Clemson Football: 3 takeaways from Georgia defeat in Charlotte

Dabo Swinney’s crew lost their second straight game in the season opener against Georgia. Here are three things we learned about the Tigers in the loss.

The marquee matchup of Week 1 was a top-five showdown of two teams who have recently participated in the College Football Playoff. Clemson football has made it for the past six straight years as the ACC champion, while Georgia reached the championship game four years ago and has hovered on the margins of qualification ever since.

Two titans dueled at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte in primetime on Saturday. Only one could leave the field as victors, setting up their season for another run at the championship. That victor proved Georgia, as the Bulldogs outlasted a Clemson team in transition.

The 10-3 loss did not automatically doom Clemson to obsolescence. It was a close enough game that Dabo Swinney’s team won’t be completely eliminated from the College Football Playoff race in 2021. If the Tigers run the table from here, there is little doubt that Swinney’s crew will get the benefit of the doubt.

Nevertheless, the Tigers find themselves with little margin for error moving forward. The 2018-2019 champions could still breakthrough, but a lot has to fall their way from here on out. Here are three sober truths we learned about Clemson from their season-opening loss in Charlotte to the defending SEC East champions.