For years, Dabo Swinney’s Clemson football team has gotten the benefit of the doubt.

No matter who exited the program, the general consensus was there was a next man up. However, after beginning last season ranked inside the Top 5 and finishing 7-6, that benefit of the doubt no longer exits. For the first time in 15 years, Clemson will enter the season unranked in the AP Poll.

The Tigers will travel to Baton Rouge this weekend not only looking to snap a three-game losing streak in season openers, but also looking to restore some credibility to a program that was viewed as one of the nation’s best for a decade. And they will have to do it in one of the most hostile road environments in the country.

As if going to Tiger Stadium isn’t challenging enough, Clemson enters with a new quarterback, a remade offensive line short on veteran experience and a running back room led by a sophomore with less than 200 snaps under his belt. Oh, and let’s not forget there’s also a new offensive coordinator running the show, as Chad Morris is back for his second stint with the Tigers.

And that’s just one side of the ball. The Tigers also have retooled the interior of the defensive line, and Kourtney Kelly’s injury, as well as the indefinite suspension of Vic Burley, have created some serious depth questions. Those same questions also reside at linebacker, where there are some unknowns behind star Sammy Brown. At least the secondary is being viewed as a strength after it was largely rebuilt through the portal.

Knowing all that, it is no wonder this Clemson team is no longer getting the benefit of the doubt. It’s no surprise the Tigers were picked to finish fourth in the ACC. And certainly no one is shocked LSU is a double digit favorite less than a week out. At this point there are just too many unanswered questions.

On Saturday, many of those questions will be answered. How they are answered will go a long way towards determining whether the program is on the right track as far as getting some of its credibility back.

While Clemson certainly still carries some cache from a brand standpoint, Swinney’s team is basically coming in flying under the radar. Maybe the head coach is embracing that very few are giving his team a chance. He has certainly excelled in the past when he’s had that underdog chip to play. Not to mention, with so much of the attention being on LSU wanting to add former NFL players to its roster, the fact that there is a game to be played appears to be getting lost in the shuffle.

Swinney spent part of camp insisting he had a team full of nobodies. Maybe on Saturday night in Baton Rouge those nobodies take the first step towards becoming somebodies. Do that, and no one will care this program no longer gets that benefit of the doubt.