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2016 Clemson Football Schedule: What To Watch For

By Shawn Spencer

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The rest of the 2016 Clemson football schedule will be announced at 3 p.m. this afternoon. Here is what to watch for this afternoon.

The rest of the 2016 Clemson football schedule will be released at 3 p.m. today on theACC.com and it is, without a doubt, an intriguing topic for Tiger fans wanting to know what hand Clemson football will be dealt in 2016.

Let’s take a look at what has already been determined and what will be announced tomorrow, as well as what to watch for in the 2016 Clemson football schedule.

The non conference portion of the 2016 schedule has already been determined. The Tigers will play at Auburn and will host Troy, SC State, and South Carolina to close the season. So, here is what the schedule looks like so far.

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  • September 3: at Auburn
  • September 10: vs. Troy
  • September 17: vs. SC State
  • September 24: ACC Opponent
  • October 1: ACC Opponent
  • October 8: ACC Opponent
  • October 15: ACC Opponent
  • October 22: ACC Opponent
  • October 29: ACC Opponent
  • November 5: ACC Opponent
  • November 12: ACC Opponent
  • November 19: ACC Opponent
  • November 26: vs. South Carolina

ACC Home Games: Louisville, NC State, Syracuse, and Pittsburgh

ACC Road Games: Boston College, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest,

Here is what to be looking for tomorrow when the schedule is released:

When is the bye?

Last season, the bye- due to a Thursday night game- was placed early in the season. This forced Clemson football to play 10 straight games and, at the end of the season, the Tigers were running out of gas. If I had my choice, I would like a bye before the Georgia Tech game and sometime in mid-October.

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  • When do you play Georgia Tech and Florida State? These are the two games that are challenging on the road for you this season. The Tigers will have to go to Atlanta, where you haven’t won in over a decade, and to Tallahassee against a very good Seminole team. You would like to have a bye before one of these games-preferably Georgia Tech- and you’d probably prefer to play Florida State earlier in the season although you could make the case that you’d rather play the Seminoles later in the season.
  • What is the “tough stretch?” Every single season, you will have a “tough stretch” in the schedule. Whether it be playing two very good teams in the road back-to-back weeks or having a stretch where you play a string of solid teams in a row. What you don’t want if you’re a Clemson football fan is to see a schedule like this: vs Louisville, at Florida State, at Georgia Tech, vs NC State, vs Pittsburgh, at Boston College. It’d be preferable if you don’t have Louisville, Florida State, or Georgia Tech back-to-back weeks.
  • Thursday night game? I’d be willing to bet money that, at some point in the season, Clemson football plays a game on a Thursday night. It will be interesting to see who it is and if the game is at home or on the road. If I had to guess, I’d say the Tigers will play at Wake Forest on a Thursday night like they did two years ago, but you never know. The last time Clemson football hosted a Thursday night game was in 2013 when the Tigers hosted Georgia Tech.

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    At the end of the day, you have to play the schedule that is placed in front of you. While you hope for the easiest path to the College Football Playoff as possible, everyone knows that you have to come focused each and every week to play no matter who is in front of you.

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