Clemson Tigers
ACC
0-0 (0-0 conf)
SP+ #34
Ratings
2025 final
- SP+
- 9.5 (#34)
- SP+ Offense
- 27.5
- SP+ Defense
- 18.9
- SRS
- 6.2
- FPI
- 9.4
- Elo
- 1755
- Talent
- 918
- Recruiting
- 243 (#20)
2026 Outlook
Projected wins
8.0p10 6.0 — p90 10.0
| Round | Prob | |
|---|---|---|
| Win conference | 3.5% | |
| Make CFP | 6.8% | |
| Quarterfinal | 1.9% | |
| Semifinal | 0.4% | |
| Natl. final | 0.0% | |
| Natl. champ | 0.0% |
Schedule
proj record 8.1–3.9
Schedule
62nd
toughest of 136
Offenses faced
85th
toughest of 136
Defenses faced
62nd
toughest of 136
Strength of schedule — how tough this team's opponents are, ranked 1 (hardest) to 136 (easiest) · by 2025 SP+ · 1 FCS game.
| Wk | Opponent | SP+ | Score | Proj | Win% | Res |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | @LSU | +10.3 | 23-26 | -2.9 | 43% | — |
| 2 | vsGeorgia Southern | -9.4 | 36-14 | +22.5 | 91% | — |
| 3 | vsNorth Carolina | -6.6 | 35-14 | +21.4 | 90% | — |
| 4 | @California | -3.2 | 32-23 | +8.8 | 70% | — |
| 5 | vsMiami | +20.7 | 21-28 | -6.7 | 34% | — |
| 7 | vsCharleston Southern | FCS | 46-3* | +43.2 | 100% | — |
| 8 | vsVirginia Tech | -10.1 | 33-20 | +13.2 | 79% | — |
| 9 | @Florida State | +7.2 | 24-29 | -4.9 | 38% | — |
| 10 | @Syracuse | -13.1 | 36-20 | +15.7 | 83% | — |
| 11 | vsGeorgia Tech | +9.3 | 28-22 | +5.7 | 63% | — |
| 12 | @Duke | +6.6 | 28-25 | +3.5 | 59% | — |
| 13 | vsSouth Carolina | +5.9 | 27-22 | +4.2 | 60% | — |
* FBS-vs-FCS estimate from the SP+ gap — no per-game model for FCS opponents.
Quarterbacks · 3
2026 · 67
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB | 1st | Christopher Vizzina | SO | 6'4" | 210 | ★★★★ |
| QB | 2nd | Chris Denson | FR | 6'2" | 190 | ★★★ |
| QB | 3rd | Trent Pearman | JR | 6'0" | 195 | — |
Running Backs · 3
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RB | 1st | Chris Johnson Jr.← SMU | SO | 6'0" | 184 | ★★★ |
| RB | 2nd | Gideon Davidson | FR | 6'0" | 200 | ★★★★ |
| RB | 3rd | David Eziomume | FR | 6'0" | 215 | ★★★★ |
Wide Receivers · 11
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | 1st | T.J. Moore | SO | 6'3" | 200 | ★★★★★ |
| WR | 2nd | Bryant Wesco Jr. | SO | 6'2" | 185 | ★★★★ |
| WR | 3rd | Tyler Brown | SO | 5'11" | 185 | — |
| WR | 4th | Tristan Smith | SR | 6'5" | 205 | — |
| WR | 5th | Cole Turner | JR | 6'1" | 185 | ★★★ |
| WR | 6th | Clark Sanderson | FR | 5'9" | 175 | — |
| WR | 7th | Chase Byrd | FR | 5'10" | 185 | — |
| WR | 8th | Juju Preston | FR | 6'0" | 165 | — |
| WR | 9th | Tristan Martinez | SO | 5'9" | 180 | — |
| WR | — | Zach Jackson | JR | 6'3" | 215 | — |
| WR | — | Jaylen Brown-Wallace← Wingate | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Tight Ends · 5
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TE | 1st | Christian Bentancur | FR | 6'4" | 240 | ★★★★ |
| TE | 2nd | Olsen Patt-Henry | JR | 6'3" | 240 | ★★★★ |
| TE | 3rd | Ian Schieffelin | SR | 6'8" | 265 | — |
| TE | 4th | Banks Pope | SR | 6'4" | 250 | ★★★ |
| TE | 5th | Logan Brooking | FR | 6'4" | 235 | ★★★ |
