Athlon Sports predicts Clemson's 2022 season |
Athlon Sports, the longtime college football preview magazine, made its Clemson season predictions recently and all three analysts came to the same conclusion -- just in different ways.
The Tigers are picked to go 11-1 on the campaign, with two picking the loss at Notre Dame and Steven Lassan picking a defeat at Florida State in October. "Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei has to take a big step forward, and if he struggles again, freshman Cade Klubnik is ready to give the offense a spark. New coordinator Brandon Streeter doesn’t have to elevate this offense to tops in the ACC to win the league thanks to a dominant defense," Lassan said. "However, Clemson can’t get back to the playoff without better play on offense. This unit is once again littered with question marks, but the defense heads into the year as the best in college football. A dominant line leads the way, with rising stars in linebacker Trenton Simpson and safety Andrew Mukuba leading the back seven... "Clemson should be favored in double-digit games, but I’ll take an upset loss somewhere along the way – either at Boston College or Florida State – en route to 11-1." With that kind of season, a return to the College Football Playoff is back in the cards. "These Tigers won't waltz through the regular season undefeated, not with an early November road trip to Notre Dame and back-to-back ACC divisional games against Wake Forest and NC State on the docket but that doesn't mean Swinney's team won't still be favored in every single game," Athlon's Mark Ross says. "So if Clemson takes care of business then the Tigers should be in prime position to reclaim the ACC crown and potentially return to the College Football Playoff." They also rank Clemson's Labor Day opener as the No. 15 game of week one.
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