Clemson football finished 2022 with an 11-3 record last year. While this looks like success to most programs, Clemson comes in with higher expectations. The Tigers lost to Notre Dame and South Carolina before dropping their bowl game to Tennessee. With that said, they still had a few quality wins, including Wake Forest, Florida State and North Carolina.
This year, FanDuel Sportsbook has opened the bidding on Clemson’s win total at 9.5, with the over juiced to -168. The Tigers are +150 to win the ACC, which ranks narrowly ahead of Florida State. They are also +1600 to win the National Championship, which ranks seventh. Let’s get into Clemson football predictions with a season preview and roster overview.
2023 Clemson Football Predictions & Season Preview
Clemson Football 2023 Season Preview: Coaching Staff
Clemson’s head coach Dabo Swinney has been in place since 2008. He has not won fewer than 10 games since 2010, and he has two National Championship victories and four appearances. Lately, Swinney has received criticism for his failure to embrace the transfer portal. He has also made some questionable hiring decisions on his staff, but Swinney may have rectified that this offseason. He hired Garrett Riley as his new offensive coordinator, who coordinated TCU’s offense last year and SMU’s before that. The defense retains the services of Wes Goodwin, who was solid in 2022 as a new hire.
Clemson Football 2023 Season Preview: Offense
Quarterback
Clemson let D.J. Uiagalelei walk this offseason, with heir apparent Cade Klubnik waiting in the wings. Klubnik is a former 5-star recruit from the 2022 class. He was the second overall quarterback in that class. Last year, the 6-foot-2, 185-pound quarterback completed 61.0% of his 100 passes for 697 yards (7.0 yards per attempt), two touchdowns and three interceptions. Klubnik looks to have functional mobility, with 139 rushing yards on 42 attempts last year. He was the 12th-highest-graded quarterback among 22 qualifiers in the ACC last year, per PFF. A lot of Clemson fans argue over Uiagalelei, but it is hard not to be excited for Klubnik. Behind him, Clemson brought in Paul Tyson. He began his career with Alabama before transferring and failing to see the field at Arizona State. He is backup material. Clemson also recruited 4-star freshman and sixth-ranked quarterback in the 2023 class Christopher Vizzina.
Running Back
Running back remains one of the best positions on this entire roster. The top two running backs from last year both return in Will Shipley and Phil Mafah. Shipley is 5-foot-11, 205 pounds, and entered Clemson as a 5-star recruit. Last year, he rushed 211 times for 1,171 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also added 37 catches for 237 yards. He averaged an elite 3.37 yards after contact and forced a missed tackle on 23.2% of his attempts. Mafah is 6-foot-1, 225 pounds, and came to Clemson as a highly ranked 4-star. He rushed 98 times for 515 yards and four touchdowns last year. He also caught nine passes for 48 yards. Mafah averaged 3.63 yards after contact and a forced missed tackle on 21.4% of his attempts. Overall, this is an explosive tandem with highly touted recruits behind them.
Wide Receiver
Clemson struggled at receiver last year, but they again neglected to portal in favor of falling back on recruiting. The team lost Joseph Ngata, but most of the other notable wide receivers returned. Leading receiver and sophomore breakout candidate Antonio Williams returns. The 6-foot-0, 180-pound receiver caught 56 passes for 604 yards last year. He played in the slot 93% of the time and his 1.61 yards per route ranked 31st in the ACC. Fourth-leading receiver Beaux Collins also returns. Collins is 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, and caught 22 passes for 373 yards and five touchdowns last year. Collins played out wide 87.4% of the time and his 1.73 yards per route ranked 24th. The final projected starter is former 4-star recruit Adam Randall. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound 2022 freshman played limited snaps last year. He still finished with 10 catches for 128 yards. Brannon Spector is also back after 15 catches for 195 yards. He is 6-foot-1, 195 pounds, and his 1.30 yards per route ranked 45th in the country. Troy Stellato returns from injury. It remains to be seen what he has to offer. He was a 4-star recruit in the 2021 class. Clemson recruited a pair of 4-star receivers in Ronan Hanafin and Noble Johnson, but neither enrolled early.
Tight End
Clemson lost tight end Davis Allen this offseason after he played 701 snaps. They return their second tight end Jake Briningstool, who played 391 snaps himself. The 6-foot-6, 235-pound tight end ranked fifth on the team with 285 yards on 25 catches. He only blocked on 40.4% of his snaps and operated more as a move tight end. Their second tight end should be Sage Ennis, who played just 55 snaps last year. This could be a fluid situation with Josh Sapp on the roster and incoming 4-star Olsen Patt-Henry joining the program this summer.
Offensive Line
On the offensive line Clemson lost just left tackle Jordan McFadden to the NFL. They return right tackle Blake Miller, who played 994 snaps last year as a freshman. There have been rumors of him moving to left tackle and he said he does not care where he plays. Left guard should be Marcus Tate, who played 712 snaps last year. He has two years of starting experience already under his belt. Center Will Putnam played 1,000 snaps last year and already has three years of starting experience. Right guard Walker Parks also returns after 918 snaps last year. He has started for two straight years at Clemson. He took a step back last year but will look to return to 2021 form. It looks like Tristan Leigh is the favorite for the other tackle job after a strong spring campaign. He only played 70 snaps over the last two years, but he is a former 5-star prospect. For depth, Clemson also returns rotational guard Mitchell Mayes, who played 404 snaps last year. Not to mention, the slew of elite recruits this offense brings in along the line every year. Overall, this unit should be a strength for Clemson this season.
