Heading into Week 7, the Clemson Tigers must take full advantage of their soft remaining schedule. Clemson will host FCS Charleston Southern on Saturday afternoon, with five ACC games before we get to the Palmetto Bowl versus South Carolina. Although the Gamecocks upset Florida in Week 6, the chances of Shane Beamer's even being ranked are slim. This is a major issue for Clemson now.
After the release of the latest AP Top 25 Poll, only three ACC teams were ranked this week: Miami at No. 4, Wake Forest at No. 21, and SMU at No. 24. With Duke, Pittsburgh, and Virginia Tech all losing, the race for fourth place could not be more wide open. As it stands now, the only ACC team among the others receiving votes was Duke getting five after losing a heartbreaker at lowly Georgia Tech.
With Clemson 0-2 versus ranked teams this year (LSU and Miami), there are simply not going to be opportunities for the Tigers to get a pelt on the wall for Dabo Swinney to improve this team's weak resume. Miami may be a buzzsaw, but LSU has suffered two SEC losses since clobbering Clemson over Labor Day Weekend. Right now, the only real hope Clemson has is for Duke to right its wrongs.
Clemson can no longer count on Duke being a ranked team in November
Because Clemson does not play a handful of quality ACC teams this season in Wake Forest, SMU, Pittsburgh, Virginia, or Louisville, the Tigers need for Duke to hold up its end of the bargain the rest of the way. Beating a halfway decent Blue Devils team in Durham during the penultimate week of the season could be what helps Clemson get to Charlotte. So much would have to go right for the Tigers.
With Virginia Tech not looking great, and Florida State on the verge of moving on from Mike Norvell, Duke is really all Clemson has left from a competitive opponent standpoint. Yes, South Carolina could be feisty by the end of the season, but the Gamecocks play one of the most challenging schedules left in the SEC. They still are only 3-3 and still have to play ranked teams in Tennessee ant Georgia.
Unless South Carolina captures lightning in a bottle at the halfway point, Clemson might not play a ranked team the rest of the way. If Duke loses at Miami in November, the Blue Devils might not be receiving votes anymore the rest of the way. This does not mean Clemson cannot finish the season at 10-2 overall and 7-1 in ACC play. However, it resume will be so incredibly flimsy around Thanksgiving.
Simply put, the ACC is only going to be a one-team league this year. The only way for that to happen is if somebody other than Miami wins the conference title bout. While the Hurricanes have never won the ACC before, who do you trust beyond Mario Cristobal's team to get it done? Wake Forest is the best bet, but the Demon Deacons already lost to the Canes. Maybe SMU? After that, it is a crapshoot.
Clemson can only control what it can control, but the ACC hitting the struggle bus is less than ideal.
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