The 2019 Clemson football team is one of the favorites to get back to the CFB Playoff. Athlon Sports predicted a perfect season for the Tigers.
Athlon Sports released its predictions for every single ACC school this season.
Like every major outlet around the country, the publication had Clemson football winning the conference and advancing to the CFB Playoff.
Athlon predicted that the Tigers would have a perfect 13-0 record heading into the CFB Playoff.
The organization has Clemson playing Virginia in the ACC Championship game with the Tigers, of course, advancing. The Cavaliers are projected to finish with a 9-4 overall record and 6-2 in the ACC.
In the Atlantic Division, Athlon has Syracuse finishing second with a 9-3 overall record (5-3 in the ACC) and Florida State finishing third with a 7-5 record (4-4 in the ACC). NC State is also projected to finish 7-5 with a 4-4 record in conference.
In the coastal, Virginia Tech is No. 2 with an 8-4 record and 5-3 mark in conference play. Miami is third with the same projected records.
If Athlon’s projections came to pass, the ACC would have a total of 10 teams bowl eligible- 6 from the Atlantic and 4 from the Coastal.
Trevor Lawrence is the consensus projected ACC Offensive Player of the Year while Isaiah Simmons received two of the three votes for ACC Defensive Player of the Year. Dabo Swinney received two of the three votes for ACC Coach of the Year and Xavier Thomas was noted as a breakout player to watch.
There’s not much to disagree on here with the ACC. It’s clear that Clemson football is the favorite and everyone else is seemingly just playing for second. Things could change with injuries or something unforeseen, but the Tigers are the favorites for a good reason.
The conference should take a step forward after a not-so-great 2018, but it will still be a few years before there are several programs vying for elite status in the ACC.