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In the early years of the four-team College Football Playoff era, the Clemson football team was one of the most dominant programs in the country. It was the Tigers and Alabama consistently making deep runs and winning national championships. Dabo Swinney led Clemson to two national titles, but then the program took a step back. The Tigers haven't looked the same this decade, but Fox analyst Joel Klatt expects that to change this season.
The Clemson football team did make the College Football Playoff last year, but it was only because of how weak the ACC was. The Tigers didn't finish ranked inside the top-12, but their conference title gave them an auto berth. A lot of talent came back from that team, and that should set Clemson up for success in 2025.
Clemson is returning 16 starters, and the most important one is quarterback Cade Klubnik. Having experience at the QB position is crucial, and the Tigers will have exactly that. All in all, Joel Klatt is confident that Dabo Swinney and Clemson will have a good year.
“I think they're going to have an outstanding year,” Klatt said during an episode of his podcast. “They finished with 10 years last year, snuck into the playoff. They beat SMU in that championship game. Gave Texas everything they could handle. Dabo [Swinney] seems to have this confidence back. They bring back 16 starters from last year's group. [Cade] Klubnik is back, third season as a starter, third season with his offensive coordinator, Garrett Riley, four returning starters on the offensive line.”
Klatt does have some questions about the running back position, but outside of that, this Clemson team seems poised for success.
“I think the real question is running back, Gideon Davidson is a guy that's a top-five running back. He will be a true freshman. I think he could have an impact for them,” Klatt added. “Defense is loaded. Going to be one of the best defenses in the entire country. New defensive coordinator Tom Allen, he's in as DC after coming from Penn State. This team is going to be loaded.”
From a schedule standpoint, it's hard to see Clemson losing too many games. There are a couple of tough non-conference games, but the ACC is the weakest Power Four conference. For most of the season, the Tigers are going to be playing against teams that aren't very good.
“It's not a very difficult schedule,” Klatt continued. “You could make a strong argument that their two most difficult games are non-conference games. They're going to have LSU in the opener, and they're going to have South Carolina. I think both of those games are tougher than any game they have on the rest of their schedule. And the in the ACC, they don't play Miami. They get SMU at home. They have road games at Georgia Tech and Louisville.”
Joel Klatt expects Clemson to be back in the College Football Playoff, and he might even end up picking the team to win it all this year.
“This is a team that for sure will be in the playoff, and I think could make a deep run,” he concluded. “I'll be pretty surprised if this is not a team in the national semifinals. And you know what, I'm toying around with, in my bracket, putting them as a team playing for the national championship. We'll just see who they play.”
Dabo Swinney and the Clemson football team have taken a step back in recent years, but the 2025 season is the perfect opportunity for the Tigers to remind the country that they aren't going anywhere.