Offensive Line · 2
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OL | — | Collin Sadler | JR | 6'6" | 310 | ★★★★ |
| OL | — | Brayden Jacobs | FR | 6'7" | 350 | ★★★★ |
Defensive Line · 15
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DE | 1st | Will Heldt | JR | 6'6" | 260 | ★★★ |
| DE | 2nd | Jahiem Lawson | JR | 6'2" | 250 | ★★★ |
| DE | 3rd | Cade Denhoff | SR | 6'5" | 260 | ★★★★ |
| DE | 4th | Darien Mayo | FR | 6'7" | 270 | ★★★★ |
| DE | 5th | Ari Watford | FR | 6'5" | 245 | ★★★★ |
| DL | 1st | Devarrick Woods← Texas State | JR | 6'3" | 290 | ★★★ |
| DL | 2nd | Markus Strong← Oklahoma | SO | 6'3" | 297 | ★★★ |
| DL | 3rd | Caden Story | JR | 6'3" | 285 | ★★★★ |
| DL | — | Kourtney Kelly← West Georgia | — | — | — | ★★★ |
| DT | 1st | Vic Burley | SO | 6'4" | 320 | ★★★★ |
| DT | 2nd | Amare Adams | FR | 6'4" | 310 | ★★★★★ |
| DT | 3rd | Champ Thompson | FR | 6'3" | 290 | ★★★ |
| DT | 4th | Hevin Brown-Shuler | FR | 6'3" | 315 | ★★★★ |
| EDGE | 1st | London Merritt← Colorado | FR | 6'3" | 250 | ★★★ |
| EDGE | — | CJ Wesley← Howard | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Linebackers · 6
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LB | 1st | Sammy Brown | SO | 6'2" | 235 | ★★★★★ |
| LB | 2nd | Jeremiah Alexander | JR | 6'2" | 230 | ★★★★★ |
| LB | 3rd | Kobe McCloud | JR | 5'11" | 225 | ★★★ |
| LB | 4th | Fletcher Cothran | JR | 6'3" | 225 | — |
| LB | 5th | Joseph Roberto II | FR | 6'2" | 225 | — |
| LB | 6th | Drew Woodaz | FR | 6'2" | 215 | ★★★ |
Defensive Backs · 15
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CB | 1st | Ashton Hampton | SO | 6'2" | 200 | ★★★ |
| CB | 2nd | Elliot Washington II← Penn State | JR | 5'11" | 199 | ★★★ |
| CB | 3rd | Jeadyn Lukus | SR | 6'2" | 200 | ★★★★★ |
| CB | 4th | Branden Strozier | SO | 6'1" | 180 | ★★★★ |
| CB | 5th | Corian Gipson | FR | 6'1" | 190 | ★★★★ |
| CB | — | Donovan Starr← Auburn | FR | 5'11" | 182 | ★★★ |
| DB | 1st | Ronan Hanafin | JR | 6'3" | 215 | ★★★★ |
| DB | 2nd | Misun Kelley | SO | 5'9" | 190 | ★★★ |
| S | 1st | Corey Myrick← Southern Miss | SO | 6'3" | 200 | ★★★ |
| S | 2nd | Kylon Griffin | JR | 5'11" | 200 | — |
| S | 3rd | Tyler Venables | SR | 5'11" | 205 | — |
| S | 4th | Rob Billings | SO | 6'2" | 205 | ★★★★ |
| S | 5th | Jakarrion Kenan | FR | 6'1" | 190 | ★★★ |
| S | 6th | Noah Dixon | FR | 6'1" | 195 | ★★★★ |
| S | — | Jerome Carter III← Old Dominion | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Special Teams · 7
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LS | 1st | Philip Florenzo | SR | 6'2" | 240 | — |
| P | 1st | Jack Smith | JR | 6'5" | 240 | — |
| P | 2nd | Will McCune | JR | 6'1" | 220 | — |
| PK | 1st | Nolan Hauser | SO | 6'1" | 190 | ★★★ |
| PK | 2nd | Charlie Reed | FR | 6'3" | 205 | — |
| PK | 3rd | Robert Gunn III | JR | 6'0" | 180 | ★★★ |
| PK | — | Quinn Castner | SR | 5'5" | 145 | — |
Projected Season
2026 · win prob / game
Exp. Wins
8.1
Exp. Losses
3.9
Toss-ups
3
bars: model win probabilityfav / toss-up / dog
