After the ACC announced its 2026 football schedule, CBS Sports gave some takeaways and weighed in on what it expects to see from the conference next season.

For Clemson, CBS Sports says the Tigers have been “relegated to wild-card status” heading into 2026, coming off a 7-6 campaign in 2025 — the second-worst season in head coach Dabo Swinney’s full 17 seasons.

“Gone are the days of assuming the Tigers are going to reach double-digit wins as the league’s leading playoff threat under Dabo Swinney,” CBS Sports’ Brad Crawford wrote. “After the program’s failure to show in 2025, Clemson barely signed a top-25 recruiting class and the Tigers didn’t make any noise in the portal, either. The coaching staff is sticking with the current quarterback room following the departure of Cade Klubnik, which means there’s considerable pressure on the return of Chad Morris as offensive coordinator to work out.”

After a 1-3 and then a 3-5 start, Clemson won its last four regular season games in 2025 as the program became bowl eligible for a 27th consecutive season.

Looking ahead to 2026, Clemson has home ACC games against North Carolina (Sept. 19), Miami (Oct. 3), Virginia Tech (Oct. 24) and Georgia Tech (Nov. 14), while the Tigers will play road ACC games against Cal (Sept. 25), Florida State (Oct. 31), Syracuse (Nov. 6 or Nov. 7) and Duke (Nov. 21).

“Expected marquee matchups for the Tigers like Virginia Tech, Miami and Duke could lose some of their luster if Clemson’s execution level doesn’t improve,” Crawford added. “Assuming Georgia Tech takes a step back without Haynes King at quarterback and favorable contests with UNC, Florida State, Syracuse and California are wins, bowl eligibility should be the bare minimum here.

“Clemson plays the Hurricanes at [Clemson’s Memorial Stadium] for the first time since the 2022 season on Oct. 3, which shapes up to be one of the league’s best weekends with a Louisville-NC State clash and Virginia Tech battling Pittsburgh on a Friday night.”

Under “conference games of importance,” CBS Sports listed that Oct. 3 clash between Clemson and Miami, while two other Clemson games are listed there as well – the Oct. 31 trip to Florida State, and the Nov. 14 home date against Georgia Tech.