2025 Boston College Football Early Opponent Preview, Week 7: Clemson

In Bill O’Brien’s first year as the Boston College Eagles football head coach in 2024, he made strides to improve the program and started the framework to compete with some of the best teams in college football. 

His effort will be put to the test during the program’s 2025 campaign as the Eagles host the Clemson Tigers in Week 7, the first of three games against teams to make the College Football Playoff last year. 

Let’s take a look at the opponent. 

Offense

Leading the way for Clemson is returning starting quarterback Cade Klubnik. In 2024, the Austin, Texas, native started in all 14 games and went 308-of-486 (63.4%) for 3,639 yards, 36 touchdowns, and six interceptions. Klubnik also was the second-highest rusher among the team as he tallied 463 rush yards and seven touchdowns on 119 attempts. 

Klubnik will enter the 2025 season as the team’s top rusher. The program lost its star running back Phil Mafah to the NFL draft in April. As for offensive weapons, the Tigers returned wide receiver Antonio Williams, who had a team-high 904 reception yards and 11 touchdowns last season. They also brought back wide receiver Bryant Wesco Jr., who had the second-most reception yards in 2024, with 708. 

As for newcomers, Clemson picked up Southeast Missouri State transfer wide receiver Tristian Smith out of the portal and have 10 freshmen from its recruiting class coming in as well. 

Defense

On the defensive side of the ball, Clemson returned its top tackler in linebacker Wade Woodaz, who totaled 89 total tackles last year, as well as brought back its leader in tackles for loss (19.5), defensive end T.J. Parker. 

The Tigers lost two defensive players to the draft in linebacker Barrett Carter and safety R.J. Mickens, who were the second and third best defenders among the team, however picked up a pair of players in the transfer portal in EDGE Will Heldt (Purdue) and linebacker Jeremiah Alexander (Alabama). 

Clemson also has five freshmen joining the program that play defense, including defensive lineman Amare Adams, EDGE Ari Watford, linebacker Logan Anderson, safety Jakarrion Kenan, and defensive lineman Makhi Williams-Lee.

Schedule 

The contest marks the second of a two-game road trip for Clemson while it starts a two-game home stand for Boston College. Both teams will enter the matchup on the same rest as both play the Saturday prior to the game. 

Outlook 

Although Boston College has started to make strides to compete against the top programs in the nation, Clemson has the more favorable chance to win. Not only are the Tigers coming off a College Football Playoff appearance after earning the ACC’s automatic bid as conference champions, but they have also historically dominated the Eagles and are riding a 12-game winning streak in the all-time series. On top of that, Clemson is also bringing back numerous faces from last year’s campaign. 

Clemson at Boston College:

Boston College Eagles On SI takes a long look at each of the Eagles upcoming opponents this season, including their Week 7 contest at home against the College Football Playoff contenders the Clemson Tigers.

Check out the other stories in Boston College Eagles On SI’s early opponent preview series: Fordham (Week 1), Michigan State (Week 2), Stanford (Week 3), Cal (Week 5), and Pitt (Week 6).

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