Week One of the College Football season tends to produce overreactions. Fans will overreact about players. Overreact about teams.
That is exactly what happened to Clemson and head coach Dabo Swinney.
Clemson and Swinney had an ugly week one loss to Georgia. The lopsided loss to the Bulldogs led to a national narrative that the game had passed Swinney by. He got hammered for bypassing the transfer portal. Predictions of the Tigers not contending for the ACC title were commonplace.
Six weeks later, I hope the so-called experts take another look at Clemson. Swinney’s team hasn’t lost since Week One, blowing out its next five opponents by a cumulative 174-41.
Quarterback Cade Klubnik has begun to live up to his lofty expectations. The junior has thrown 17 touchdowns passes and just one interception in those five games. The Tigers offense currently ranks fifth in points per game at 45. They can run the ball as evidenced by Phil Matfah compiling four 100-yard rushing games. And the defense has been stingy, giving up just over eight points a game since the opener.
After handling Wake Forest on Saturday, 49-14, Clemson is atop the ACC at 4-0 in league play. They look like the Clemson of old, dominating opponents on both sides of the ball.
The schedule will get tougher. Clemson still has a trip to undefeated Pittsburgh on Nov. 16, a showdown that could have ACC championship game ramifications. But the TIgers do not have to play the only other undefeated teams in the conference are SMU and Miami. Clemson doesn’t have either on its schedule.
I think it is safe to say that the Tigers will make a run to be in the 12-team championship tournament. This is clearly a team that was buried too early.
