Photo courtesy of Clemson athletics
Odds came out this week, listing college football teams’ chances of winning the national championship in 2022.
Clemson’s +1200 odds caught the eye. Even though Clemson has won 10 or more games in 11 consecutive seasons, not winning the ACC last year, and losing both coordinators is causing some to doubt the Tigers in 2022. With amazing success for more than a decade now, a strong cultural foundation is hard to bet against in college football.
That doesn’t mean Clemson will be the 2022 national champions but those are appealing odds for a program that has dominated the teams on its regular season schedule. Let’s take a look at the recent history Clemson has had against its opponents:
1. at Georgia Tech (Mercedes-Benz Stadium)
Clemson is currently on a 7-game winning streak against the “Ramblin’ Wreck.” While Georgia Tech pushed Clemson to the limit last year, few are picking the Yellow Jackets to end this skid. The game is in Mercedes-Benz stadium on Labor Day night. Not playing this at Bobby Dodd Stadium will likely make things even tougher on Georgia Tech.
2. vs. Furman
Clemson has never lost to a FCS team. It is 36-0 against FCS teams. The inception of Division I-AA started in 1978. It was later called the Football Championship Subdivision.
3. vs. Louisiana Tech
Clemson is 3-0 all-time against Louisiana Tech. Can anyone recall the last time Clemson lost to a Group of 5 program? That’s right, in 2009 Clemson lost to No. 15 TCU while the Horned Frogs were members of the Mountain West Conference. The Group of 5 terminology didn’t even exist then.
4. at Wake Forest
During the two dream seasons for the Demon Deacons in 2006 and last season, they failed to beat Clemson. Wake Forest’s last win in the series came in 2008.
5. vs. NC State
NC State did beat its Textile Bowl rivals last season in Raleigh. Death Valley will certainly be rocking in this revenge game. Clemson has won eight of the past nine games against the Wolfpack.
6. at Boston College
Clemson is on an 11-game winning streak against the Eagles. Boston College was unable to hold a 28-10 lead when the teams met in 2020.
7. at Florida State
When the Seminoles joined the ACC in 1992, they took the conference by storm. For a time, they surpassed Clemson, who was a 1953 charter member, for the most conference titles. The story has been way different since 2015. The Tigers enjoy a 6-game winning streak against Florida State. The program with the most potential to consistently challenge the Tigers has had four consecutive losing seasons.
8. Syracuse
The Orange have given Clemson a case of the “scarys” since joining the conference in 2013. Clemson fell to the Orange in 2017, was forced to rally in 2018 and needed a missed field goal to escape last season. Yet, Clemson is 7-1 vs. Syracuse in ACC play.
9. at Notre Dame
With Trevor Lawrence out, Notre Dame snapped Clemson’s 29-game ACC winning streak in a 47-40 double-overtime thriller in 2020. Backup DJ Ugiagelelei put on a heck of a show in Lawrence’s absence, but it wasn’t enough. Lawrence came back for the ACC Championship to crush Notre Dame later in the season, 34-10. Ugiagelelei will get another shot at the Fighting Irish in South Bend in 2022. Clemson is 3-1 vs. Notre Dame since 2015.
10. Louisville
There have been nail-biters along the way, but not even 2016 Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson could beat Clemson. The Cardinals are 0-7 all-time vs. the Tigers.
11. Miami
Over the last three meetings, Clemson has outscored Miami by a combined 138-20 margin. That included a 58-0 thrashing in 2015 and a 38-3 rout in the 2017 ACC Championship. Miami has scored a grand total of one offensive touchdown over those three contests. Can head coach Mario Cristobal have the Hurricanes ready to challenge Clemson in year one?
12. South Carolina
Clemson has won seven straight games over instate rival South Carolina, and will do everything in its power to continue that. Shane Beamer exceeded all expectations in his first year as South Carolina head coach. Can he make up enough ground in year two to have the Gamecocks ready?
Since 2014, Clemson is 70-4 vs the opponents listed above.
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