Reports say Clemson is likely to play The Citadel as non-conference game
Clemson Athletic Director Dan Radakovich said earlier last week that the Tigers are actively pursuing a replacement for their game against South Carolina to make their 11th opponent.
As everyone knows, the ACC announced its plans to play a 10-game conference schedule with provisions for every team to play one non-conference, provided that the game take place in their home state.
However, the SEC released a plan to play a conference-only schedule just a day later and officially canceled the hope of seeing Clemson take on South Carolina this year, effectively ending a rivalry that had played every single year for more than a century.
With Clemson looking to replace its game against South Carolina, The Clemson Insider reported that the Tigers are likely to choose between one of their two previously-scheduled non-conference opponents: Akron or The Citadel.
There is still a lot up in the air for the Clemson football schedule
TCI notes that Akron is slated to make $1.1 million to come to Death Valley this year and The Citadel would be paid $450,000.
The website also notes that- per their sources- Clemson would’ve been interested in playing a Big 12 opponent, but there is no opening on the Tigers’ schedule until 2037, which would make a return game hard to schedule.
If Clemson is going to pick between Akron and The Citadel, it just makes more sense for the Tigers to keep the money in-state and play the Bulldogs, but there are also several questions when it comes to that, as well.
First of all, the NCAA Board of Governors is going to meet this week and could cancel Fall Championships. If they do, that would include FCS football. The MAC, where Akron plays, has not made a final decision on their football season at this point.
Just pure speculation here: With all of this up in the air and the effective risk of playing an 11th game when it looks as if the other Power 5 conferences will only play 10, it also wouldn’t be surprising if the ACC ends up falling in line and only playing a conference schedule. The plan right now is to play a non-conference games, but things are extremely fluid and can change at any moment.