Chris “The Bear” Fallica questions if the Tigers are truly playoff-ready in 2025
Clemson enters the 2025 season with momentum, national attention, and lofty expectations. Many analysts have ranked the Tigers among the top two teams in the country. But not everyone is sold.
Chris “The Bear” Fallica, now with FOX Sports after his long run at ESPN, isn’t buying all of the preseason hype. On the See Ball Get Ball podcast with David Pollack, Fallica made it clear: “I’m buyer beware, I think, with Clemson this year. I think they’re really good, but I don’t think they are like, preseason No. 1, preseason No. 2 good like a lot of people think they are.”
Fallica backed his doubts with three key points:
1. Last year’s close calls. Clemson slipped past Pitt in a game they “had absolutely no business winning,” Fallica said. The Tigers also fell to South Carolina and were blown out by Louisville at home, raising questions about their true consistency.
2. A challenging schedule. The 2025 slate includes LSU in the opener, road trips to Louisville and South Carolina, and tricky games against SMU, Boston College, and Georgia Tech. Fallica believes those matchups leave little margin for error.
3. The Tigers will be relying on Cade Klubnik and the returning wide receivers, but Fallica warned against automatic growth: “We’re assuming the freshman is going to be great.”
Even so, Fallica acknowledged Clemson has the talent to surge if everything clicks. The Tigers could rip through the ACC and prove him wrong. But until then, he’s not convinced the hype matches reality.
Action statement: Clemson has the stage, the schedule, and the spotlight. Now it’s time to prove whether the preseason buzz is justified, or just noise.
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