This national outlet took a “way-too-early” look at the ACC, stacking up every team in the conference for the 2026 campaign.

Athlon Sports released its early ACC football predictions for 2026, giving its very early ACC power rankings for next season.

Clemson is ranked fourth, behind Miami at No. 1, Louisville at No. 2 and SMU at No. 3.

The Tigers head into the 2026 season hoping to bounce back from a 7-6 record in 2025, the second-worst season in head coach Dabo Swinney’s full 17 seasons.

“Clemson was one of college football’s biggest disappointments in 2025,” Athlon’s Steven Lassan wrote. “Last year’s seven-win season represented the fewest victories for the program since posting six in ‘10. Can coach Dabo Swinney get this team back on track? The Tigers enter ‘26 with more question marks than in recent seasons, starting at quarterback with Christopher Vizzina slated to replace Cade Klubnik under the tutelage of new play-caller Chad Morris. T.J. Moore should be among the ACC’s top receivers, and the defense can retool around linebacker Sammy Brown and end Will Heldt.”

This past season, Clemson finished 4-4 in ACC play, tied with four other teams for seventh place in the 2025 conference standings.

Clemson’s 2026 schedule includes 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).

Here’s where Clemson’s 2026 conference opponents stand in Athlon’s early 2026 ACC power rankings:

Miami: No. 1

Virginia Tech: No. 5

Georgia Tech: No. 8

Florida State: No. 9

Cal: No. 12

Duke: No. 13

Syracuse: No. 14

North Carolina: No. 15

Athlon Sports also recently listed Clemson as one of the “most intriguing teams” in college football for the 2026 season.