On Packer and Durham on ACC Network this week, Mark Packer and Wes Durham discussed PFF’s way-too-early top 25 rankings for the 2022 college football season, which slots Clemson in at No. 4.
“That’s not a stunner,” Packer said. “I mean, we’ve seen the Tigers in that neighborhood before.”
Clemson (10-3, 6-2 ACC) saw its streak of six consecutive College Football Playoff appearances and six consecutive ACC Championships come to an end last season, but still managed to win at least 10 games for a school-record 11th straight season despite an offense that ranked ninth in the ACC in points per game (26.3) and second-to-last in the conference in total yards per game (359.2).
However, the Tigers’ defense was stellar in 2021, finishing first in the league in points per game allowed (14.8) and yards per game allowed (305.5).
Packer has high expectations for Clemson’s D in 2022 but believes the Tigers can’t experience similar woes offensively if they hope to get back to the playoff and win another national championship.
“Listen, offensively, they’ve got to get some answers,” he said. “If you tell me, the Tigers in ’22 have the same kind of offensive issues they had in ’21, they’ll be hard-pressed to find double-digits in wins again. They did a brilliant job getting to 10 last year when offensively they were a mess.
“So, they’ve got to get better on that side if you’re thinking about hey, they’re a top-five College Football Playoff team. Now, if their offense finds it, hey, that defense is going to be as good as anybody in the country. They’re legit to win the national title, if the offense can find it.”
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