Greg McElroy places Clemson in ‘Natty of Bust’ category for 2025

Greg McElroy believes 2025 will be a pivotal season for Dabo Swinney’s Clemson team, and it might be national championship or bust for the Tigers.

During the latest episode of Always College Football with Greg McElroy, the former quarterback evaluated certain programs who fit the mold of this past season’s Ohio State Buckeyes team, who risked it all for a national title and had it pay off handsomely. One of those teams for McElroy is Clemson, and he elaborated on why that is.

“I look at a team like Clemson. Look at how many pieces had been brought along slowly over the last couple of years,” McElroy explained. “Cade Klubnik, now year four at Clemson. You look at some of the pieces. Yes, they lose a running back. Sure, but I think they’re going to be okay there. You have veteran presences along the offensive line. Their receivers were freshmen and sophomores the last couple of years. Now, they’re all back.

“Defensively, you had freshmen and sophomores that were really good. Now, they’re juniors and seniors in some cases. Clemson could be that team this year.”

Aside from simply looking at their roster, McElroy brought up the fact that the Tigers paid handsomely to have Tom Allen join them as their defensive coordinator moving forward. That’s certainly a signal of a team that’s all in for 2025.

“If you need any more of an indicator, just look at how these coaches approached the coaching carousel, from a coordinator standpoint,” McElroy added. “You think it’s an indicator that Debo Sweeney was able to go out and get Tom Allen, the defensive coordinator from Penn State, to come to Clemson? That wasn’t a cheap move, by any stretch of the imagination.”

In the end, there’s just too much evidence for McElroy to have anything but confidence in Clemson’s ability to win a national title: “I think Clemson is going to be very much in the mix,” he proclaimed.

Alas, the Tigers were in the mix last season as well, as they captured the win in the ACC title game to clinch the final spot in the expanded, 12-team College Football Playoff. While it didn’t workout for them in the end, as they fell to Texas, Clemson received some valuable experience, and they’re hoping it pays off in a big way this coming season.

Time will tell if Dabo Swinney can get his team humming on all cylinders, but Greg McElroy is confidence in the Tigers moving forward. Clemson remains one of the more interesting teams to evaluate in the country, and perhaps a return to glory is on the horizon for the program.