Road to capture an ACC title far from a two-horse race

After getting crushed by Georgia in its 2024 season opener, Clemson has looked much better in recent weeks, easily defeating both Appalachian State and N.C. State at home.

While the Tigers, ranked No. 17 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll, looked anemic on offense versus the Bulldogs, Clemson’s offense has rolled through the team’s last two foes.

That has led Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt to suggest that perhaps the Tigers can give No. 7 and undefeated Miami a run for its money in pursuit of an Atlantic Coast Conference title this season along with a berth in the 12-team College Football Playoff.

“I’m really happy for them that they have developed into that style of offense,” Klatt said of Clemon’s recent performances, per On3 national writer Thomas Goldkamp, “and now this league in the ACC looks more like a two-horse race than the single-horse race it was a few weeks ago, with Miami.”

There’s no question that the Tigers have ramped up their play of late. But to suggest that Clemson and Miami might be the only contenders for an ACC championship seems a tad premature at this juncture in the 2024 campaign.

The Hurricanes swept their four-game non-conference docket, but have yet to suit up in ACC competition. Miami will host Virginia Tech this coming Friday night. The Hurricanes will also (later this season) travel to California, Louisville, Georgia Tech and Syracuse.

This Saturday evening, Clemson will play Stanford at home. The Cardinal, last weekend, stunned Syracuse on a last-second field goal at the JMA Wireless Dome in Central New York. The Tigers will additionally head to Florida State and Pittsburgh, while facing Louisville, Virginia and in-state rival South Carolina at home.

Speaking of Louisville, the Cardinals are 3-0 and No. 15 in the AP Top 25 poll. Duke and Pittsburgh are each 4-0. ACC schools such as Cal, SMU and Virginia are 3-1.

So is Boston College, which has already knocked off then-No. 10 Florida State and previously unbeaten Michigan State while falling by just six points at then-No. 6 Missouri.

Miami looks like the real deal so far in the 2024 season. Clemson has momentum. But with so many ACC contests left to be played by those two teams and others throughout the conference, the race for this league’s crown appears somewhat wide open. For now, anyway.