We are closing in on single-digit days before the start of the 2021 Clemson football season and it’s clear that there is a feeling of excitement surrounding the Tigers as they get ready to take the field again.
The last time we saw Clemson in a competitive matchup, it wasn’t pretty. The Tigers were beaten soundly by the Ohio State Buckeyes in the CFB Playoff semifinals and the team– in particularly the defense– has said they are using that loss as motivation heading into 2021.
As we continue to get ready for the upcoming season, here’s a look at our game-by-game predictions with scores for the Tigers in all 12 of their regular season matchups, beginning with the big one against the Georgia Bulldogs.
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Sept. 4: vs. Georgia Bulldogs
This Clemson-Georgia game has been one of the most-hyped season-openers in the recent history of College Football and we’ve still got a couple more weeks before it gets here.
Things have been heating up all spring and summer between Tiger and Bulldog fans and the expectation is that we’re going to see a really good game in Charlotte when this one is played.
While it hasn’t been confirmed, several Georgia outlets are reporting that two starters– TE Darnell Washington and DB Tykee Smith– are likely to be out of the matchup with foot injuries.
There have also been several other Bulldogs banged up and TE/WR Arik Gilbert left camp several days ago due to ‘personal reasons’ and still hasn’t returned at the time of this writing. It’s unclear at this point what his status will be for the opener and even if he is available, there are questions as to how much he’ll be able to truly contribute after missing several practice sessions.
While we are high on Georgia’s talent and believe the Bulldogs could have a major advantage with their defensive line against Clemson’s interior offensive line, there is just some brewing turmoil coming out of that UGA camp that makes us believe the Tigers will have an edge.
This one will be close, but we like D.J. Uiagalelei better than J.T. Daniels and we like Dabo Swinney better than Kirby Smart. The result? Clemson comes out victorious in a thriller.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 28, Georgia 24
Projected 2021 Record: 1-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Sept. 11: vs. S.C. State Bulldogs
There’s nothing in terms of an on-the-field football matchup to get excited about in the second week of the season when S.C. State comes to town.
That being said, there are plenty of things we’ll be watching for:
- The first chance for many young players to get significant playing time
- The first game in Death Valley without a capacity restraint (we assume)
- C.J. Spiller’s Hall of Fame celebration
There’s something special about getting back into Death Valley and the plan as of right now is for there to be no capacity restraint. Do you know how good it’s going to feel to see 80,000– or something close to that number– Clemson football fans back in Death Valley again?
In addition, this will give the Tigers their first chance to see how young players perform and to begin the depth-building process since that’s not expected to happen in the first week of the season against Georgia.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 63, S.C. State 10
Projected 2021 Record: 2-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Sept. 18: vs. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Georgia Tech gave up 70 the last time the Tigers and Yellow Jackets played, and that game was in Atlanta.
Now, Clemson will get its ACC Coastal Division rival at home and the gap in terms of talent is still as wide as it’s ever been.
While many remain high on Geoff Collins to turn around the Georgia Tech football program, we’re not so sure. There’s nothing about Collins that screams ‘winner’ at this point and the truth of the matter is that the defense– one of the major emphasis he placed on improving the program– has only gotten worse since he took over.
Georgia Tech has some talent, led by QB Jeff Simms and that offensive line should be improved, but it’s not going to matter when they’re going up against a defensive front like what Clemson possesses.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 52, Georgia Tech 10
Projected 2021 Record: 3-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Sept. 25: @ NC State Wolfpack
Everyone is obviously looking at the Georgia game and pointing to it as the one place where Clemson could fall, but this stretch beginning right here on September 25 might be the most dangerous portion in terms of a ‘trap game’ if there is such a thing for the Tigers.
NC State has typically played Clemson tough over the course of the last few years and this game will be in Raleigh.
If the Wolfpack find a way to beat Mississippi State during the second week of the season, they’ll be ranked with a 3-0 record coming into this one. Even if they do fall to the Bulldogs, NC State has some of the best returning talent in the ACC and the Wolfpack were picked to finish second in the ACC Atlantic Division by the media.
Devin Leary is back at quarterback and they’ve got several returners on the defensive side of the ball. This will be the first true road game of the season for Clemson and it might be a little closer than Tiger fans might like as the game progresses.
Still, we like Clemson to pull away in the second half.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 38, NC State 17
Projected 2021 Record: 4-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Oct. 2: vs. Boston College Eagles
While NC State might have been selected second in the division, it’s my belief that Boston College may very well be the second-best team in the division.
Boston College played Clemson extremely close last year and the Tigers had to come-from-behind in epic fashion to come away with a win after trailing 28-13 at halftime.
QB Phil Jurkovec returns for Boston College and the Eagles have one of the best offensive lines in the conference. He’s got some weapons offensively, as well, and outside of Georgia this Boston College offense is probably the most-equipped to score some points against the Tigers.
After a game in Raleigh in which the Tigers have to battle a little harder and the confidence that Boston College will have coming into this one after the success they had last year, we think this one could be a little close.
D.J. Uiagalelei will come up big and the offense will explode for some points against a very good Boston College defense. The game will be closer than our predicted score indicates.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 49, Boston College 24
Projected 2021 Record: 5-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Oct. 15: @ Syracuse Orange
Clemson will make the trip up to Syracuse in the midst of the fall to take on the fighting Dino Babers in The Carrier Dome.
Oh, how far that program has fallen .
There was once a time where Syracuse was considered the second-best team in the conference and many had them as a top-10 team in the nation. That’s a far cry from where they are currently.
