We will find out Clemson's ACC schedule soon enough. In the meantime, let's sink our teeth into the men's basketball team's non-conference schedule. The Tigers drew eight non-conference home dates, as well as a few other intriguing road games. Those include the first of a home-and-home with TCU, the Palmetto Series at South Carolina, and a "neutral-site affair" with the Cincinnati Bearcats.
Clemson will also take part in this year's Maui Invitational. The Tigers will face Ole Miss right off the bat, before playing either BYU or Washington next, and then a third game against another team to be determined later on. It may not seem like much, but Brad Brownell's program has put in the necessary work into the non-conference slate to put the Tigers in a fantastic position to make the tournament.
Here is what we know about Clemson's 2026-27 schedule with the non-conference games being set:
- Oct. 23: Georgia Bulldogs (exhibition)
- Oct. 28: Presbyterian Blue Hose (exhibition)
- Nov. 2: Stetson Hatters (season opener)
- Nov. 6: American Eagles
- Nov. 9: North Dakota Fighting Hawks
- Nov. 13: Georgetown Hoyas
- Nov. 16: The Citadel Bulldogs
- Nov. 23: Ole Miss Rebels (Maui Invitational)
- Nov. 24: BYU Cougars/Washington Huskies (Maui Invitational)
- Nov. 25: TBD (Maui Invitational)
- Dec. 1: Auburn Tigers (ACC/SEC Challenge)
- Dec. 6: Le Moyne Dolphins
- Dec. 12: at TCU Horned Frogs (Fort Worth, TX)
- Dec. 15: at South Carolina Gamecocks (Columbia, SC)
- Dec. 19: vs. Cincinnati Bearcats (Heritage Bank Center, Cincinnati, OH)
- Dec. 22: Colgate Raiders
Clemson has the non-conference slate to cement its tournament case
Of the 14 non-conference opponents on Clemson's schedule, at least seven will be against Power Five opponents: Georgetown, Ole Miss, BYU/Washington, Auburn, TCU, South Carolina, and Cincinnati. It could be up to eight depending on who else the Tigers draw in their third game of the Maui Invitational. If it is Arizona or Providence, that would get Brownell's program up to eight teams.
Even if it were Colorado State or VCU as the Tigers' third opponent in the Maui Invitational, those are still high-quality, mid-major programs that regularly send their teams into the tournament. The fact that Clemson gets to host a bubble team from last year in Auburn in the ACC/SEC Challenge only helps, too. From the looks of it, Clemson has plenty of wiggle room heading into conference play.
Although we do not know the dates for Clemson's ACC games, we know who and where they will play.
- Rival: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
- Repeats: Florida State Seminoles
- Home Only: California Golden Bears, Duke Blue Devils, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Stanford Cardinal, Syracuse Orange, Virginia Cavaliers, Wake Forest Demon Deacons
- Away Only: Boston College Eagles, Louisville Cardinals, Miami Hurricanes, North Carolina State Wolfpack, Pittsburgh Panthers, SMU Mustangs, Virginia Tech Hokies
- No Play: North Carolina Tar Heels
Having this robust a non-conference schedule almost surely guarantees Clemson a bid into the NCAA Tournament, as long as the Tigers do not fall apart during ACC play. With so many Quad 1 and 2 wins to be had in the non-conference, all Clemson may need to do is get to, or even approach, 20 wins to effectively be a shoo-in for this year's tournament. The question is how far will Clemson go?
Clemson bowed out in the first round last NCAA Tournament to what was a red-hot Iowa program.
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