Clemson Tigers Playoff Chances Can Be Helped With Win From This Team Saturday

The Clemson Tigers are still in the College Football Playoff hunt, and their chances can be greatly improved with a win from a surprising team on Saturday.

Nov 23, 2024; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Clemson Tigers wide receiver Jackson Crosby (82) gets a first down after a catch against The Citadel Bulldogs during the third quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images / Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers have fought and clawed their way back from being completely decimated in their first game of the year to now holding a 9-2 record with one game left to play.

The campaign has seen the program rise and fall in the rankings, with a low point being an upset loss at home to the Louisville Cardinals that has all but eliminated the Tigers' chances of playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship.

While the winner of the conference will have a guaranteed berth in the College Football Playoffs, with the new expansion to the format, at-large teams can still make it into the tournament.

As things stand, that is Clemson's only shot at earning a spot in the dance, and with Tuesday's CFP rankings update having the program in 12th, they can do just that.

Albeit, they will need a little help.

Enter the Vanderbilt Commodores.

The Commodores have played spoiler all year long with their season-opening upset over the Virginia Tech Hokies, and handing the Alabama Crimson Tide their first loss of the year while they were ranked as the number-one team in the country.

This week, the Commodores host the Tennessee Volunteers, a team that has played to a 9-2 record this year and is holding down third place in the Southeastern Conference with a 5-2 mark.

Oh yea, they also sit in ninth in the latest CFP rankings.

With the Tigers in 12th, they are currently the odd man out with the Big 12's potential conference champion ranked lower.

Should the Volunteers lose on Saturday to Vandy, a team that is not in the top 25 giving the Vols their third loss of the year, Clemson would certainly move higher in the College Football Playoff rankings, giving the program a little more breathing room.

While it is not the only path to the playoffs that the Tigers have left, it is the most likely with the majority of the other 10 teams ranked higher playing programs that should serve as easy wins to end the regular season.

2024 has been a crazy year in college football, however, and it has given more credence to the "any given Saturday," sentiment, so the Tigers could very well receive help from other sources as well, perhaps even earning a spot in the ACC Championship game should the Miami Hurricanes be upset by *checks notes* the Syracuse Orange.

Of course, everything becomes moot if Clemson loses on Saturday to the South Carolina Gamecocks, so it would be best if they just pulled an Al Davis and "win, baby, win."