Syracuse went 1-10 last year and while there is some hope that they can turn it back around this year from the fan base, the honest truth is that they’re likely to be the worst team in the division and one of the worst in the conference.
There’s always a game where Clemson’s defense nearly pitches a shutout and we think they get the job done here. Syracuse, whether they go with Tommy DeVito or with transfer Garrett Shrader, just doesn’t have the talent to compete and it’s going to be an ugly day for them.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 56, Syracuse 0
Projected 2021 Record: 6-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Oct. 23: @ Pittsburgh Panthers
Pittsburgh is returning veteran QB Kenny Pickett for a fifth season and he, along with an experienced defense, has Panthers fans hoping they can make a run in the ACC Coastal.
This will be the first trip Clemson has ever made up to Heinz Field and by the end portion of October, it could be a little chilly up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
After trailing 31-0 in the first quarter last year, Pittsburgh ended up getting beat 52-17 by Clemson.
This year, we’re looking for a very similar score. The Panthers will likely score some points later on in the contest and they won’t give up easily, but this– like many other games on this schedule– is just a measure of talent.
And, at this point, Pittsburgh simply doesn’t have the talent to challenge the Tigers.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 48, Pittsburgh 17
Projected 2021 Record: 7-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Oct. 30: vs. Florida State Seminoles
Florida State is making strides towards becoming a relevant program again, but the talent level– especially in the trenches– still isn’t there when it comes to a comparison between the Seminoles and Clemson.
We like QB McKenzie Milton and think he could make some noise this season, but there’s just something about this game, at home, that screams ‘blowout’ to us.
Why? Well, let’s not pretend that Dabo Swinney has forgotten about the blunder of the canceled FSU game last year when his integrity was challenged openly by the Seminoles.
Have you ever seen the movie ‘The Mighty Ducks?’ Well, there’s a scene that I believe describes exactly what we could see in Death Valley this year. When Gordon Bombay first takes over the Ducks, he is faced with coaching against his old coach, Jack Reilly, and the Hawks.
The Hawks completely dominate the game and then he has this famous line as his team leads by double-digit goals:
"“It’s not worth winning if you can’t win big!”"
There’s something that tells me Dabo Swinney might have this same kind of mindset coming into this one and he may leave the starters in for a little longer than he would against another opponent.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 63, Florida State 17
Projected 2021 Record: 8-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Nov. 6: @ Louisville Cardinals
Louisville has some pieces, led by QB Malik Cunningham, but the Cardinals may be in utter disarray by this point in the season.
Scott Satterfield has been criticized heavily for how he has openly flirted with other head coaching jobs and there’s a sense that he may have lost that program.
That being said, coming off a big win over their ACC Atlantic rival and then hitting the road against this lowly Louisville team, we could see Clemson come out just a bit sluggish to begin the matchup.
The offense might take a few drives to get going and the first quarter might be a little more frustrating than we’d like to see, but they’ll get it figured out before long and the final score won’t be indicative of any kind of a slow start.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 42, Louisville 17
Projected 2021 Record: 9-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Nov. 13: vs. UConn Huskies
This Clemson offense is going to hang 70 on at least one opponent this year.
We’ve looked at the different opposing defenses and come to the conclusion that Nov. 13 could very well be one of those days.
This offense won’t be clicking on all cylinders– even with all of its elite talent– in early September, but by the middle portion of November, that’s a different story.
UConn has absolutely nothing to stop Clemson from scoring as many points as it wants to and we think you could see the Tigers explode for 50 in the first half. This is going to be an absolute thrashing– even worse than the S.C. State game– and the Huskies are going to be well out of reach before the end of the first quarter.
Expect Clemson to score a lot of points and expect UConn to score very few. They’re that bad.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 70, UConn 3
Projected 2021 Record: 10-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Nov. 20: vs. Wake Forest Demon Deacons
To close out its regular season conference schedule, Clemson will stay in Death Valley to host the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.
We respect what Dave Clawson has done with that Wake Forest program and he’s going to have some experience returning this season that might allow the Deacs an opportunity to compete with some of their conference peers.
Wake Forest returns 19 starters– including nine ‘super seniors’– and, if they can stay healthy, they might be able to put up a little bit of a fight here with Clemson for a half or so.
Just like the other games on the schedule, though, we just believe the talent of the depth chart ends up winning out.
Clemson’s offense should have a solid day and even if Wake Forest comes away with a few big plays, it won’t be enough to derail the Tigers.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 48, Wake Forest 17
Projected 2021 Record: 11-0
Game-by-game predictions for the 2021 Clemson football schedule
Nov. 27: @ South Carolina Gamecocks
It’s been too long.
The annual rivalry game against Clemson and South Carolina was canceled by the SEC last season and we were forced to see a season without the Tigers and Gamecocks playing for the first time in more than a century.
Now, the rivalry is going to be renewed.
Clemson is currently on a streak of six-straight wins over the Gamecocks and even with a new head coach, there’s nothing stopping the Tigers from making that seven-straight when it’s all said and done.
South Carolina has brought in some talent and QB Luke Doty should be healthy by the time this one comes around, but the Tigers are going to be chasing even bigger things and they’ll simply be too much.
Our prediction for the Palmetto Bowl? Clemson takes a sizeable lead and then shifts gears to ‘cruise control’ as the Tigers get ready for a potential top-10 matchup in the ACC Championship game the following week.
Scoring Prediction: Clemson 49, South Carolina 14
Projected 2021 Record: 12-0