The 2019 Clemson football season is upon us, and the defending national champions are set to kick off thisThursday night against cross-division rival, Georgia Tech. Before the season begins, let us take a look at the Tigers’ 2019 schedule and breakdown each game up until the potential ACC Championship Game in Charlotte this December.
Clemson has two preseason ranked opponents on its schedule, both of whom the Tigers will face within the first three weeks. Clemson’s biggest test looks to be its week two matchup versus Texas A&M in Death Valley, a matchup that Tiger fans have circled for the past year or two. Once Clemson gets through week three, the schedule eases up a bit and the Tigers have a great shot at making it back to the ACC Championship Game, and potentially the College Football Playoff.
Let’s breakdown the 2019 schedule!
Game 1: Home vs. Georgia Tech (Aug. 29, 8:00p.m., ACCN)
Home opener. 8:00p.m. kickoff. College GameDay. What more do you want from your season opener? The Tigers face rival Georgia Tech to kick off the season. Expect the energy in Death Valley to be in peak form. Georgia Tech brings in former Temple head coach, Geoff Collins to lead the program this year, and Collins brings a new element to the Yellow Jacket program. Tech has done away with its traditional triple option offense and has transitioned to a pro-style offense centered around passing the ball. This will be a different look for Clemson defensive coordinator, Brent Venables, to work with, but this task should not be too big for his defense. Clemson returns nearly every starter on the offensive side, and that should be enough to cover this game.
Prediction: Clemson 42, Georgia Tech 17
Game 2: Home vs. No. 12 Texas A&M (Sept. 7, 3:30p.m., ABC)
This is easily the biggest game of the season for Clemson. The Aggies return a lot of talent on both sides of the ball and under second-year coach, Jimbo Fisher, A&M should be able to compete with the Tigers better than any team on Clemson’s schedule this season. The Aggies gave the Tigers a run for their money last year in College Station, with Clemson prevailing 28-26 on the road. Expect this year’s game to be a shootout in the Valley. Trevor Lawrence versus Kellen Mond will be one of the best quarterback matchups this season. There are skill players all over the field for both teams and both teams have younger defenses, but those defenses are skilled enough to be able to shut an offense down. The Tigers and Aggies do not have another scheduled game for the foreseeable future, so expect the energy to be high for this one.
Prediction: Clemson 31, Texas A&M 20
Game 3: Away at No. 22 Syracuse (Sept. 14, 7:30p.m., ABC)
It is no secret that Clemson-Syracuse has become the ACC’s biggest matchup, given both games have come down to the final seconds each of the past two seasons. Syracuse is the only team to beat Clemson in the regular season over the last two years, and the Orange almost pulled off another upset last year in the Valley had it not been for Chase Brice’s heroics in the fourth quarter. Syracuse loses star quarterback Eric Dungey (Clemson fans breathe a sigh of relief) and will turn to sophomore Tommy DeVito, who may turn into one of the ACC’s top quarterbacks soon. A primetime ABC kickoff means College GameDay will most likely be in town. You can essentially call this the ACC Atlantic Division title game, although this year, the score should not be nearly as close.
Prediction: Clemson 42, Syracuse 21
Game 4: Home vs. Charlotte (Sept. 21, Time and TV TBA)
The Tigers will essentially have a scrimmage this weekend. Charlotte will come to Death Valley for the first time, but the friendly confines will not be that friendly for the visiting 49ers. Charlotte has failed to have a winning season in its first four years as a program, but under head coach Will Healy, the 49ers are improving each year. Expect a lot of offense from Trevor Lawrence and company, and the traditional fourth quarter appearance from Chase Brice.
Prediction: Clemson 56, Charlotte 10
Game 5: Away at North Carolina (Sept. 28, Time and TV TBA)
Clemson returns to Chapel Hill for the first time since 2010, the last time UNC won a game in this series. Legendary coach Mack Brown is back in the Tar Heel state for his second stint with the program and the expectations are high for his team. North Carolina will turn to true freshman quarterback, Sam Howell, to lead this season, and under Brown, Howell should develop into a great quarterback in a conference lacking deep quarterback talent outside of Trevor Lawrence. North Carolina has the potential to go to a bowl game this year, but one should not expect one of their wins to come here.
