247Sports tabs Clemson as team 'poised to spark 2024 Playoff mayhem' |
Could Clemson cause some mayhem in the 2024 College Football Playoff race? One analyst
at 247Sports thinks so.
247Sports' Brad Crawford laid out five teams that can shake things up in the upcoming Playoff, which will feature 12 teams for the first time; in that 12-team group, five will be conference champions, and the Top 4 conference champions will occupy the top seeds for a first-round bye. "Take a glance at way-too-early bowl projections from various organizations and notice one thing in common — Clemson is not the pick to win the ACC in 2024," Crawford said. "The Tigers have taken a back seat to Florida State in most cases and Miami for others. Is that not enough bulletin board material for Dabo Swinney, one of only three active coaches with at least one national championship this century to his credit? Three consecutive years outside of the top 10 has worn some of the luster off the Tigers, but there's reason to believe this fall might be a return to greatness. "For starters, third-year quarterback Cade Klubnik is a year wise in Garrett Riley's offensive system. Phil Mafah's no longer sharing the workload at running back with Will Shipley and a reload of sorts at wide receiver has made this upcoming campaign one of the most important of Swinney's career if he wants to continue being mentioned amongst coaching's elite. Even if Clemson fails to reach the expanded playoff, there's opportunity to spark chaos elsewhere since the Tigers open against likely preseason No. 1 Georgia, host NC State a couple weeks later and then travel Oct. 5 to defending league champion Florida State." Clemson made the CFP each season from 2015-20 before falling short each of the last three campaigns. ESPN recently ranked Swinney's program as the No. 2 of the CFP era, trailing only Alabama. Tennessee, Southern Cal, Kansas State and Texas A&M also made the 247Sports mayhem list.
Upgrade Your Account
Unlock premium boards and exclusive features (e.g. ad-free) by upgrading your account today.
Upgrade Now
