3 Glaring Issues That Clemson Football Must Fix Ahead of ACC Play

As the Clemson Tigers head into ACC play, their first two games left fans potentially looking for more.

A 51-10 loss to LSU in Week 1, followed by a 22-7 home victory over Georgia Southern last weekend, puts the Tigers back at .500 with a home contest against North Carolina looming this upcoming weekend. However, there will be certain aspects on both sides of the ball that head coach Dabo Swinney will look to fix before the middle of the schedule.

It’s a small sample size for only two games, but here are some glaring issues that have stood out about Clemson at the national level that it will need to fix to raise its ceiling in 2026.

Third Down Conversions

In Week 1, Clemson only converted one of its 13 third downs in Baton Rouge, occurring in the fourth quarter when the game was already out of hand. Last weekend, the Tigers only covered two of their 14 chances against the Eagles.

Despite losing the game, Georgia Southern had a better percentage on that down, going four of 17 against Clemson as well. That must improve, as ACC play won’t get easier than that.

Averaging 1.5 conversions per game, that is third-worst in the entire country. It’s not like Clemson isn’t getting its chances either, as 13.5 chances is 64th compared to the rest of the FBS, meaning it is getting the general average of opportunities.

Last season, the Tigers converted 4.7 of their conversions on third down, which was 109th in the nation. That’s been a point of emphasis since the offseason, and Clemson has been unable to meet the expectation yet.

Fortunately, North Carolina has allowed an average of seven third-down conversions per game this season so far. That bodes well for Swinney’s group.

Yards Per Carry

Again, this was an issue that Clemson had last season, as it was outside the top 100 in yards per carry, with 3.7 yards per attempt.

This year, it’s even worse so far. The Tigers average only 2.9 yards per carry, which is 104th in the country. However, it’s important to take this number with a grain of salt for now.

The number is so deflated due to only running 40 yards out of 26 attempts against LSU two weekends ago. Clemson went back to its average from last season against Georgia Southern, rushing 39 times for 150 yards for an average of 3.8 yards.

But there’s plenty more meat on the bone, especially in this department. It’s tough to run on the Tar Heels, too, who have only allowed an average of 106 yards thus far in 2026. Of course, that can change pretty quickly with 10 games remaining in the season.

Sack Percentage

Whether it’s been Christopher Vizzina or Tait Reynolds at quarterback, Clemson quarterbacks are being sacked at a record rate than ever before.

The Tigers are seeing defenders get to their quarterback 9.52% of the time, which is 114th in the FBS in doing so. That’s nearly double the rate from 2025, when defenders got to quarterback Cade Klubnik only 4.36% of the time. That had Clemson finish 27th in this metric last season.

Taking a look at the Tar Heels, they’ve averaged getting to the quarterback at a 8.57% rate so far. That’s top 30 in the country, and the Clemson offensive line will need to tighten up to change this number from the first two weeks into ACC play for the remainder of the season.

As I said before, it’s only two weeks, and fixes are more than possible. If Swinney is to see improvement in any metrics to finish out 2026, these three would raise the floor of the Tigers for the remainder of the season.

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