CHARLOTTE — It is Game Day in the Queen City where the No. 2 Clemson looks to make a statement against No. 5 Georgia.
The opener has huge playoff implications.
Location: Bank of America Stadium
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m.
Television: ABC
Announcers: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Holly Rowe
2021 Record: Clemson 0-0, Georgia 0-0
ACC Record: Clemson 0-0
Series History: Georgia leads series 42-18-4
Last Meeting: Clemson won 45-21 on August 30, 2014
TOP 5 TEAMS CLASH AS CLEMSON FACES GEORGIA IN PRIME TIME
Clemson will kick off its 2021 campaign on Saturday, Sept. 4 with one of the nation’s most anticipated games of the season, as the No. 3/2 Tigers face the No. 5/5 Georgia Bulldogs in a neutral-site rivalry renewal. Kickoff at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
Even for a series that previously featured contests that propelled the schools to national championships in consecutive years in 1980 (Georgia) and 1981 (Clemson), from a rankings standpoint, the regional rivalry has never been grander. Clemson and Georgia have met with both schools in the AP Top 10 only once:
No. 8 Clemson’s 38-35 victory against No. 5 Georgia in 2013. Saturday’s matchup will represent the first time the two schools will meet with both programs in the AP Top 5.
Including games against No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 3 Ohio State to end last season, the opener against No. 5 Georgia will be Clemson’s third straight contest against an AP Top 5 opponent. The stretch marks Clemson’s first time in school history facing three consecutive AP Top 5 opponents.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR IN 2021
– Clemson, which is already the first team in ACC history to win six consecutive outright titles, attempting to become the first team in ACC history to win seven consecutive ACC titles outright. (Note: Florida State earned at least a share of nine consecutive ACC titles from 1992-2000 but never earned more than three consecutive titles outright.)
– Clemson attempting to become the first team in any active conference to win seven consecutive outright conference titles. Clemson’s six consecutive outright titles from 2015-20 are tied with the 2015-20 Oklahoma Sooners for the longest streak of outright conference championships of any current conference.
– Clemson attempting to join Oklahoma (12 straight Big 8 titles from 1948-59) and BYU (seven straight WAC titles from 1978-84) as the only FBS teams ever to win seven consecutive outright conference titles. Oklahoma can also reach that mark again with a conference title this year.
– Clemson attempting to become the first program to win 21 ACC titles. Since helping form the conference in 1953, Clemson leads the ACC with 20 titles all-time, including 19 outright.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR THIS WEEK
– Clemson and Georgia staging only the fourth seasonopening game of two AP Top 5 teams since 2000, according to The Athletic’s Matt Brown. The others include No. 1 Alabama’s 24-7 win against No. 3 Florida State in 2017, No. 4 LSU’s 40-27 win against No. 3 Oregon in 2011 and No. 5 Miami’s 16-10 win against No. 4 Florida State in 2004. Prior to 2004, the two most
recent such games were in 1999 (No. 3 Penn State 41, No. 4 Arizona 7) and 1986 (No. 1 Oklahoma 38, No. 4 UCLA 3).
– Clemson attempting to earn a 14th all-time victory against an AP Top 5 opponent. Ten of Clemson’s 13 alltime wins against AP Top 5 teams have come under Head Coach Dabo Swinney.
– Clemson attempting to improve to 10-6 all-time in games between two AP Top 5 teams. Clemson is 7-4 since 2016 when both teams enter a game in the AP Top 5.
– Clemson playing a third straight contest against an AP Top 5 opponent for the first time in school history. Clemson has played back-to-back games against Top 5 teams five times, including the 2015 College Football Playoff (No. 4 Oklahoma and No. 2 Alabama), 2016 College Football Playoff (No. 2 Ohio State and No. 1 Alabama), 2018 College Football Playoff (No. 3 Notre Dame and No. 1 Alabama), 2019 College Football Playoff (No. 2 Ohio State and No. 1 LSU) and the current streak dating to the final two games of 2020 (No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 3 Ohio State).
TOP 10 HISTORY
– Saturday’s contest will represent the 26th matchup of AP Top 10 teams in Clemson history. Clemson is 14-11 all-time in games when both teams enter ranked in the Top 10 of the AP Poll.
– Twenty of Clemson’s 25 previous all-time Top 10 matchups have come under Head Coach Dabo Swinney, with Swinney posting a 12-8 record in those contests. Danny Ford went 2-1 in three career Top 10 games, including the Orange Bowl to conclude Clemson’s 1981 national championship season. Frank Howard and Tommy Bowden each lost their lone matchup of Top 10 teams in their Clemson tenures.
– Clemson has won 11 of its last 16 games between Top 10 teams in the College Football Playoff era.
– Fourteen of the 25 games have been contested at neutral sites. All 14 previous neutral-site Top 10 games were postseason contests, including three ACC Championship Games and 11 bowl games. Saturday’s game will be Clemson’s first neutral-site Top 10 matchup in the regular season.
TCI Predictions
Robert – Clemson 34, Georgia 27
Sam – Clemson 27, Georgia 22
Davis – Clemson 26, Georgia 20
Gavin – Clemson 34, Georgia 27