Re: TNET: Clemson's 2023 football schedule released

TigerNet News® · 2023-01-31T00:52:03.408Z

Clemson's 2023 football schedule released Read Update »

fchrisgrimm

Associate AD [831]

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My take...

Jan 30, 2023, 10:55 PM

I don't think it is a bad schedule, but it is so different from what it has been the last ten years. I like opening at Duke, even though it is different. We used to have a solid rivalry with them before the conference went to divisions and now we've only played twice in eleven years, with the last in 2018. We better be on our toes, because Mike Elko did a nice job with Duke last year.

Charleston Southern and FAU... I get that the state legislature wants us to host CSU, but FAU is an unnecessarily bad opponent. But the two set us up for the early FSU game - so at least we will have had a couple of warm-ups for the Seminoles at home. Clearly the conference wanted this game earlier in the season, anticipating a likely rematch in the ACC Championship. I get it. Should be a good game, but the schedule prevents it from being a game that (by itself) can knock either team out of playoff contention *unless FSU loses to LSU, then it is must-win for them.

We get to take a deep breath before traveling to Syracuse, hosting Wake Forest, and then getting a bye week. I don't think that the Orange will be a problem. Dino seems like a good guy, but I get the feeling that last season for them was a dead-cat-bounce more than an actual turnaround for the program. While WF has turned into a quality program, I am simply not worried about them at home. We have our work cut out after our bye week...

Back to back road games at Miami and at N.C. State could mean anything. Miami was terrible last year but is loaded with talent. I think Mario Cristobal is going to turn them around, but I also think his resume doesn't hold up to close scrutiny. He seems to be a better recruiter than game coach. (Everyone notice that he just fired the reigning Broyles Award winning assistant coach? A cautionary tale.) Miami will have come off of games the last two weeks, so the bye is to our advantage. NCSU... well, we know they won't be bad, but their schedule sets up nice and could reasonably expect to be 6-1 coming in (Notre Dame at home being the one likely loss). NCSU also gets their bye week before we come to town, so that is the definition of a trap game for the Tigers.

And we return for another three game homestand of Notre Dame, Georgia Tech, and North Carolina. I'm not going to assume Notre Dame is going to be bad - and they obviously stomped us last year - but I feel good about this. I mean, it is crazy how much changing our OC makes everything more optimistic! I don't care how much they improve, we're beating GT. The ever-enigmatic UNC could be 10-0 or 5-5.

And the Gamecocks in Columbia. Anything can happen.

Two three-game homestands is odd. The timing of the bye is probably about as good as it could be. Opening at Duke is odd. But it's all manageable.

In order of concern...
at South Carolina. It's a mystery as to whether they will continue to improve in 2023.
at N.C. State. Tough the way that was scheduled.
Notre Dame. They come off of a bye week and hosting Pitt so should be relatively fresh.
Florida State. It is not that I don't think that they are the best team on the schedule, but that I like the early scheduling and we should be playing them in a game that can't eliminate us from playoff contention.
at Miami. Because if they do get the program turned around and play at the level of their talent... they have a lot of talent.

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TNET: Clemson's 2023 football schedule released

I'm shaking my fist at this catastrophe of a schedule.