The next game is the biggest of the season.
That’s the approach the Clemson Football program has taken under the guidance of Dabo Swinney and it’s a philosophy that has led to unprecedented success for the Tigers.
In 2021, Clemson literally begins its season with arguably the biggest game of the season. The Tigers are set to face Georgia in a matchup of Top-5 teams in Charlotte on September 4.
However, whether the team is getting set to face a team like Georgia or whether they’re preparing for an in-state FCS foe like SC State, offensive coordinator Tony Elliott says the mentality going in is always the same.
“One thing that’s great about our program is we treat every game as the biggest game of the season,” Elliott said Thursday on The Packer and Durham Show. “So the preparation is not going to be any different depending upon who we open with.”
Despite the game still being more than three months away Elliott said the preparation has already begun. The Bulldogs are expected to bring one of the more talented defenses in the country to Charlotte, a defense that Elliott thinks Georgia could add even more talent to via the transfer portal.
One player the Bulldogs are expected to add is former Clemson corner Derion Kendrick. The former 5-star recruit was dismissed from the Clemson program prior to the start of spring practice.
“We’ve started our offseason preparation for Georgia, an outstanding football club,” Elliott said. “They’ve got a lot of guys coming back on defense. We know they’re going to add a couple of guys probably from the transfer perspective and they’re going to be very, very talented.”
The marquee matchup pitting the ACC’s best against one of the SEC’s best is already being touted as the biggest out of conference game of the season and Elliott expects the game to live up to those lofty expectations.
“It’s gonna be a highly competitive game.”
