Head Coach- Dabo Swinney
29-19 at Clemson in 4 seasons
If you had told me this time last year that Clemson would start of 8-0 en route to their first ACC title since 1991, I would have laughed in your face but as we head into the 2012 season the Tigers are the defending ACC Champions and hope to make it back to Charlotte the first Saturday in December again this year. They also hope to revive themselves after a wood-shed beating from the hands of West Virginia in the Orange Bowl. As with Carolina, Clemson should have another solid season but handling the pressure is key. Clemson faded away down the stretch and can't afford to do that again this year if they want to make another trip to South Beach. Coming into last season everyone was curious how Chad Morris would improve the sputtering Clemson offense. Dabo hit a home run with the Coach Morris, who by the way, was coaching high school football in 2009. He spent one year at Tulsa before coming to Tigertown. Now Clemson looks for a big turnaround for the defense with the hire of Brent Venables. Dabo and Tigernation hopes Venables can bring back that physicality and swagger that Clemson has lacked in recent years.
The Tigers lost a vital part and leader of the offense in TE Dwayne Allen who is now playing with Andrew Luck and the Colts. Other than that, the offensive returns its main key players on the offensive side of the ball. They return QB Tajh Boyd who is hungry for more after a record breaking 2011 season. Lining up behind him in the back field will be a healthy Andre Ellington who is as good as anyone is the country when he is at 100%. Sammy Watkins returns as well as Deandre Hopkins in the WR department though Watkins will miss the opener against Auburn and home match-up against Ball St due to his arrest a few months ago. On defense, Venables will have to fill the void left by DL Brandon Thompson, DE Andre Branch, CB Coty Sensabaugh and DE Kourtnei Brown. On the bright side, S Rashard Hall should be back to 100% health and anchor the defense's secondary. DB Bashaud Breeland, DL Malliciah Goodman, and LB Corico (Hawkins) Wright will all be called upon to step up this season.
Sept. 1 Auburn(#)
Sept. 8 Ball State
Sept. 15 Furman
Sept. 22 Florida State*
Sept. 29 Boston College*
Oct. 6 Georgia Tech
Oct. 20 Virginia Tech
Oct. 25 Wake Forest* (Thursday Night)
Nov. 3 Duke
Nov. 10 Maryland
Nov. 17 N.C. State*
Nov. 24 South Carolina*
*-Denotes Key Game
#-Game played in Georgia Dome in Atlanta, GA
Home games in BOLD
Schedule Analysis
The road to Charlotte will be a difficult one this year for the Tigers. The mid to lower section of the ACC is on the rise. Maryland, NC State, North Carolina, Virginia, even Duke is improving. This is great for the conference as whole but will make Clemson's job harder. The season opener against Auburn could be a great tone setter for the season but in the grand scheme of everything isn't that important. However, the ACC desperately needs to get wins against its SEC competition this year. This would be a nice start. Clemson will have to overcome its demons in Atlanta. It's almost like there is a curse in the city as the Tigers have struggled in not only Georgia Tech's Bobby Dodd Stadium, but the Georgia Dome as well. The last significant win in Atlanta was back in 2003 in the Peach Bowl against Tennessee. The Sept 22 showdown in Tallahassee will be a good measuring mark for both teams as well as give the winner the drivers seat in the Atlantic division. However, the winner of the game is far from being in Charlotte. FSU has road games at NC State, Miami, Virginia Tech and Maryland. All of which have the potential to give them headaches. Point being, Clemson can lose to FSU and still "easily" win the division. A Thursday night trip to Winston-Salem will literally be a demon Clemson has to overcome. The Tigers have struggled there as well and nearly escaped last years game in Death Valley with a victory.The fact that it comes five days after a home game against Virginia Tech makes this game extremely dangerous. The Tigers close out the season with a three game home stand. On Nov. 10, Maryland, who has had great recent success in Death Valley, comes to town. The following week, the Wolfpack of N.C. State come calling and Clemson closes out the season Nov 24th when they will try to get back in the Win column against rival South Carolina. The Auburn game is a toss up especially with the suspension of Watkins but I believe Clemson will still get the job done in Atlanta. Until they prove otherwise though, they are still Clemson and I expect at least one letdown game, most likely to come against Boston College or Maryland, in my opinion. Eight wins is definitely doable, and if the offensive line plays well, 10 should be almost a given.
My Thoughts
The biggest question mark is the line play for Clemson this year. Clemson is loaded with play makers on offense and have great depth at the WR position. A healthy Andre Ellington is a huge key for the Tigers. They play their best football with him on the field. I have a hunch Deandre Hopkins and Charone Peake both are primed for breakout years, especially with the Watkins situation. Defense is headed in the right direction and Venables is pleased with the progress his squad is making thus far. If Clemson can take care of business in the games they are "supposed" to win, they will be just fine. We know the offense can be lethal especially if this line proves it can hold its ground. That being said, the Tigers should light up scoreboards again this year...the main question is will the defense be able to get off the field. A greatly improved defense will make Clemson awfully hard to beat as you will literally be forced to outscore them...not many teams in the nation would be able to do that. Excited to see what Dabo Swinney and company have in store for us this season!
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