National college football analyst Josh Pate says that watching Miami pull away for a dominant victory over Clemson in Death Valley felt like a complete role reversal.

Pate described the Tigers’ 41-13 loss to the fourth-ranked Hurricanes on Oct. 3 as a “tough pill to swallow” for Clemson fans, but also a lopsided outcome that was “one of the least shocking results” of Week 5 in college football.

Pate gave a candid reality check on his college football show, highlighting Miami’s handling of Clemson as a changing of the guard.

“Some of you watched this — many, many more of you did not even think it was worth your time — but the best way I can describe the game is Miami did everything to Clemson that Clemson used to do to people,” Pate said.

“They are what Clemson used to be. It’s a tough pill to swallow, but this was one of the least shocking results of [Week 5].”

Pate alluded to the clear gap between Clemson and top-tier programs, noting that the Tigers have faced two “legitimate” teams this season and been “blown off the field” in both matchups.

That’s the bad news, but Pate says the good news or silver lining for Clemson is that the remainder of its schedule gets easier on paper, with the Tigers’ toughest tests already behind them.

“Look, Dabo Swinney, the situation there is going to be assessed at the end of the year,” Pate said. “They have faced two legitimate teams, and they’ve been blown off the field both times, by LSU and Miami. That’s the bad news. The good news is there are no more LSU’s or Miami’s on this schedule. So the rest of the way — you know, like they’ve played North Carolina and Cal already – they’ve got a lot of those kinds of games. The ACC is just — it’s Miami, and then it’s a bunch of. And maybe a couple of teams a little bit above that pack, but the rest of it’s just a bunch of.”

Pate compared the state of the ACC to church league softball in terms of the league’s hierarchy.

“So Clemson, it’s like when we play church league softball on Friday nights,” Pate said. “We know they’re like the LifePoint teams that are kind of stacked up. So, you know you’re probably going to tote an L when you play them. But then the rest of the league, it’s true church teams, and it’s going to be competitive. Anyone can beat anyone.

“And the ACC is church league softball with a couple of travel teams that just load up to get some extra hacks in during the week. It’s the best way I can describe the ACC. Miami is a travel team that’s playing league ball in the ACC. That is what they are.”

Coming out of its open date last weekend, Clemson returns to the field this Saturday to host Charleston Southern at Memorial Stadium (12 p.m., ACC Network).

The Tigers (3-2, 2-1 ACC) will then dive back into their ACC schedule when they face Virginia Tech at Memorial Stadium on Oct. 24. The game will kick off at either 7 p.m. or 7:30 p.m., with the kickoff time and TV network (either ESPN or ESPN2) to be announced following the games this Saturday.