Latest 'Too Early' 2024 predictions split on Clemson Playoff hopes

Clemson's offense will likely be the difference between making the CFP tier or not in 2024.

by TigerNet Staff - Mon Jan 08 10:55:20 GMT-04:00 2024

Clemson seeks its first College Football Playoff bid since the 2020 season next year, in a new era for the sport.

The CFP will expand to 12 teams for the 2024 season, which is expected to have a format where the top-five-ranked conference champions and seven at-large teams will fill the field. The top-four-ranked conference champions are slated to take the top-four spots in the new CFP, who will receive a first-round bye before the next round that goes to current New Year's Six bowl sites.

That means the ACC champion is virtually guaranteed a CFP spot, and projecting out, the Action Network's 'Way-Too-Early' Top 25 would have the Tigers making that seventh CFP appearance.

At No. 18 in those rankings, Clemson would be the No. 4 seed behind fellow projected conference champs in Georgia (No. 1), Michigan (No. 2) and Arizona (No. 8 ranking but No. 3 seed; new to the Big 12). The rest of the field would then be Oregon (5th seed; No. 3 in rankings; new to the Big Ten), Alabama (6th seed; No. 4 ranking), Ohio State (7th seed; No. 5 ranking), Texas (8th seed; No. 6 ranking; new to the SEC), Notre Dame (9th seed; No. 7 ranking), Ole Miss (10th seed; No. 9 ranking), Missouri (11th seed; No. 10 ranking) and the fifth conference champion (no former Group of 5 or Pac-12 teams ranked by the Action Network's Brett McMurphy).

Elsewhere, Sporting News has Florida State as the ACC Champion and the No. 10 overall team, with Clemson in striking distance at No. 16.

"Clemson did not make the College Football Playoff the last three seasons, but the Tigers still averaged ten wins per year in that stretch," said Bill Bender. "Dabo Swinney is still is sticking with his approach – the Tigers lost ten players to the transfer portal including safety Andrew Mukuba, who went to Texas. Cade Klubnik is back, and the Tigers still have enough depth through recruiting to win the ACC and make some noise in the new 12-team format. It's on Swinney to get this program back in the national championship hunt. The Chick-fil-A Kickoff game against Georgia (Aug. 31) is a chance to prove it."

Clemson is joined from the ACC in the rankings by Louisville (22), SMU (23) and Georgia Tech (25).

The SN projected CFP field would be Georgia (1-seed; 1 in early ranking), Michigan (2; 4), Florida State (3; 10), Arizona (4; 11), Alabama (5; 2), Texas (6; 3), Oregon (7; 5), Ohio State (8; 6), Ole Miss (9; 7), Notre Dame (10; 8), Washington (11; 9) and a fifth conference champion (no former Group of 5 or Pac-12 teams ranked by SN).