How will Clemson football fare after possibly its best season in program history after finally defeating the Alabama Crimson Tide?
The defending National Champion Clemson Tigers come into 2017 with high expectations now that head coach Dabo Swinney finally got over the hump. To the delight of most college football fans in the country, Clemson knocked off the Alabama Crimson Tide just one year after Bama had defeated them in the second College Football Playoff Championship.
With Deshaun Watson gone, this could be considered a rebuilding year for Clemson. Watson was the heart and soul of this team each season he was the starting quarterback. He carried the Tigers to two straight 14-win seasons, and that will be hard to replicate. Watson also posted career highs in passing yards with over 4,500 yards and passing touchdowns with 41.
Now that Watson is gone, Clemson has to find the answer to their biggest question, who will take the reigns of the offense? However, it could take them a few games to figure that question out. Some of the teams they face at the beginning of the year might not give them the opportunity to win while having inconsistent play at quarterback.
In the first edition of the Amway Coaches Poll, Clemson was ranked No. 5, behind teams like the Florida State Seminoles, USC Trojans, and Ohio State Buckeyes (the team who Clemson dominated in their Semifinal game). Even though the Tigers probably won’t be as good as they were over the last two seasons, that ranking still seems a little bit low for a defending National Champion.
Now, let’s take a look at five reasons why the Clemson Tigers will stink in 2017.
5. Too much pressure to win back-to-back titles
The only teams to win back-to-back National Championships in the last two decades are Alabama and USC. And USC did not officially win two titles in a row as the LSU Tigers actually won the BCS National Title Game that year.
Especially for a program like Clemson that is getting their first taste of success at the highest level in quite a while, it could be a big adjustment to the enormous spotlight. With Watson gone it could be even harder for all the players in the locker room to adjust.
However, Swinney is starting to prove that he is one of the best coaches in college football. He’s getting Clemson to the point where they do not rebuild, they just reload, much like Alabama and Ohio State. Recruiting at a high level each and every class is something that keeps teams at the top of the college football landscape every year.
4. Defensive line has to carry the load on defense
Clemson’s defensive line is one of the best in the country. The combination of defensive tackles Christian Wilkins and Dexter Lawrence and defensive ends Clelin Ferrell and Austin Bryant is a nearly unstoppable group.
However, the rest of the defense could struggle to keep up with the defensive line. The secondary is lacking now with Ryan Carter, Marcus Edmond, and Korrin Wiggins as the most experienced options. Yet, Edmond and Wiggins probably won’t start most games in 2017.
The linebacking corps relies on redshirt senior Dorian O’Daniel to lead the group. Former star linebacker Ben Boulware will be missed after he departed for the NFL, now with the Carolina Panthers.
Don’t be surprised if Clemson has a solid defense in 2017, but nothing like they had in year’s past when they faced Alabama in back-to-back National Championship Games.
3. Loss of Mike Williams will hurt Clemson
The returning trio of Hunter Renfrow, Ray-Ray McCloud, and Deon Cain form one of the better receiving corps in the nation. However, they lose possibly the best receiver in the country in superstar Mike Williams, who was a first round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Watch out for either sophomore receiver Cornell Powell or redshirt junior Trevion Thompson to breakout in 2017. Yet, if either Renfrow, McCloud or Cain does not perform as expected, the Clemson offense could be in big trouble.
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Clemson needs to the receiving corps and running backs to carry the load offensively in 2017. Yet, even the running back stable loses Wayne Gallman who was a major piece to the offensive puzzle the last two seasons.
Replacing Williams means replacing more than 1,300 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns. Clemson also loses Artavis Scott and his 614 receiving yards and five touchdowns.
2. No consistency at quarterback
We’ve hit on the importance of Watson to the Clemson offense quite a few times already. However, either junior Kelly Bryant or freshman and former five-star recruit Hunter Johnson will be the next man up behind center.
Bryant should start the season as the guy that’ll have the keys to the Clemson offense. But he’ll have a short leash if he does not perform early. Johnson is the best long-term option but he’ll have some growing pains associated with him.
Only 18 passes have been attempted by Bryant in his career, and one of those attempts was picked off. With Johnson being a freshman, that means that the two options at quarterback have 18 combined attempts between them. For defending National Champions, that is not a successful formula.
1. Florida State and Louisville
Clemson barely overcame the Louisville Cardinals and Florida State Seminoles in 2016. They defeated Louisville in the final seconds of the game, when the Cardinals were not able to convert on their final drive.
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Florida State was just one turnover and three points away from defeating Clemson. However, that seemed to happen to the Noles on more than one occasion in 2016. Moreover, Florida State promises to be even better in 2017.
Both Florida State and Clemson have some of the best quarterbacks in the country between Heisman hopeful Deondre Francois and the defending Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson. Both Francois and Jackson are eons ahead of whatever option Clemson goes with at QB.
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If Clemson does overcome both Florida State and Louisville, then they still have to worry about the Auburn Tigers, Virginia Tech Hokies, NC State Wolfpack, and South Carolina Gamecocks. There’s quite a few opportunities for opponents to pull an upset on Clemson this year. Not to mention the teams that might be favored against them.