15-05-2025
Dabo Swinney Looks to Add to Brian Kelly's Week 1 Misery in Clemson-LSU Clash
The 2025 college football season is set to open with a bang, as ESPN and the ACC announced Tuesday that Clemson will host LSU at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 30 in Death Valley, with ABC broadcasting the heavyweight clash in primetime.
It's a matchup loaded with national intrigue and even more pressure—especially for two programs that have struggled to start fast in recent years.
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For Clemson, this is a chance to flip the narrative after two straight season-opening losses. In 2023, the Tigers fell flat on the road in a shocking 28-7 loss to Duke. A year later, they opened the 2024 campaign in the Aflac Kickoff Game against Georgia, and were dismantled 34-3 in Atlanta.
'They just kicked our freakin' tails in the second half,' head coach Dabo Swinney said after that loss. 'That's on me. That's complete ownership of an absolute crap second half.'
Swinney has been adamant that winning the opener is priority No. 1 for his program—and there may be no better place for a reset than Memorial Stadium on a Saturday night.
Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney speaks during the College Football Playoff National Championship Coaches Conference at the media hotel in New Orleans© Ken Ruinard / staff, The Greenville News via Imagn Content Services, LLC
LSU enters the season opener with its own baggage. Head coach Brian Kelly is still seeking his first Week 1 victory since taking over in Baton Rouge. The Tigers have lost their season opener in each of Kelly's first three years at LSU.
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In 2022, it was a blocked extra point that sealed a wild loss to Florida State. In 2023, they were overwhelmed in a 45-24 defeat to the Seminoles again. Then in 2024, LSU held a fourth-quarter lead over USC in Las Vegas, only to collapse late and lose 27-20.
A visibly angry Kelly didn't mince words after that loss.
'We're sitting here again talking about the same things,' he said, pounding the press conference table. 'I've got to coach them better because it's unacceptable for us not to have found a way to win this football game.'
Now, with both programs facing early pressure, the stage is set for one of the most intense opening games in the nation. Adding even more spice? This is a rematch of the 2019 national championship game, where Joe Burrow and LSU crushed Clemson's title hopes in New Orleans.
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While the rosters and coaching staffs have evolved since then, the stakes remain sky-high. A win in Week 1 could be a tone-setter for either team—and a much-needed relief for two coaches who have had to answer too many postgame questions about slow starts.
A Saturday night in Death Valley. Two bluebloods with something to prove. And only one can finally start 1-0.
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