Death Valley's Edge Dulls as Clemson's Home Drought Grows

The Clemson Tigers were once on a 40-game home winning streak, but now they haven't seen a win against a Power Four opponent in over a year.

Death Valley’s once-feared atmosphere has faded as Clemson searches for its first Power Four home win in over a year. | Alex Martin/Greenville News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

For nearly a decade, Death Valley was a place where visiting teams came to watch their dreams die, no matter the record. The Clemson Tigers' 40-game home winning streak, the longest in the nation at the time, turned Memorial Stadium into one of College Football’s most intimidating environments.

But that dominance feels extremely distant now. 

Following their home loss to SMU this past weekend, the Tigers have now gone more than a year without defeating a Power Four team in Death Valley, a stark contrast for a program once defined by home-field advantage.

“It’s jarring, disappointing,” head coach Dabo Swinney said post-game Saturday. “It is what it is; we've got to do better.”

Their last win in Death Valley came on October 19, 2024, with starting quarterback Cade Klubnik leading the No. 10 Tigers to a victory over Virginia, 48-31. Since then, Clemson is 0-5 against Power Four opponents at home and 2-5 overall, dropping games to Louisville, South Carolina, LSU, Syracuse and now SMU.

The Tigers’ only two home wins during that stretch came against non-Power Four opponents. In 2024, they rolled past The Citadel, 51-14, before narrowly escaping Troy earlier this season with a 27-16 comeback victory after trailing by 16 points. Even in victory, the performance raised more concerns than confidence for a program once untouchable in upstate South Carolina.

Expanding the lens even further, the trend dates back to 2022, when rival South Carolina snapped Clemson’s 40-game home winning streak. Since the loss, Clemson is 12-6 at home overall and just 7-6 at home against power conference opponents. That includes two double-digit losses to ACC foes Louisville (2024) and Syracuse (2025), both games in which Clemson entered as heavy favorites.

With Clemson’s home dominance now a fading memory and frustration mounting among fans, Swinney said the focus has to shift inward following their loss to SMU.

“We’ve just got to focus on going back to work, watching the tape and seeing what we have to do better,” Swinney relayed. “Fundamentally, technically, play-calling, or if there’s any personnel stuff. That’s just what you do: go to the next game. That’s all we can do.”

Clemson and Dabo Swinney now enter their second open date of the year searching for answers before returning home to face Duke, led by one of the nation’s top signal callers in Darian Mensah, who's second in passing yards on the season. For a team that once thrived on defending its house, the upcoming matchup offers both a challenge and an opportunity.