CLEMSON, S.C. — Clemson football is surviving in the ACC championship race, but its on-field product isn’t fooling national evaluators.
In CBS Sports’ midseason report card, college football analyst Chip Patterson handed the Tigers a “D”—a harsh indictment of the gap between their 4-2 overall record (2-1 ACC) and the lackluster quality of football they have produced.
Blowout losses to LSU and Miami have completely overshadowed Clemson’s conference victories, suppressing expectations and raising serious questions about the team’s true ceiling.
“We can’t technically prove it, but this feels like the lowest grade possible for a team that’s still very much alive in the conference title race,” Patterson wrote.
Aerial Struggles and Offensive Woes
The primary culprit for the failing grade is an anemic passing attack that has repeatedly stalled out. Quarterbacks Tait Reynolds and Christopher Vizzina have combined for a meager two touchdown passes against five interceptions, leaving Clemson with virtually no margin for error when its running game fails to generate momentum.
According to Patterson’s evaluation, Clemson currently trots out a bottom-five offense in the ACC, paired with a defense that only hovers near the middle of the conference pack.
“That hasn’t been anywhere near the standard of a program looking to win the league for a third time in five years,” he wrote.
A Crossroads in Death Valley
This muted midseason evaluation tracks with the program’s preseason trajectory. Clemson opened the year entirely outside the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2011. Even with those naturally lowered expectations, the Tigers have struggled to build confidence that they can consistently contend with the ACC’s elite.
A golden opportunity to flip the narrative arrives Saturday in Death Valley. Clemson hosts Virginia Tech, a team that earned a respectable “B-” midseason grade under first-year coach James Franklin and brings a 5-2 record into the matchup.
If the Tigers intend to stay in the championship conversation, they will have to finally turn a mathematically manageable conference position into convincing, high-level execution on the field.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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