For the second week in a row, the Clemson Tigers did not receive a single vote in the AP Top 25. This is not much of a surprise, as the Tigers struggled to put away the Georgia Southern Eagles at home in Week 2. While the ACC saw four teams ranked this week in No. 5 Miami, No. 16 SMU, No. 23 Louisville, and No. 25 Virginia, we should be more concerned about two of the other teams that received votes.
The two teams we need to monitor are the Virginia Tech Hokies and South Carolina Gamecocks going forward. With No. 5 Miami coming up on the schedule in three weeks, there is a chance that could be it when it comes to Clemson facing another ranked opponent this season. This is important because beating a ranked team may be the only realistic way for Clemson to get back into top-25 discussions.
Clemson will be getting both of these teams at home this season, so it might as well take advantage of the situation at hand. Again, Clemson's navigable ACC schedule could allow this team to gain momentum and finally start to play with confidence once again. It all starts by not letting an improving North Carolina Tar Heels team get the best of them to commence ACC play at home next weekend.
Clemson needs for Virginia Tech and South Carolina to keep on winning
Virginia Tech is 2-0 under James Franklin with convincing wins over VMI and Old Dominion. The Hokies received 11 votes, suggesting that if they keep their good vibes going, they may be ranked by the time they face Clemson. Of course, the Hokies may not face its first ranked team of the season until after they play Clemson. They play SMU after Clemson, but may need to see Pittsburgh rise up.
South Carolina is also 2-0 with wins over lowly Kent State and Towson. While the Palmetto Bowl will not be played until the final weekend of the season, South Carolina could potentially face six ranked teams before they even take on the Tigers. South Carolina has games versus ranked SEC teams in Alabama, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and Georgia. Florida may be ranked when they play, too.
Overall, Clemson's pathway forward in the ACC and into the College Football Playoff is treacherous at best. What we have seen out of this team the last two weeks has been trying to say the least. While the defense looks to be improving and the special teams have been solid throughout, the offense has left so much to be desired. It is why Clemson needed to play its best versus LSU, but came up short.
To be frank, unless Clemson stuns Miami in a big way in three weeks, it is so hard to see the Tigers being ranked at any point this season. They will need to beat pretty much everyone else on their schedule to even have a chance. What Dabo Swinney said this team could still go 11-1, technically, the Tigers still can. However, none of that is going to be possible if it crumbles versus Bill Belichick.
Clemson may not be a ranked team anytime soon, but the Tigers could be playing more than Miami.
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