Clemson-VT: More at Stake Than ACC Title Game Appearance for Tigers

No. 3 Clemson can clinch an ACC Championship Game berth with a win over Virginia Tech. However, that's far from the only thing on the line for both of these teams.

The ACC is showcasing many meaningless games over the course of the next three weeks in an attempt to make up several postponed games in the pandemic era.

Saturday night's contest in Blacksburg, Va., isn't one of them. Of course, there's the obvious: No. 3 Clemson can clinch an ACC Championship Game berth with a win over Virginia Tech.

However, that's far from the only thing on the line. Both of these teams have other things to prove. 

What's at stake for Clemson

• The Tigers are mad, fighting mad. Head coach Dabo Swinney took it personally that Florida State backed out of a game on Nov. 21, and he's showed his displeasure multiple times. Despite not playing for three weeks, Clemson was motivated and dominant in a 52-17 win over Pitt last Saturday. The Tigers had the "chip on the shoulder" look, the one you've seen before. Swinney used rankings to fire his team up last year after the South Carolina game, and it spurred them all the way to the national title game. They turned a loss in 2016 to Pitt into a national championship. It's a formula we've seen before, and if the Tigers want to keep that loss to Notre Dame on Nov. 7 anger going, they'll show up in a big way and dominate Virginia Tech. 

• Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence has already stamped his place in Tiger lore. He won a national title as a freshman and has made his mark off the field with his fight against social injustice and his push to play the season despite COVID-19. He still has a chance to become the first Clemson quarterback to ever win two national championships and win the ACC title every season as a starter. But on Saturday, he's one win away from sliding into the record books as the winningest signal-caller in school history. He's tied with Rodney Williams, Tajh Boyd and Deshaun Watson with 32 career victories. 

• Speaking of Lawrence, he's not out of the Heisman Trophy race yet, but he can't have a bad game against a Virginia Tech defense that's giving up the second-most yards in the ACC. It sounds crazy to think he needs to get to 400 yards for the second consecutive week, but he does have to play clean and look like a QB making a late run.

What's at stake for Virginia Tech

• The Hokies (4-5) haven't had a good season in head coach Justin Fuente's fifth season. They've lost three consecutive games and four of the last five. After suffering two close losses to Liberty and Miami, VT was blown out by the same Pitt team that the Tigers just destroyed. The best win Fuente's squad has all season is a blowout of Boston College. For a program that expects more, this is an opportunity to earn a signature victory. 

• As for Fuente, he's squarely on the coaching hot seat. He hasn't done enough after making the ACC title game in 2016, and he's suffered 17 losses in the last three seasons. It's no wonder the fan base is all over him. Oh, and he flirted heavily with the Baylor job in the offseason. Add that to multiple players entering the transfer portal the last couple of seasons and it's fair to question his culture and what's wrong. Being non-competitive against Clemson could really hurt his chances of saving his job. VT administration might not fire him before the rivalry game against Virginia, but it does feel like there's a threshold for how bad a beating he and the Hokies could take that could force the hand of the powers that be. This game is far from meaningless for Fuente, who could really use a major upset.