Head Coach: Dabo Swinney is entering his 18th season as the head coach of the Clemson Tigers. Dabo took over the Tigers under unique circumstances as the interim coach after Tommy Bowden resigned and he ended up with massive success once he took over. It was a long road even in his 7th season the term “Clemsoning” existed for losses in big moments. In his 8th season they busted that door open and reached the national title and the following year they won it all. In 2018 Clemson won another national title this time going 15-0 with one of the greatest teams of all time. Recent seasons saw Clemson fall a step below their normal standard which made people wonder if Dabo couldn’t adjust with the times. They answered that slightly in 2024 with an ACC title and playoff appearance, but 2025 looms as a key season for Dabo to answer his new skeptics.
Program Outlook: Dabo gave Clemson a taste of what it was like to be elite but as mentioned above they have fallen below that level in recent years. There’s a lot of momentum this offseason and the Tigers look to return to being a true national title contender. 2025 is a critical season for Clemson to get back to an elite level.
How does the 2025 Roster look?: So why is 2025 viewed this way for Clemson? It’s because of the roster. Clemson is 1st in the country returning 77.5% of their production per Punt and Rally’s returning production rankings. It’s well known that they don’t utilize the portal often, but they selectively added 3 players this offseason to bolster some positions. Clemson has several key players returning led by Cade Klubnik who was a talented recruit out of high school and really hit his stride in 2024. He has a loaded group of receivers to throw to led by Antonio Williams and Bryant Wesco, but the key players don’t stop there. The Tigers have some dawgs in the trenches led by OT Blake Miller, and Edge T.J. Parker but there’s other future NFL guys on both sides beyond those two. Clemson has very few question marks, but they need to figure out who will start at RB and with a new DC in Tom Allen they must improve against the run.
Screenshot from FBSchedules.com
2025 Schedule Thoughts: Clemson’s schedule is very challenging. The Non-conference schedule is headlined by a home game against LSU and their annual rivalry game at South Carolina. Troy had a coaching change last season and it might take another year for them to be strong Sun Belt team, Furman was a great FCS team in 2023 but struggled last season. The conference schedule features a challenging draw it’s possible Clemson might face the 8 toughest challengers to their crown. SMU and Syracuse appear to be the toughest home opponents while Georgia Tech, Louisville and maybe even Bill Belichick’s North Carolina squad could present tough road challenges.
Final Thoughts: It’s all for the taking, with such an experienced group back it is time for Clemson to contend for the National Championship once again. I expect them to win the ACC, earn a bye in the playoff and be right in the thick of the championship hunt. Still, the Tigers must be careful, a couple ill-timed off days could leave them sitting on the outside of the playoff there’s hardly any room for error.
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