ESPN analyst Tom Luginbill thinks that Clemson is in a rather unfamiliar, but “healthier” spot, heading into the 2026 season.

Luginbill recently joined the Mac & Bone Show and was asked for his gut feeling about this year’s Clemson team, coming off a highly disappointing 7-6 campaign in 2025.

Luginbill says the Tigers are “lying in the weeds” with lower expectations on the outside looking in – and that might actually be a good thing, as opposed to being the center of attention like they have so often throughout the years.

“My gut feeling is the best thing that is happening to them right now, is that nobody is talking about them,” Luginbill said. “Think about it, over the last 18 years, how many times have we had a preseason where they’re not the focal point of not just the league, but college football? I mean, it’s unbelievable.

“So, I like where they’re at, lying in the weeds. While everybody’s discussing everybody else, they’re kind of doing their own thing. I think that’s maybe a positive reset for them.”

Luginbill believes Clemson’s success this season will ultimately come down to whether Dabo Swinney made the right decision when he opted not to bring in a transfer portal quarterback this offseason, instead standing pat with the QBs on the roster. Christopher Vizzina and Tait Reynolds are now battling it out for the Tigers’ starting job.

“The whole thing’s going to come down to whether they made the right choice at the quarterback position,” Luginbill said. “Because when you start having those discussions about do we or do we not go into the portal – you don’t have those discussions lightly. And you’re sitting now with a new offensive coordinator in Chad Morris. And I talked to a lot of coaches that did not feel like this was a great portal class at quarterback. Nobody was overly excited about anybody.

“And so, small sample size, you’ve got a Chris Vizzina, and a true freshman in Tait Reynolds, coming in. They had to be absolutely convinced that they had better options in house and didn’t need to go out and spend or overspend in the transfer portal. So, we’re going to find out if that’s true at the end of the day.”

Luginbill is high on the playmakers Clemson has around the quarterback position, including transfer running back Chris Johnson Jr., and Luginbill also expressed optimism about the team’s personnel at linebacker and defensive back.

“Their offensive weapons are terrific,” Luginbill said. “Chris Johnson Jr. comes over from SMU. He’s an electrifying weapon on offense and as a return man. Now, they’re going to have to replenish some bodies obviously in the offensive and defensive line. But hell, who isn’t? But I love their linebacking corps. I think their secondary is going to be just fine.”

So, will the Tigers be better than they were a year ago, when they suffered through their worst season since going 6-7 in 2010?

“We’ll see what happens,” Luginbill said. “I just think they’re in a healthier spot with the pressure off them a little bit, to kind of regroup, get back to the drawing board, and figure out a solution. I do think they’ll be better than they were a year ago.”