good news is I think they’ll be able to run the football pretty well. Phil Mafah is excellent,” McElroy said. “I think he’s got great patience, great vision and is a little bit faster than most people realize. I think they’re also going to be really good at tight end with Jake Briningstool, and hopefully a bunch of highly touted wide receiver recruits can provide a boost to a group that, at sometimes in the last couple years, has somewhat underachieved. You’ve got Tyler Brown back, you’ve got some other guys back who were hurt and banged up and missed time last year. I think wide receiver for the most part at Clemson is going to be pretty good.
“Now the strength of their team is on the defensive side, no denying that. Barrett Carter is back, safety RJ Mickens is back, you have a bunch of guys up front like Peter Woods at defensive tackle, TJ Parker at defensive end, Khalil Barnes there in the back end as well at safety/nickel — they’re going to be really good, I think, defensively. It could be one of the top five defenses in the country, would not surprise me whatsoever. They also have a couple freshmen that might find their way onto the field as well, like true freshman Sammy Brown, who is the highest-ranked linebacker recruit in program history. I think the defense is going to have to kind of carry the load, assuming the offense is maybe a little bit hit or miss like they were at times last year.”
McElroy recently ranked Clemson as the eighth-best defense in the country heading into the upcoming season, while he ranked the Tigers’ secondary as the ninth-best nationally .
Ohio State is the No. 1 team in McElroy’s preseason top 10 , with Georgia, Oregon, Texas and Alabama rounding out the top five.
Clemson is McElroy’s third-highest ranked ACC team, behind Miami (No. 12) and Florida State (No. 13). NC State also cracked McElroy’s preseason top 25, coming in at No. 21.
A limited number of signed footballs from Clemson’s 2022 class are still available. Get yours while supplies last! Visit Clemson Variety & Frame or purchase online!
Local Clemson, SC
Most Popular
Comments / 0