Clemson football enters November much like the last two seasons, but this time, they have the added pressure of being the defending national champions.
Oh, and a loss on the resume.
For the previous two years, the Tigers were unbeaten heading into the final full month of the season.
In 2015, Dabo Swinney’s crew didn’t suffer a loss until January and the national title game vs. Alabama, falling 45-40. Last year, they were unbeaten until November 12 when Pittsburgh spoiled “Senior Day” for Deshaun Watson and company, earning a 43-42 victory.
Clemson is hoping they can do what they did last year this season in recovering from a tough loss and running the table. The Tigers defeated Wake Forest, South Carolina, Virginia Tech in the ACC title game, Ohio State in the College Football Playoff semifinal and avenged the loss to Alabama with a 35-31 triumph.
Back on October 13, the Tigers fell inside the Carrier Dome to Syracuse, 27-24. They lost quarterback Kelly Bryant to an injury during that game and special teams were as bad as they possibly could be.
After a bye, Clemson returned with a 24-10 victory over Georgia Tech this past weekend, setting them up for the November run that starts Saturday with a showdown against ACC Atlantic leader NC State.
Here are five bold predictions for the Tigers in November: