Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney told his players not to buy into the release of tonight’s first College Football Playoff Poll.
The Tigers, who will try to improve to 9-0 for the first time in a season since 1981 this Saturday against No. 17 Florida State, are projected to fall anywhere from No. 1 to No. 4 in the first poll.
“I don’t care, not unless they give me an exemption. Like a pass,” Swinney said during his weekly press conference on Tuesday. “Like in golf, if you win a tournament then you don’t have to play the rest of the matches, you just show up at The Masters. You get to go to The Masters with an exception.
“Unless they are going to come out with an exception … that would be a great addition. When the first poll comes out and you are in the top four, you get two mulligans or something. Unless they do something like that, I don’t care. It is just so irrelevant.”
It’s not too irrelevant, though. By being in the top four, it will be easier for the Tigers to make an impression on the committee or continue to do so now that they are at the top than if they were not ranked in the top 10, especially when looking at the remainder of the schedule.
After Florida State, who is 7-1 and 5-1 in the ACC, the Tigers remaining three opponents – Syracuse, Wake Forest and South Carolina – have a combined record of 9-16.
“It’s always high praise when you are put at the top,” running back Wayne Gallman said. “But at the same time you have to keep your mind straight and having a good head on you, because all of this stuff is really big that we are going into, and this is something we have been dreaming about, but there are things that can happen.
“We have to have that straight forward focus. We have to go out and focus today and not worry about anything else.”
Offensive guard Eric Mac Lain says he will be watching tonight after practice despite what Swinney suggested because he is curious on how different the committee thinks than the Associated Press and Coaches Polls.
As far as where Clemson might fall in the poll, he says the best case scenario will be for the Tigers to be ranked No. 5 because it will get under the skin of some of his teammates and they can play that lack of respect card.
“If we are No. 1 I might get a little upset about that because some guys would be a little big headed,” Mac Lain said.
Gallman does not want fans to get the wrong idea. They understand how special it is to be in the College Football Playoff mix this far into the season.
“It is, but it is a natural thing for us that I think we built upon ourselves that we throw that stuff in the back of our heads,” the running back said. “We can’t lay down and go to sleep good, knowing we can do this and we can do that.
“We just have that straight forward focus that the best is the standard.”
Swinney says the first College Football Poll is irrelevant because all you have to do is look back at last year’s first poll as an example. Three of the first four teams ranked in that poll did not make the playoffs. Florida State was the only one to stay in the top four and the Seminoles slimmed to No. 3 before the final poll came out, though they finished the year 13-0.
“Ohio State was ranked 16th and they ended up winning the national championship. In the first poll, Georgia Tech was not ranked, and finished ninth,” Swinney said. “In the first poll Notre Dame was in the top 10 and finished unranked. So, like I said, if they are going to change the rule or something, and I know they have to fill the air time and it is great for college football. You have to have something to talk about to create some drama and excitement and sell advertising, but it has nothing to do with us.
“We are honored. What we are excited about is that we have had a great season. That’s what we are excited about. The only poll we are excited about is on December 6th, and I promise you we will have the biggest poll party you have ever seen. We will open up Death Valley and serve pizza to everybody and just have a poll party on December 6. That will be a time to celebrate a poll. But until then, it just does not matter.”