2015 record: 14-1, 8-0 in the ACC (1st in the Atlantic Division)
Head coach: Dabo Swinney (8th season)
A year after falling five points short against Alabama in the national championship, Clemson has its entire core back for a chance at redemption.
The preseason No. 2 team in the nation, the Tigers enter 2016 as the favorite to win the ACC with 10 preseason first-team all-conference selections, led by first-team All-American quarterback Deshaun Watson. The reigning ACC Player of the Year accounted for 47 touchdowns last season, passing for 4,104 yards and rushing for 1,105 more for a unit that was second in the nation in total offense.
Clemson also returns its best wide receiver and running back from last year’s team. The speedy Artavis Scott earned first-team All-ACC honors last season after racking up 901 receiving yards in 2015. In the backfield, redshirt junior Wayne Gallman was second to Florida State’s Dalvin Cook in the ACC in rushing last year with 1,527 yards. The 210-pound tailback could have a lot of holes to run through again this year with three preseason All-ACC offensive linemen in front of him.
On the defensive end, defensive tackle Carlos Watkins, linebacker Ben Boulware and cornerback Cordrea Tankersley will anchor a unit that does not have a clear weakness. Tankersley was tied for second in the ACC with five interceptions last year, but will be matched up against opponents’ best receivers this year without Mackensie Alexander—a second-round pick in the 2016 NFL draft—manning the other sideline in the secondary.
The Tigers open the season with a true road test at Auburn Saturday and have to travel to Tallahassee, Fla., to play at No. 4 Florida State Oct. 29, but those two games should be the only major obstacles between Clemson and a second straight undefeated regular season.
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