College Football Playoff: Projected top 4 after Week 16

2. Clemson Tigers (10-1; 8-1 in ACC play)

In the first week of November, the Clemson Tigers were in the middle of a storm battling COVID-19 and a tough ACC conference. The Tigers needed to survive one more game without quarterback Trevor Lawrence and some defensive stars as they took on the #4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish as they were going through COVID-19 protocols. The Tigers lost to the Irish with a 47-40 score in double overtime.

Clemson knew if they were to go into another matchup against Notre Dame, there would be a different outcome. The Tigers came into the 2020 ACC Conference Championship game as an 11-point favor over the Irish looking for a solid path to their sixth College Football Playoffs and revenge. After a slow start in the first quarter, the Tigers overtook this game early in the second quarter.

Clemson took a 24-3 score into halftime where the Irish needed to recover quickly in order to get back into the game. While the defense of Notre Dame held Clemson to one score, they were unable to find some answer against the aggressive defense of the Tigers. Clemson finished the game with their defense accounting for six sacks and 10 tackles for loss.

Clemson finished the game with a 34-10 victory over the Irish. This was a statement win for the Tigers as not only did they win their sixth consecutive ACC Conference Championship title, but they are back in the top two. The Tigers were disregarded as an elite team after their loss to Notre Dame. Clemson has shown to be back as one of the elite teams in the nation along with Alabama.