2025 · pct vs FBS
SP+ Off
27.553
Off PPA
+0.1860
Pass PPA
+0.2555
Rush PPA
+0.1047
Success
43%54
Explosive
1.2240
PlayerMedian (50th)percentile vs league
Advanced
2025 · opponent-adjusted PPA / play
| Split | Offense | Defense |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | +0.18 | +0.09 |
| Passing | +0.25 | +0.17 |
| Rushing | +0.10 | +0.04 |
| 1st Down | +0.09 | +0.00 |
| 2nd Down | +0.14 | +0.08 |
| 3rd Down | +0.37 | +0.39 |
Scoring Trend
2025 · pts/game
PPG For
28.7
PPG Against
20.4
Differential
+8.3
— Points for— Points against
dots: W / L2025
- Overall
- 7-5
- Home
- 3-4
- Away
- 4-1
- Conference
- 4-4
- Non-Conference
- 3-1
- One-Score (≤8)
- 1-3
- Avg Margin
- +8.3
Situational Splits
2025 · record · pts
| Split | Record | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | |||
| Home | 3-4 | 28.0 | 24.0 |
| Away | 4-1 | 29.6 | 15.4 |
| Neutral | 0-1 | 10.0 | 22.0 |
| Competition | |||
| vs Ranked (SP+ 25) | 1-2 | 18.0 | 25.3 |
| Conference | 4-4 | 29.3 | 23.5 |
| Non-conference | 3-2 | 24.0 | 15.8 |
Season History · last 12
5 AP top-10 · 12 postseason
| Season | Record | Conf | SP+ | AP | Post |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 7-5 | 4-4 | #34 | #4 | 0-1 |
| 2024 | 10-3 | 8-1 | #22 | #9 | 0-1 |
| 2023 | 8-4 | 4-4 | #22 | #9 | 1-0 |
| 2022 | 11-2 | 9-0 | #13 | #4 | 0-1 |
| 2021 | 9-3 | 6-2 | #8 | #3 | 1-0 |
| 2020 | 10-1 | 9-1 | #4 | — | 0-1 |
| 2019 | 13-0 | 9-0 | #4 | — | 1-1 |
| 2018 | 13-0 | 9-0 | #3 | — | 2-0 |
| 2017 | 12-1 | 8-1 | #5 | — | 0-1 |
| 2016 | 12-1 | 8-1 | #2 | — | 2-0 |
| 2015 | 13-0 | 9-0 | #4 | — | 1-1 |
| 2014 | 9-3 | 6-2 | #18 | — | 1-0 |
Recent Form · last 5
4-1 SU · 3-1 ATS · O0/U4
Betting Profile
2025 · 12 w/ line
| Straight up | 7-6 |
| ATS | 5-742% |
| Over / Under | 4-8 O-U |
| — ATS splits — | |
| As favorite | 3-7 |
| As underdog | 2-0 |
| Home | 1-6 |
| Away | 4-1 |
vs closing line · splits show cover–no cover
Recruiting Classes
avg #12 · 153 blue-chip
■ 5★■ 4★■ 3★210 rated signees
| Class | Natl | Pts | 5★ | 4★ | 3★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | #20 | 243 | 0 | 10 | 5 |
| 2025 | #26 | 227 | 1 | 6 | 5 |
| 2024 | #11 | 272 | 2 | 10 | 8 |
| 2023 | #11 | 273 | 0 | 19 | 2 |
| 2022 | #10 | 261 | 2 | 8 | 7 |
| 2021 | #5 | 291 | 3 | 15 | 2 |
| 2020 | #3 | 310 | 5 | 12 | 2 |
| 2019 | #10 | 276 | 1 | 12 | 6 |
| 2018 | #7 | 284 | 5 | 7 | 5 |
| 2017 | #16 | 239 | 2 | 8 | 4 |
247Sports composite · class rank vs all FBS
Roster Talent
2026
Portal in 11net -4Out 15
Portal avg stars (in / out)3.0 / 3.2
Notable Portal Moves
| ▲ | Markus Strong | DL | 3★ | ← Oklahoma |
| ▲ | London Merritt | EDGE | 3★ | ← Colorado |
| ▲ | Chris Johnson Jr. | RB | 3★ | ← SMU |
| ▲ | Donovan Starr | CB | 3★ | ← Auburn |
| ▼ | Stephiylan Green | DL | 4★ | → LSU |
| ▼ | Marquise Henderson | RB | 4★ | → Samford |
| ▼ | Caden Story | DL | 4★ | → — |
| ▼ | Ricardo Jones | S | 3★ | → Vanderbilt |
returning PPA · portal · talent composite · 2026
Injury Report · 0
No injuries reported.
