ACC schedule presents a rocky path for Clemson

By Stephen Jerdan  |   Monday, June 05, 2006  |  Comments( 7 )

Clemson Tigers
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While Clemson is rapidly becoming the media's darling to win the ACC Atlantic division, conference scheduling presents a few rough spells that the Tigers will have to overcome if they expect to live up to the hype they are receiving.

The Clemson Tigers kick off the 2006 season with a home contest against out-of-conference opponent, Florida Atlantic. Conference competition for Clemson then begins with inner-divisional play in the second week of the season. After that, the team must make back-to-back road trips to Chestnut Hill to take on Boston College followed by a visit to Tallahassee for Bowden Bowl VIII against the FSU Seminoles. They then return home the next two weeks to play ACC-foe North Carolina and Louisiana Tech.

The Tigers then has to take a trip to play division opponent Wake Forest in Winston-Salem. Temple is next on the schedule as Clemson travels to Charlotte to take on the Owls on neutral turf. Clemson then has a date with a pair of technical schools, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech, with the Yellow Jackets traveling to Clemson and the Tigers then making a trip to Blacksburg.

The season is then capped off with three consecutive home games. First come the Maryland Terrapins, then inner-division rival NC State. As always, the final game is reserved for one of college football's oldest and most heated rivalries, the Battle of the Palmetto State, where the Tigers play the South Carolina Gamecocks - a team Clemson has dominated since 1970.

The Tigers' out-of-conference schedule isn't much to worry about, especially with three of the four opponents visiting an extremely hostile Memorial Stadium in Clemson, and the fourth game being played just an hour away. It also helps that two of the four teams (Temple and Florida Atlantic) were two of the worst schools in D-1A football last season.

Conference scheduling, however, poses the biggest threat to as the team attempts to win their first ACC crown since 1991.

The back-to-back road games to Chestnut Hill and Tallahassee in the second and third weeks of the schedule will be tough to overcome. Although Clemson returns more experience than either BC or FSU, traveling from Massachusetts to Florida to take on two very talented teams, one of which is the defending ACC Champion, won't be easy.

Although Clemson shouldn't have a problem defeating North Carolina at home the following week, the Tar Heels should not be overlooked. While UNC has not proven to be a legit ACC contender, they have earned a reputation for upsetting favored teams with victories over Miami (FL), Boston College, and Virginia over the last two seasons.

Two weeks after the Tigers' bout with UNC, Clemson travels to take on Wake Forest. While Wake appears no better than a mediocre team, the Tigers have dropped the last two games in Winston-Salem to an underrated Demon Deacons team. Tommy Bowden will need to keep his team focused if he wants to end his drought against the Deacs in Winston-Salem.

After the Tigers return home from their match-up with Temple in Charlotte, they arrive at quite possibly the hardest segment in their entire schedule. They must host Georgia Tech, a match-up that neither team has won by more than five points in 9 of the last 10 games. The Tigers then have to travel to Blacksburg with only five days rest to take on Virginia Tech. Not only will the team be facing a very talented Virginia Tech team with an always-hostile crowd, but they will also have to play Tech on a Thursday night - a setting that the Hokies have all but perfected.

The team will then close out conference play when they return home to battle Maryland, a match-up which the Tigers have taken 7 of the last 10 meetings, including the last two in a row. Following Maryland is the Tigers' annual Textile Bowl against NC State. Like Maryland, the Wolfpack have also dropped the last two meetings to the Tigers - including a 31-10 routing in Raleigh last season.

While the road trips to BC and FSU will prove to be tough, playing Virginia Tech on only five days rest from a tough match-up against Georgia Tech will likely determine the Tigers' fate regarding a trip to the ACC Championship game. In order to make it to Jacksonville, the Tigers will also need to remain focused and prevent avoidable losses to smaller conference opponents, a problem Clemson has had for the last few seasons.

While Clemson probably has more talent and experience on their 2006 squad than any other team in the ACC, the Tigers' week-to-week schedule is not an easy one, to say the least. If Tommy Bowden can get Clemson through a few rough spells and keep his team focused throughout the season, the Tigers should have no problem making an appearance in Jacksonville to compete for the ACC crown.

Get more Clemson Tigers schedule insight at Realfootball365.com
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