How long has it been since Clemson last won the ACC championship? That one is easy! Clemson hasn’t brought home the ACC crown since 1991. It’s safe to say that the drought has lasted far longer than any Clemson fan would care to discuss! This drought began with the addition of and annual drubbings by Florida State. In fact FSU has dominated the ACC since joining the league and Clemson fans have at times had to endure endless ribbings and beatdowns at the hands of the Noles and their fans.

But that isn’t the focus of this article. I’m talking about how long has it been since we began a season outside the bubble of possibly breaking through? I have to say that Clemson has had chance after chance over the past 4 years! The Tigers have been in the thick of the fight since the additions of Miami, Boston College, and Virginia Tech several years ago. But the problem with those additions is that Clemson has only won 1 game against the newcomers! The win in the Orange Bowl against Miami was what many Clemson fans saw as the catalyst to the beginning of great things, only to lose to Duke the following week. I feel that I must insert a resounding sigh here!

Truth be told, every Clemson fan has his or her questions for falling short over the past few years. Whether it’s the play calling, talent, or game management, one thing we can all agree on is that we’re tired of hearing that we were one play short!

One play short can mean a lot of things! It can mean a dropped pass in the BC game that would have sent the Tigers to their first ACC championship game. It can mean one TD that was called back because of a dumb penalty. Or it can mean that we threw one too many screens against a stacked box! But one thing is for sure… This team is 2 months away from having another chance at greatness! In fact the greatness this team could experience could go beyond the ACC Championship, but we wont go there yet!

With what most prognosticators feel is the most talented team of Bowden’s tenure at Clemson, and odds on favorite to win the ACC, what can we expect? Can we expect this team to finally turn that illusive corner? Or can we expect to be “one play away” again? Either way, at the end of this season the Clemson nation will once again be saying “How long has it been?” The difference is it could be in celebration or discussing how close we came.

In my opinion the O-line will gel pretty quickly and the linebacking corps will be just good enough and deep enough to get the job done. The skill positions will provide another year of explosive plays, and the occasional failed screen pass. But when the results are in I see this as the year that makes it all worth the wait!

I hope I am right! But I can’t see any other outcome. Then the Clemson nation can celebrate, and in one voice say, “How long has it been since we were this proud of our Tigers?!?!”

GO TIGERS !