Team News
20 items
- ‘He’s gonna be a head coach, there’s no doubt’: Swinney on Clemson coachDabo Swinney says one of his current coaches and former player will be a head coach in college football.CLEM6h
- Clemson offers the No. 1 tight end in the 2028 recruiting classDabo Swinney and the Tigers have extended an offer to one of the top players in the 2028 class.CLEM1d
- Clemson priority 4-star target Seth Williams announces commitment dateClemson’s final target in the 2026 class Seth Williams has a commitment date.CLEM1d
- ‘You’re the Common Denominator’ — Insider Blames Dabo Swinney Amid Clemson’s Concerning Roster SlideLast season, fans had national championship expectations for the Clemson Tigers. Instead, the program stumbled to a disappointing 7-6 finish and never looked like a serious title threat.CLEM2d
- Three Takeaways From Clemson's ACC Kickoff AppearanceThese are things every fan should know about the Clemson Tigers after ACC Kickoff wrapped up.CLEM2d
- Can't Wait For Saturday Expect a Clemson rebound after rare rough seasonJul. 17— Once again, I will represent the state of Illinois on The Associated Press AP Top 25 panel. It is an honor and one of my favorite parts of the job I have been doing for 38 years. Of course, some of you won't like how I rank the teams each week and that's cool. We are all entitled to our opinions. I will take any criticism you want to deliver. If you make a convincing argument, I will ...CLEM3d
- Paul Finebaum Blasts Dabo Swinney Before College Football SeasonESPN’s Paul Finebaum has never shied away from controversy, and he made headlines on Friday morning during an appearance on “Get Up.”Following several comments from Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney during ACC Media Day on Thursday, Finebaum took aim at the longtime coach for repeatedly referencing Clemson’s past success as the program looks to […] The post Paul Finebaum Blasts Dabo Swinney Before College Football Season appeared first on HEAVY.CLEM3d
- Paul Finebaum Critiques Clemson Tigers Head Coach Dabo SwinneyThe 2026 college football season is approaching, and several head coaches are looking to improve after last year. Since taking over in 2008, he's gone 187-53 overall, 12-10 in bowl games and won two national championships. The Tigers went into the year with national championship aspirations, but went just 7-6 and lost to the Penn State Nittany Lions in the Pinstripe Bowl.CLEM3d
- Dabo Swinney receives new hot seat status from CBS SportsAfter a woeful season that saw Clemson go from preseason No. 4 to 7-6, CBS Sports gives Dabo Swinney a hot seat rating as the 2026 season nears.CLEM3d
- Clemson HC Dabo Swinney Admits He Made Controversial Choice at QBDespite having the funds for a high-profile transfer, Swinney is betting Clemson’s season on homegrown talent, knowing he’ll face intense scrutiny if the quarterback gamble fails.CLEM3d
- Is time running out on Dabo Swinney at Clemson?Swinney seems to be just as stubborn as ever. Which begs the question: What's Clemson to do if it has another disappointing season?CLEM3d
- Dabo Swinney Raves About Clemson QB Christopher Vizzina at ACC KickoffSwinney made it clear where he stands on Vizzina during the ACC's previous event on Thursday.
- Why Clemson coach Dabo Swinney's next college football job will be his best jobWith Clemson struggling in recent seasons, it turns out that Dabo Swinney's next job may be his best job yet.CLEM3d
- Six Clemson Football Players Featured in New Nike Partnership AnnouncementSix Clemson football players just landed spots in a groundbreaking new Nike NIL program celebrating 25 years of partnership. Here's what it means.CLEM4d
- Clemson's Dabo Swinney says Congress could help deter tamperingClemson's Dabo Swinney said tampering in college football is "rampant" and "there has to be some type of order put in place," pointing to congressional help as a possible answer.CLEM4d
- Clemson, FSU, Miami? USA TODAY Sports ranks best ACC football programsClemson, Florida State and Miami all make a case for the best college football program in the ACC. Who claims the top spot in these new rankings?CLEM4d
- Dabo Swinney speaks up about Clemson’s QB competition at ACC KickoffHere’s what Clemson head coach had to say about Clemson’s quarterback conception ahead of the 2026 season at ACC Kickoff.CLEM4d
- Clemson Has a 'Culture' Worry Before 2026 Season, Per InsiderAfter wasting NFL-caliber talent during a lackluster season, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney faces a pivotal test of his portal strategy and locker room cohesion to prove his dynasty isn't fading.CLEM4d
- Clemson's Dabo Swinney Raises Eyebrows With Christopher Vizzina SnubClemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney recently snubbed quarterback Christopher Vizzina, and now, he's being asked to explain why.
- Dinich: Clemson Tigers will be better because they have to beDinich: Clemson Tigers will be better because they have to beCLEM4d