Josh Pate Second-guessing his Preseason Predictions for Clemson

Clemson faces a season-defining stretch incredibly early in the season. Will wins be enough to change the perspective of the program?

Speaking on his podcast to SEC Network's Cole Cubelic, Josh Pate of 247Sports was clearly disturbed by what he's seen from the Clemson Tigers the first couple of weeks. "I, like many people, had Clemson playing for the ACC Championship game. So I watched what happened against Duke and here's the way I watched that...They had a bunch of turnover issues and they ended up 28-7. I almost wish they wouldn't have had the turnover issues so that people could see even if they played a much cleaner it just would have been a dog fight against Duke instead of a blowout loss against Duke."

Pate continued with strong words about what he currently believes Clemson's future is, "A lot of people are falling back on that false sense of confidence in saying, up to and including the head coach there, "Once we get this cleaned up we'll be fine and off to the races. We'll be the same old Clemson." I just flat-out don't believe that. I don't think they're special at all."

What's the reasoning for such an impassioned statement beyond the obvious frustration of being upset by a basketball school? "I don't think their skill position talent out wide looks special. Outside of Will Shipley, there's nothing special to me about their tailback group. Therefore I don't put it all on Cade Klubnik I just don't know if he has the weaponry around him to make himself look overly special. So I'm already very nervous about that."

Pate isn't saying anything that many Clemson fans haven't heard already in the past couple weeks but it's clear that the Tigers will be battling an uphill climb from here on out, not just on the field, but in how the country at large perceives this program.