Clemson Tigers Facing Even More Pressure After CFP Update

Barring an unthinkable turn of events in which the Clemson Tigers run the table, get help elsewhere and somehow win the ACC Championship Game, Clemson will not be going to the College Football Playoff this season.

But now that the CFP is officially expanding to 24 teams in 2027, the Tigers will actually have a chance to make the tournament next year.

The fact that Clemson even needs such significant expansion to be able to make the playoff is a clear indication of how far the program has fallen, but at least it's good news for Tigers fans who want to see January football again.

But while it's good news for Clemson that it actually has hope to make the College Football Playoff next season, the expansion also puts that much more pressure on Dabo Swinney and the football program.

It's one thing to miss a 12-team field. It's another to miss a field of 24, especially when you're supposed to be a national superpower.

Now, of course, the Tigers have not been a superpower in quite some time. They haven't won a playoff game since January 2021, and they went 7-6 last year. This season, they were routed by the only two ranked teams they've played, and they also lost to Virginia Tech at home.

We all know that Clemson isn't Clemson anymore.

However, you can absolutely bet that the expectation will be for the Tigers to make the playoff in the coming years, and if they don't, Swinney will be out the door.

Expansion has absolutely expedited the path to Swinney being fired, because now, there is absolutely no excuse for him not to go out and utilize the transfer portal while also altering his recruiting methods.

Not that he really had an excuse not to do those things before, but now, he is really going to be under the gun.

Clemson absolutely, positively should be a top-24 team in the nation. It certainly isn't this season, but the fact that making the playoff will be so much easier for the Tigers in 2027 and beyond should serve as extra motivation for Swinney moving forward.

Just get in the dance, and you never know what might happen.

The fact that we have reached this point for Clemson football is truly dispiriting, but we are here, nonetheless, and Swinney must take full advantage of the opportunity that is being afforded him.