Tigers Bleed Orange
Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
Today we look at THE ACC contender. The one team that consistently comes up whenever commentators talk about the ACC. The one team that has won 9+ games every season since 2010. The ACC team with the most talent and best coaching. The team that really should be in the SEC by now according to most Bama and uga fans I’ve talked to. The Clemson Tigers are that team, and they are the top team in the ACC this year by a large margin.
Why are the Clemson Tigers contenders for the ACC this year? I mean… did you not just read the paragraph I typed above?
I guess our readers want a more detailed answer to that question so let’s take a look at how things line up for the Tigers this year.
The Roster:
ALEX HICKS / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
We have another article coming out about Clemson so I’m not going to go into too much depth. Clemson has a ton of talent. If you look at the 2026 Draft board as it stands now it is littered with orange paw marks for all the Clemson players predicted to be drafted in the first few rounds.
Cade Klubnik is the leader of the team at QB. Cade is the top QB in the country and the best QB in the ACC according to non-GT fans. Peter Woods at DT and TJ Parker at EDGE are the top players on defense and make it easier for the rest of the defense by getting to opposing QBs.
Clemson has way more talent than anyone else in the ACC, and most of that talent has played together for at least a year at this point so they will know how to use their talent and rely on their teammates.
The Schedule:
Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Clemson actually has a pretty rocky schedule. They start the season with Tiger-on-Tiger violence in a neutral site game against LSU. Clemson’s first ACC game is against Georgia Tech (never heard of them). They then have a relatively easy go of things in the ACC until the last 6 games of their season where they need to play SMU at home, Duke at home, FSU at home, and then going on the road to play Louisville and South Carolina.
All of these games are winnable for Clemson, but they certainly won’t be easy. SMU, FSU, Louisville, and South Carolina all project to be in the top half of their conferences this year (Don’t lie to me again FSU!) so regardless of what you think of the ACC those teams will be challenging. Still with the overwhelming amount of talent Clemson has at its disposal, and the fact that most of those games are at home, I think Clemson fans should feel confident in their chances. If you’re not a Clemson fan, then you’re probably expecting them to make a mess of at least 1 game but ultimately win almost all of them.
The Rub:
There’s not much to say here. Clemson hasn’t changed significantly since last year, they have all the talent a team could want, and they have Dabo Sweeney at the helm. What’s not to like? The schedule isn’t fantastic, but we’ve seen the Tigers win championships while playing much tougher schedules. If you were a betting person then you really should place the bet on the Tigers. I’m not saying they will win, but there is a good chance they at least make the ACC Championship.
What do y’all think. Is Clemson a lock in the ACC? Or will they find a way to Clemson themselves out of the Championship? Let us know in the comments below.