Prediction: Clemson 52, North Carolina 14
*Clemson faces the bye week on October 5. Could be close, but more than likely Tiger fans should feel good about this one. Clemson 100, Bye Week 0*
Game 6: Home vs. Florida State (Oct. 12, Time and TV TBA)
The big interdivision rivalry game for both sides has been pretty whopsided in recent years. Clemson has won four-straight in the series, including last years’ 59-10 blowout in Tallahassee. The Seminoles will turn to either sophomore James Blackman or senior transfer from Wisconsin, Alex Hornibrook. Florida State still possesses tons of talent, and under second-year coach Willie Taggart, the ‘Noles could sneak into the ACC Atlantic Division race, but it has to beat Clemson in Death Valley, a tall task for any team to deal with. Expect the ‘Noles to be somewhere in the 4-1 or 3-2 range when they head to Clemson in October.
Prediction: Clemson 38, Florida State 17
Game 7: Away at Louisville (Oct. 19, Time and TV TBA)
We honestly do not have much for this game. Louisville should be better under first-year coach Scott Satterfield, who led App State into the national spotlight during his tenure with the Mountaineers. Satterfield faces a massive rebuild at Louisville though after a tumultuous 2-10 season last year (Lamar Jackson’s college career looks even better now), but a turnaround is possible. Defense needs the most help; the Cardinals gave up 50+ points in each of their final five games last year. Good luck when Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne come to town.
Prediction: Clemson 56, Louisville 13
Game 8: Home vs. Boston College (Oct. 26, Time and TV TBA)
Boston College has to be the most consistent program in the ACC. The Eagles have gone 7-5 on five different occasions during head coach Steve Addazio’s tenure, but the expectations for this year are high. Boston College has to find a way to get over the hump and compete with Clemson, Florida State and Syracuse at the top. The Eagles return star junior running back, AJ Dillon, who rushed for 1108 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. Expect Boston College to be a dark horse in the ACC this year.
Prediction: Clemson 38, Boston College 21
Game 9: Home vs. Wofford (Nov. 2, Time and TV TBA)
Clemson plays Wofford for the third time this decade and the Tigers will end this game the same way they have the previous two: victorious. Expect this to be a game where the reserves get extended playing time as Clemson enters into the homestretch of the season. This will be a tuneup game for Dabo and his staff.
Prediction: Clemson 52, Wofford 10
Game 10: Away at North Carolina State (Nov. 9, Time and TV TBA)
The Tigers have won every contest but one against NC State over the last decade, but the Wolfpack have made a few of those contests real close in the process. The Textile Bowl has turned into a nice annual matchup, but Clemson has had its way with NC State. The Wolfpack lost quarterback Ryan Finley and have zero answers heading into 2019 as a three-way race has emerged in fall camp. NC State got crushed last year in Death Valley and is going to be looking for revenge this year at home. However, NC State defensively will struggle with the Clemson offense, which should have its way in Raleigh.
Prediction: Clemson 45, NC State 20
Game 11: Home vs. Wake Forest (Nov. 16, Time and TV TBA)
Clemson’s final home game will come against Wake Forest, and it should be a day of honoring the seniors and scoring a lot of points. The Demon Deacons are improving, but the Tigers should be too much to handle in this one. This could be the last Saturday in Death Valley for Tee Higgins, Amari Rodgers and Travis Etienne, but hopefully not. Clemson will look to use this game as a tuneup for the postseason.
Prediction: Clemson 56, Wake Forest 14
*The dreaded off week again. Tigers by 90*
Game 12: Away at South Carolina (Nov. 30, Time and TV TBA)
Not much to say about this one. Clemson’s won five straight in the rivalry and it does not seem like that will end anytime soon. Hopes are high in Columbia, but the realities of the Gamecocks competing with the Tigers this year is pretty slim. Trevor Lawrence’s first trip to Williams Brice should be a field day and Clemson should shut down Jake Bentley pretty early on in the game. The Tigers will wrap up the regular season with this game and get ready for postseason play the following week. Gimme six!
Prediction: Clemson 42, South Carolina 20
Game 13: ACC Championship Game (Dec. 7, Time TBA, ABC)
We’re calling it now: Clemson will win its fifth straight division title and play for the conference championship again. The question is, who will the Tigers play? The most likely candidates are Miami, Virginia or Virginia Tech. Miami and Virginia are the favorites to win the Coastal, but neither team seems to be in position to dethrone Clemson. We will see as the season unfolds.
2019 should be another prosperous year for the Tigers. Expectations are high again but Dabo and company seem to meet them every year. The Tiger is excited and we hope you are too. Cheers to another year of college football.
