There is no doubt that Clemson football has been the prominent program in the nation over more than the last half-decade.
Before the blunder of the 2021 season, the Tigers had made six-straight CFB Playoffs, won six-straight conference titles, competed in four National Championship games, and won two National Titles.
Even though this season has been a letdown from the Clemson perspective, there’s no doubt in the minds of fans– and even most honest analysts– that the Tigers will have more opportunities to compete on the national level in the near future.
But, this year’s CFB Playoff committee is starting to prove just how important a reform in College Football is going to be.
Why Clemson football needs CFB Playoff expansion to remain relevant
There’s no doubt in my mind that Dabo Swinney will continue to recruit at a high level and if the Tigers can get some of these blunders worked out they’ll be right back where they were before this season.
So, let’s say the Tigers do return back to going 10-2, 11-1 or 12-0 in the regular season starting next year. There is still a growing concern that is becoming evermore prominent in the form of the CFB Playoff committee.
The committee has proven this year through its rankings that it doesn’t value wins and losses. Instead, they’ve elected to use ‘analytics and statistics’ to prop up the narratives that they’ve set forth. It’s why we see a 4-loss Mississippi State team in the rankings, but numerous 3-loss teams– including Clemson– aren’t even garnering consideration.
The committee is set on propping up the SEC– and the Big Ten, for that matter– and it’s become absolutely obvious.
So, what does this have to do with Clemson?
It’s true that if Clemson wins out, the Tigers will be going to the CFB Playoff every single year. But, what about in the future when they’re 11-1?
We’re talking about when the SEC expands and schools are making well over $80 million in revenue every single year and the ACC is well behind. Will the committee still put a one-loss Clemson team in or will they be more inclined to look at measures that favor the expanded SEC? All of a sudden, we could be talking about a 4-team playoff that every year has two spots filled by the SEC. And don’t pretend that it can’t happen.
For Clemson to stay competitive– and even relevant for that matter– we need to see expansion in College Football and we need to have automatic qualifiers for conference champions. Then, the SEC and the committee have limited power. They may select wild-cards, but every conference still has a voice and Clemson, in particular, has a clear-cut path to the playoff every single season.
If we stay in this same system with the coming realignment and potential television negotiations that could follow, it could mean trouble for all conference members outside of the SEC and Big Ten.