Clemson Tigers' AP Poll Snub Isn't What You Think

For the first time since 2011, the Clemson Tigers will open a season unranked in the AP Poll, which comes on the heels of Clemson being ranked 23rd in the Coaches Poll.

The Tigers did receive 112 votes, which essentially puts them at No. 26 in the AP rankings. And honestly, that should not come as much of a surprise to anyone.

In fact, to be quite frank, Clemson fans should be slightly satisfied that their team even received that much recognition.

Remember: the Tigers went 7-6 last season and lost to Penn State in the Pinstripe Bowl. They weren't good, and that was in spite of having a wealth of talent on their roster.

There are legitimate questions about Dabo Swinney's head-coaching acumen in the latter stages of his career, and people are wondering about how Clemson's quarterback situation will actually take shape.

Let me be clear in saying that I personally expect the Tigers to be pretty good in 2026. They are loaded with weapons, their defense has several potential first-round talents, and outside of matchups against LSU and Miami, their schedule is very manageable.

There absolutely exists a world in which Clemson can pull off 10 wins if things break right, unlike last year when basically everything went haywire for Swinney's squad.

But we need to have some perspective here.

Everyone is down on the Tigers right now. It isn't just Paul Finebaum. Virtually the entire college football world is discontented with Clemson as a program, and that isn't just because of what happened in 2025.

The Tigers have not won a playoff game since January 2021, and Swinney's outright refusal to utilize the transfer portal (up until this offseason) severely hurt his standing.

And with so many other schools seeming so far ahead right now, there isn't much room for Clemson at the top. At least not in the eyes of experts.

So the fact that the Tigers' reputation has been besmirched should not be news to anyone. This has been an ongoing process for several years running, and now, it has fully come to a head going into 2026.

Honestly, it might be exactly what Clemson needs. The Tigers are no longer the hunted: they are now underdogs, and that could be a driving force behind their potential success this coming fall.