Clemson: Georgia Tech HC Happy Tigers Fans Gave Up on Team

Saturday's loss for the Clemson Tigers was a wake-up call for head coach Dabo Swinney, who watched as his team was soundly beaten in several areas in a 20-6 loss to a Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets program that had just a 2-7 record before Week 11. 

The Yellow Jackets increased their lead to 20-6 before the fourth quarter, but the ineptness of Clemson's offense didn't give the home crowd much hope for a late comeback, as many of the crowd of 76,701 at Memorial Stadium left for the parking lot before the clock hit all zeros.

During his postgame news conference, GT head coach Brent Key remarked on Saturday's win over Clemson, calling the Tigers a "premier program" in the ACC and in college football, per The State's Chapel Fowler. Key was happy to "look up" and watch Clemson fans flee the stadium early.

Key is in his fifth season at Georgia Tech. He's having his worst season since his first year in  2022, when he went 4-4 as the interim head coach. Georgia Tech has had three winning seasons in a row, including a 9-4 record last season. GT has struggled after offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner left for the same position at Florida and quarterback Haynes King went to the Carolina Panthers.

Saturday's win was huge for Key, as the Yellow Jackets only had wins over Mercer and Duke before playing Clemson. It gave the Yellow Jackets some momentum going into the next season, and more importantly, it knocked the Tigers down a peg. 

Clemson's loss to Georgia Tech is concerning for numerous reasons. At 6-4, recruits might shy away from joining Swinney's program. Clemson finished with a 7-6 record last year. After making significant changes to the program, the Tigers are arguably worse this season, and that could cause the team to spiral.

The blowout losses to LSU and Miami weren't good, but they were understandable. However, the defeats to Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech show that Clemson is no longer a fear in the ACC. 

Clemson is bowl eligible, but they face an uphill battle to earn a winning season. Clemson will travel to play Duke on Friday in a short week. (The Blue Devils lost to Miami on Saturday.) 

The Tigers will then finish their regular season against No. 17 South Carolina, which has come alive in recent weeks. That will be a home game for Clemson, but the fan base might be lost by