Clemson football's bowl game hopes improve after win over rival Florida State

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College football’s bowl season begins in just over a month, with the LA Bowl in Los Angeles being the first postseason event of 2025 set to host a Power Four team at the conclusion of the regular season.

Will the Clemson Tigers be part of the bowl picture this season?

The Tigers certainly helped their case with a 24-10 victory over Florida State last Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Clemson got out to an 18-0 lead, and Death Valley felt like Death Valley again.

The Tigers improved to 4-5 with three games remaining. They’ll need to beat two of the final three opponents left on their schedule — Louisville, Furman, and rival South Carolina — to reach a bowl game for the 21st season in a row. Clemson’s 20-year bowl game streak is the fourth longest active run in college football.

“I know it hasn’t been a great season record-wise, but it don’t ever get old to beat the Noles,” Swinney said after Saturday’s game. “And it ain’t ever easy to beat the Noles. In my 17 years as the head coach, it’s pretty much been us or Florida State (winning the ACC).”

And thanks to Saturday’s result, it’s also been nine Clemson victories in the series’ last 10 meetings vs. Florida State.

Fresh off a win over a rival in the month of November, here’s a look at the latest bowl game projections for Clemson football at the midway point of the 2025 season.

ESPN predicts the Clemson Tigers‘ 2025 bowl game

Projected matchup: Clemson vs. South Florida

  • Bowl: Gasparilla Bowl
  • Where: Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Florida)
  • When: Dec. 19, 2025, 4:30 p.m. ET
  • TV: ESPN

ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura projects a rematch of the 2010 Meineke Car Care Bowl, which saw South Florida defeat Clemson, 31-26, in Charlotte to mark the end of Swinney’s second full season as coach.

Another ESPN projection comes from veteran analyst Mark Schlabach.

Projected matchup: Clemson vs. UTSA

  • Bowl: Birmingham Bowl
  • Where: Protective Stadium (Birmingham, Alabama)
  • When: Dec. 29, 2025, 3 p.m. ET
  • TV: ESPN

Clemson has never played the Roadrunners in football.

Another Birmingham Bowl projection comes from veteran college sports analyst Jerry Palm at Palm Bracktes. Palm sees Clemson facing Kennesaw State in Birmingham. The Owls joined the FBS ranks in 2024.

USA TODAY Sports predicts Clemson football’s 2025 bowl game

Projected matchup: Clemson vs. Minnesota

  • Bowl: Pinstripe Bowl
  • Where: Yankee Stadium (Bronx, New York)
  • When: Dec. 27, 2025, noon ET
  • TV: ABC

USA TODAY Sports’ Paul Myerberg sees Clemson taking on Minnesota in a rematch of the 1985 Independence Bowl in Shreveport, a 20-13 win by the Gophers over coach Danny Ford’s Tigers team. Lou Holtz was Minnesota’s head coach that season until leaving for Notre Dame ahead of the bowl game.

CBS Sports also sees Clemson reaching the Pinstripe Bowl. Analyst Brad Crawford projects the Tigers to face the Northwestern Wildcats from the Big Ten. The Tigers and Wildcats have never met on the gridiron.

Likewise, Clemson has never played in the Pinstripe Bowl since the game’s inception in 2010.

The New York Times predicts Clemson’s 2025 bowl game

Over at The Athletic, the sports hub of The New York Times, analyst Scott Dochterman sees Clemson facing the last SEC team it defeated.

Projected matchup: Clemson vs. Kentucky

  • Bowl: Duke’s Mayo Bowl
  • Where: Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, North Carolina)
  • When: Jan. 2, 2026, 9 p.m. ET
  • TV: ESPN

Clemson used a 28-point fourth quarter to rally past Kentucky for a 38-35 victory in the 2023 Gator Bowl in Jacksonville to close the 2023 regular season with five straight wins.

Will Clemson football make a bowl game? Veteran analyst says no

Veteran college football analyst Bryan Fischer of Sports Illustrated unveiled his new bowl projections following Week 11 on Saturday. Even after its win over Florida State, Clemson is absent from SI’s list.

Clemson football schedule 2025

Clemson will face the Louisville Cardinals at 7:30 p.m. ET Friday at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. The game will be televised on ESPN.

Here’s a game-by-game look at the Tigers’ 2025 schedule.

All start times Eastern.

  • Aug. 30: vs. LSU (L, 17-10)
  • Sept. 6: vs. Troy (W, 27-16)
  • Sept. 13: at Georgia Tech (L, 24-21)
  • Sept. 20: vs. Syracuse (L, 34-21)
  • Oct. 4: at North Carolina (W, 38-10)
  • Oct. 11: at Boston College (W, 41-10)
  • Oct. 18: vs. SMU, (L, 35-24)
  • Nov. 1: vs. Duke (L, 46-45)
  • Nov. 8: vs. Florida State (W, 24-10)
  • Nov. 14: at Louisville, 7:30 p.m., ESPN
  • Nov. 22: vs. Furman, 4:30 p.m., The CW
  • Nov. 29: at South Carolina, noon, ABC or ESPN

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This article originally appeared on Clemson Wire: Clemson football bowl projections rise after Florida State win

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