The latest AP Top 25 doesn’t put Clemson in the rankings, but it does sharpen the picture of what’s waiting ahead. The Tigers are 6-3 overall and 4-2 in the ACC, yet they still didn’t pick up a single top-25 vote for another week. Meanwhile, two of their final three opponents did, and that makes the stretch run look a lot more dangerous.
South Carolina climbed three spots to No. 20 in this week’s AP poll. The Gamecocks were already No. 21 in the first College Football Playoff rankings released Tuesday night, and after surviving a tight one against Texas A&M, they may have done enough to move even higher at 6-3. With Arkansas next on the schedule, they could keep rising before they meet Clemson at season’s end.
Duke is the other name Clemson has to keep an eye on. The Blue Devils sit at 7-2, one game better than both Clemson and South Carolina, and they were the second team receiving votes in this week’s poll. Manny Diaz’s team has plenty of momentum right now, and as the defending ACC champions, the idea of Duke breaking into the top 25 before its matchup with Miami feels very real.
That Miami game looms large for Duke, too. The Blue Devils’ final three regular-season games are brutal: at Miami, home against Clemson, and at Wake Forest.
If Duke handles that stretch, it could put itself in position to win the ACC. And if the Blue Devils knock off the Hurricanes, they would almost certainly be ranked when Clemson comes to town.
Miami still hasn’t had a true letdown game, either. The loss to Notre Dame wasn’t being treated that way, and Duke will be hoping to get revenge on Miami transfer Darian Mensah.
Even with the game in Coral Gables next week, the Hurricanes may have more to deal with than expected. It’s something to watch.
For Clemson, though, the focus has to be much simpler. Georgia Tech comes to town next Saturday afternoon, and the 2-7 Yellow Jackets are the worst team in the ACC by a wide margin.
This is the kind of game Clemson has to handle cleanly. Dabo Swinney’s team needs a complete performance in all three phases and should use it as a tune-up for the Friday night trip to Duke and the home finale against South Carolina.
Clemson still has a path to finishing 9-3 and 6-2, but the schedule is about to get much tougher. The Tigers’ only route to Charlotte is to beat Georgia Tech and Duke back to back.
In Other News...
Clemson Has Every Reason To Watch NC States Risky Gamble
North Carolina State appears ready to make one of the boldest coaching swings in the sport, with Philip Rivers reportedly working to finalize a deal to take over as the Wolfpacks next head coach. The former NFL quarterback and NC State alumnus would replace Dave Doeren, bringing a familiar name back to Raleigh but also a rsum that looks very different from the standard college coaching hire.
For Clemson, the move is worth watching closely because it could reshape a division rival in a hurry, for better or worse. Rivers has coached at the high school level, but he has not coached in college, which leaves plenty of questions about how quickly he could handle the demands of recruiting, staff building and the day-to-day grind of running a major program. If NC State is willing to embrace that gamble, the Tigers will have a front-row seat to see whether it pays off. [Read more 🡒]
SEC Criticism Of Lane Kiffin Just Got Harder For LSU To Ignore
Lane Kiffins latest loss to Alabama has only sharpened the scrutiny around LSUs season, and Paul Finebaum did not waste time turning up the pressure. After the defeat, Finebaum questioned whether Kiffin has truly figured out how to beat elite opponents, pointing to a pattern that has followed him even as he has found success against lesser competition. For a program trying to measure itself against the SECs best, that kind of criticism is hard to shrug off.
LSUs current record and the road ahead only add to the tension, because the Tigers still have games left that will say plenty about where this team really stands. Kiffin has managed to build momentum at times, but the lingering question is whether those gains will translate when the stakes rise and the opponent is at the top of the conference. [Read more 🡒]
Clemson's Thin Secondary Just Took Another Brutal Hit
Clemsons secondary was already working with little margin for error, and now it has to navigate the rest of the regular season without another key piece. Dabo Swinney said cornerback Donovan Starr will miss the remainder of the 2026 regular season because of an ankle injury, a tough blow for a defense that had leaned on him in an elevated role at nickel.
Branden Strozier is expected to inherit that spot, with freshman Marcell Gipson Jr. and senior Misun Kelley also in the mix to help fill the gap. There is at least a chance Starr could be back for the postseason, but for now Clemson has to patch together the position group and hope the next man up can hold the line through the stretch run. [Read more 🡒]