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Clemson football: Thoughts on early season game times announced by ACC

By Marty Coleman

Clemson wide receiver Ajou Ajou (11) jumps up as he runs down the hill with the team, before the game with Boston College at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C., October 2, 2021.Ncaa Football Acc Clemson Boston College
Clemson wide receiver Ajou Ajou (11) jumps up as he runs down the hill with the team, before the game with Boston College at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C., October 2, 2021.Ncaa Football Acc Clemson Boston College /
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Miss Clemson football? You’ll get 25% of the schedule in 12 days in early September.

On Thursday the ACC announced the game times for the first three Clemson football games and a slew of other games.

Clemson, of course, opens the season in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game on Labor Day Monday, September 5 vs. Georgia Tech hosts Clemson at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta at 8 p.m. on ESPN.

The full ACC opening week schedule looks like this:

"The ACC will be featured throughout the Labor Day Weekend (Sept. 1-5) with 12 games over a five-day span. No other league plays across all five days in Week One. This is the fourth time in the last six years the ACC has played over five consecutive days in Week One. The Labor Day weekend begins on Thursday, Sept. 1, with both of last year’s ACC division champions in action. ACC and Coastal Division Champion Pitt hosts West Virginia at Heinz Field at 7 p.m. on ESPN, and Atlantic Division champion Wake Forest opens against VMI in Winston-Salem at 7:30 p.m. on ACC Network. On Friday, Sept. 2, Virginia Tech plays at Old Dominion at 7 p.m. on ESPN, while Duke plays host to Temple at 7:30 p.m. on ACC Network."

Just five days later the Tigers host FCS foe Furman in Death Valley at 3:30 in the afternoon on the ACC Network in the likely blazing South Carolina sun.

A week after that, on September 17, the Tigers host Louisiana Tech, again on the ACC Network, with an 8 p.m. kick in the Valley.

All three of these games should be rather easy wins for the Tigers, despite the Yellow Jackets taking Clemson to the wire last season, but three games in 12 days seems like a bit much and while Georgia Tech is not a power, the wear and tear on the Tigers bodies will start early and often.

The coaches , of course, will prepare and plan accordingly and I would expect liberal substitutions, perhaps even more than the Clemson norm, which is a lot in games of this type.

It’s not a big deal, but three games are typically played in 21 days and add in the fact that the Tigers first off weekend is October 29 after eight games, and it makes for a atypical schedule.

As a fan, I love the thought of  the Tigers playing three times in 12 days.  As a player or coach I might be less excited about the prospect.

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