Fifth-ranked Clemson staved off an upset bid from then-No. 14 Syracuse last Saturday at Death Valley, erasing a double-digit deficit to beat the Orange, 27-21, after trailing at halftime.
On ESPN’s College Football Live this week, one of the network’s college football analysts, Greg McElroy, was asked if the win changes the way the Tigers are viewed by the College Football Playoff Selection Committee, given that it was closer than some people would’ve liked.
McElroy certainly doesn’t think it should and doesn’t believe style points should matter for Clemson’s resume when the Tigers are a perfect 8-0 on the season and the heavy favorite to win the ACC.
“Well it shouldn’t. I don’t understand when it all became about style points,” he said. “Last I checked, the goal is to ultimately win the football game. And Clemson, albeit imperfect, yeah they won the football game and did so, I might say, against a team that was previously undefeated and also they did so with a minus-three turnover margin – and by the way might as well have been minus-four turnover margin because Syracuse’s turnover was late in the game.
“So, I guess I’m just trying to figure out does close now, I thought it only counted in horseshoes and hand grenades, but now it counts in college football, too? Like, do we need style points if you’re undefeated and win your conference, like yeah, you also gotta do more now? What are we doing?”
The first set of College Football Playoff rankings will be unveiled next Tuesday, Nov. 1, and ESPN’s Sam Acho doesn’t think the Tigers’ ranking should be impacted negatively by the narrow win over Syracuse.
“People talk about man, Clemson won but it was close, and should they now be lower in the College Football Playoff ranking? No,” he said on College Football Live. “I got a chance to meet last year with the selection committee, actually was a part of a mock selection group. So, we brought some people together and we actually sat through the entire process of how they select teams for the College Football Playoff. And one of the biggest criteria is winning your conference, a conference champion.
“So yes, Clemson didn’t win in the fashion that people expected against Syracuse, but they won. And then now you have a chance to go and win your conference. So, the selection committee, even though you talk about the four best teams, they’re going to pick an undefeated conference champion – i.e., let’s say that’s Clemson – over a one-loss team in the SEC or in the Big Ten that does not win their conference.”
For what it’s worth, Clemson has an 82.3 percent chance to win the ACC, per ESPN FPI. North Carolina has the next-best chance to win the conference at 15.9 percent.
The Tigers have a 62.1 percent chance to reach the CFP, according to the Allstate Playoff Predictor – the third-highest chance to reach the playoff behind Ohio State (81 percent) and Georgia (69 percent).
Dear Old Clemson is excited to announce a limited edition football and poster signed by Clemson’s Avengers.
Now there is a new way you can support Clemson student-athletes. Purchase collectibles from Dear Old Clemson and the proceeds with go to support Clemson student-athletes. Visit Dear Old Clemson to find out how you can help!
