We are about three weeks away from the last College Football Playoff rankings coming out. The playoffs are upon us and there is the chaos of college football has just gotten underway. Last week three out of the top five teams in the country lost. The then No. 2 Clemson, No. 3 Michigan and No. 4 Washington were all handed losses. This greatly affected the position of the college football playoff race.
Based on last Saturday November 12th, 2016 Alabama is the de facto No. 1. They are currently undefeated and have not lost their stride since opening the season with a 52-6 blowout victory over USC.
Still, there are a bounty of teams that only have one loss. This list includes: Ohio State, Michigan, Clemson and Washington. There are also a lot of two-loss programs that still have a shot at the four team playoff. This includes Wisconsin, Penn State, Oklahoma, Colorado, and Oklahoma State. With all these teams jockeying for position, where do the Tigers stand in all of this?
The Clemson Tiger football team is currently No. 4 in the College Football Playoff standings. If the Tigers win out the rest of their games, they’re in. It sounds easy
enough right? Possibly.
The remaining opponent on the Tigers’ regular season schedule is a tough one: The South Carolina Gamecocks.
The Gamecocks are in prime position for an upset if the Tigers do not watch out. Under the Will Muschamp era, they have played a lot of quarterbacks this season, but they now believe they have found their man.
Jake Bentley, from Opelika, Alabama skipped his senior season in high school to sign his letter of intent early with the Gamecocks. Burning his redshirt in the middle of the season, the Gamecocks have found their spark with the freshman and have started playing better.
The Tigers have to step up to the challenge in order to solidify their playoff ranking.
Clemson will need to come out Saturday, November 26th, and play with fire and intensity. They have to come out to a fast start in order to win the battle in the trenches early. The South Carolina Gamecocks have an SEC-caliber defense, that has the potential to create problems for the Tigers, offensively.
This win against South Carolina could propel Clemson into the national stage again with a possible playoff berth and National Championship appearance.
Beating South Carolina would put the Tigers into prime position to play in the semifinal game. Dabo Swinney has a famous saying that will be forever etched into the hearts of Tiger fans everyone. “There are three things that we want to do every year. Win the state, win the ACC, and compete for a national championship and win,” said Swinney.
“All In – it’s not just a slogan. It’s a way of life here, and it’s about being committed to just doing the best you can with what you’ve got. That’s what it’s about. It’s about doing your very best on and off the field – and the same thing with the coaches, man. Just take what you’ve got and do the best you can,” Swinney said.
Coach Swinney has had another great season as being the coach of the Clemson Tigers. But when November rolls around every year, we are reminded of the joy of postseason college football.
The Clemson Tigers, are ready to make a playoff run. The question is, where will their destination be?