Clemson Football 2023 Season Preview: Defense
Clemson ranked 13th on defense in 2022. This included the 17th-ranked run defense, fifth-ranked pass rush and 36th-ranked secondary. The Tigers were hit hardest with departures in their front seven. Defensive linemen K.J. Henry, Myles Murphy and Brian Bresee all depart. However, the Tigers dealt with plenty of injuries to this unit, allowing their replacements to earn quality experience ahead of 2023.
Defensive Line
On the edge, Murphy and Henry depart, which leaves a decent void. Fortunately, Xavier Thomas should return from injury after playing just 52 snaps last year. In 2021, Thomas played 478 snaps and ranked third on the team in sacks. The other edge starter is likely Justin Mascoll after playing 297 snaps last year. Mascoll logged 3.5 tackles for loss, but still has a lot to prove. Mascoll is a sixth year with the Clemson program, so he at least has experience there.
On the interior Clemson lost Bresee, but he missed much of the year with injury. This allowed Tyler Davis and Ruke Orhorhoro to play 495 and 486 snaps last year. Davis logged 9.5 tackles for loss and Orhorhoro notched eight himself. This pair was a force in the run game as well as a pass rushing presence from inside. Beyond that, the unit returns Payton Page as a rotational piece and they landed 5-star recruit Peter Woods. Woods dominated this spring and will play for Clemson as a true freshman.
Linebacker
As for the linebacker position, Clemson returns Barrett Carter and Jeremiah Trotter. Trotter is a pure stud. He led the team in tackles (89), tackles for loss (13.5) and sacks (6.5). Carter was not too shabby himself with 73 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. The question remains, who fills Trenton Simpson‘s role. Clemson did lose some of their depth pieces from last year, so redshirt freshman like Kobe McCloud and T.J. Dudley are expected to rise up the depth chart. This position has elite talent, but it may not be the deepest on the roster.
Defensive Back
Fortunately for the Tigers, the secondary is absolutely loaded here. Corners Sheridan Jones and Nate Wiggins return after playing 517 and 772 snaps in 2023. Wiggins led the team with 13 pass breakups, while intercepting a pass. Jones did not end up with any of the flashy stats, but he only allowed 191 yards into his coverage last year. Clemson also brings back rotational corner Toriano Pride, who received 331 snaps last year. He will play a decent amount this year, but his depth is a solid piece to have.
Clemson often uses three safeties and uses one as a nickel or extra box defender. R.J. Mickens, Andrew Mukuba and Jalyn Phillips all return at the safety position. Phillips played 670 snaps last year and ranked third on the team with 74 tackles. Mukuba spent part of the year injured, but he still ended up with 54 tackles and three pass breakups on 579 snaps. Mickens logged 524 snaps and 48 tackles, rounding out an elite trio at the position. For depth Wade Woodaz and Tyler Venables return 180 and 246 snaps at the safety position.
2023 Clemson Football Schedule & Predictions
Clemson Football 2023 Schedule
Clemson plays a non-conference schedule consisting of Charleston Southern, Florida Atlantic, Notre Dame and South Carolina. Despite the two easy wins, facing Notre Dame and South Carolina in non-conference remains a formidable task. In their own conference, they face Florida State and North Carolina. These teams rank in the top three of ACC postseason odds, but Clemson draws both at home. They also play fifth and sixth ranked teams North Carolina State and Miami. Both of those occur on the road. All in all, this is one of the more difficult ACC schedules.
Clemson Football Futures Bet & Prediction
Despite the tough schedule, Clemson remains firmly in the College Football Playoff picture. Over 9.5 wins remains a solid bet, but the juice could be better. Instead, taking Clemson at +150 to win the ACC is out here. Most believe that conference will come down to Florida State and Clemson. Clemson possesses the better roster overall and remains worth a bet here. Even at +1600, the Clemson National Title odds are worth a sprinkle.
Best Clemson Football Futures Bet: Win ACC +150 at FanDuel
You can read the rest of Matt Gajewski’s 2023 college football season previews and predictions below!
- Alabama Season Preview & Predictions
- Arkansas Season Preview & Predictions
- Auburn Season Preview & Predictions
- Baylor Season Preview & Predictions
- Florida Season Preview & Predictions
- Georgia Season Preview & Predictions
- Iowa Season Preview & Predictions
- Iowa State Season Preview & Predictions
- Kansas Season Preview & Predictions
- Kansas State Season Preview & Predictions
- Kentucky Season Preview & Predictions
- LSU Season Preview & Predictions
- Michigan Season Preview & Predictions
- Mississippi State Season Preview & Predictions
- Missouri Season Preview & Predictions
- Oklahoma Season Preview & Predictions
- Oklahoma State Season Preview & Predictions
- Ole Miss Season Preview & Predictions
- South Carolina Season Preview & Predictions
- TCU Season Preview & Predictions
- Tennessee Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas A&M Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas Tech Season Preview & Predictions
- Vanderbilt Season Preview & Predictions
- West Virginia Season Preview & Predictions
