2015 Clemson Tigers football team

2015 ACC football standings
	Atlantic Division
	Coastal Division
	Championship: Clemson 45, North Carolina 37
	^ – College Football Playoff participant; $ – Conference champion; x – Division champion/co-champions; As of January 12, 2016; Rankings from AP Poll

Clemson Tigers football
2015 Clemson Tigers football
CFP National Championship Finalists; Orange Bowl Champions; ACC Champions; ACC Atlantic Division Champions
ACC Championship vs. North Carolina, W 45–37
Orange Bowl (CFP Semifinal) vs. Oklahoma; W 37–17; CFP National Championship vs. Alabama; L 40–45
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference Atlantic Division
Ranking
Coaches	#2
AP	#2
2015 record	14–1 (8–0 ACC)
Head coach	Dabo Swinney (7th full, 8th overall year)
Offensive coordinator	Tony L. Elliott, Jeff Scott (2nd, 2nd year)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Brent Venables (4th year)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium; (Capacity: 81,500)
« 2014	2016 »

The 2015 Clemson Tigers football team represented Clemson University in the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Tigers were led by head coach Dabo Swinney in his seventh full year and eighth overall since taking over midway through 2008 season. They played their home games at Memorial Stadium, also known as "Death Valley." Clemson competed in the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference. On December 5, 2015, the Tigers won the 2015 ACC Championship Game by defeating the North Carolina Tar Heels, 45–37, capping their first undefeated regular season since winning the national title in 1981. Ranked No. 1 throughout the College Football Playoff (CFP) rankings, Clemson defeated the No. 4 Oklahoma Sooners 37–17 in the 2015 Orange Bowl to advance to the College Football Playoff National Championship. On January 11, 2016, the No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide (13–1) defeated the No. 1 Clemson Tigers (14–0) in the 2016 national championship, 45–40. Both Clemson and Alabama finished the season 14–1.

Draft picks

Clemson had five players selected in the 2015 NFL draft. Vic Beasley was picked first at 8th overall.

Player	Team	Round	Pick #	Position
Vic Beasley	Atlanta Falcons	1st	8th	DE
Stephone Anthony	New Orleans Saints	1st	31st	OLB
Grady Jarrett	Atlanta Falcons	5th	137nd	DT
Bradley Pinion	San Francisco 49ers	5th	165th	P
Tony Steward	Buffalo Bills	6th	188th	OLB

Undrafted signees

In addition to five draft picks, four more Clemson Tigers made it into the NFL as undrafted rookies.

Player	Team	Position
Corey Crawford	Washington Redskins	DL
Adam Humphries	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	WR
Deshawn Williams	Cincinnati Bengals	DL
Tavaris Barnes	New Orleans Saints	DE

Schedule

Clemson announced their 2015 football schedule on January 29, 2015. The 2015 schedule consisted of seven home and five away games in the regular season. The Tigers hosted ACC foes Boston College, Florida State, Georgia Tech, and Wake Forest, and travelled to Louisville, Miami, NC State, and Syracuse.^[1] Clemson hosted #4 seed Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl in the first round of the 2015-16 College Football Playoff. The Tigers then hosted #2 seed Alabama in the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship in University of Phoenix Stadium.

Date	Time	Opponent^#	Rank^#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 5	12:30 p.m.	Wofford*	#12	Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC	ACCN	W 49–10	81,345
September 12	12:30 p.m.	Appalachian State*	#12	Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC	ESPN3	W 41–10	81,467
September 17	7:30 p.m.	at Louisville	#11	Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY	ESPN	W 20–17	55,396
October 3	8:00 p.m.	#6 Notre Dame*	#12	Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC	ABC	W 24–22	82,415
October 10	3:30 p.m.	Georgia Tech	#6	Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC (Rivalry)	ABC/ESPN2	W 43–24	80,983
October 17	7:00 p.m.	Boston College	#5	Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC (O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy)	ESPNU	W 34–17	81,416
October 24	Noon	at Miami (FL)	#6	Sun Life Stadium • Miami Gardens, FL	ABC	W 58–0	45,211
October 31	3:30 p.m.	at NC State	#3	Carter–Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC (Textile Bowl)	ABC/ESPN2	W 56–41	57,600
November 7	3:30 p.m.	#16 Florida State	#1	Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC (Rivalry)	ABC	W 23–13	83,099
November 14	3:30 p.m.	at Syracuse	#1	Carrier Dome • Syracuse, NY	ABC/ESPN2	W 37–27	36,736
November 21	3:30 p.m.	Wake Forest	#1	Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC	ESPN2	W 33–13	81,577
November 28	Noon	at South Carolina*	#1	Williams-Brice Stadium • Columbia, SC (Palmetto Bowl)	ESPN	W 37–32	81,409
December 5	8:00 p.m.	vs. #8 North Carolina	#1	Bank of America Stadium • Charlotte, NC (ACC Championship Game)	ABC	W 45–37	74,514
December 31	4:00 p.m.	vs. #4 Oklahoma	#1	Sun Life Stadium • Miami Gardens, FL (Orange Bowl – CFP Semifinal)	ESPN	W 37–17	67,615
January 10	8:30 p.m.	vs. #2 Alabama	#1	University of Phoenix Stadium • Glendale, AZ (CFP National Championship)	ESPN	L 40–45	75,765
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. ^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time Zone.

Schedule source:^[2]

Roster

2015 Clemson Tigers football team roster

Players Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`1`	Trevion Thompson	Fr
QB	`2`	Kelly Bryant	Fr
WR	`3`	Artavis Scott	So
QB	`4`	Deshaun Watson	So
WR	`5`	Germone Hopper	Jr
WR	`7`	Mike Williams	Jr
WR	`8`	Deon Cain	Fr
RB	`9`	Wayne Gallman	So
QB	`10`	Tucker Israel	Fr
WR	`11`	Shadell Bell	Fr
QB	`12`	Nick Schuessler	Jr
WR, P	`13`	Hunter Renfrow	Fr
TE	`16`	Jordan Leggett	Jr
QB	`18`	James Barnes	Fr
WR	`19`	Charone Peake	Sr
RB	`21`	C. J. Davidson	Sr
RB	`22`	Tyshon Dye	So
RB	`24`	Zac Brooks	Sr
RB	`26`	Adam Choice	So
RB	`27`	C. J. Fuller	Fr
WR	`34`	Ray-Ray McCloud	Fr
RB	`38`	Brennan Goodnature	Sr
WR	`39`	Jordan Bianchi	Sr
TE	`44`	Garrett Williams	Fr
OL	`50`	Justin Falcinelli	Fr
OL	`51`	Taylor Hearn	Fr
OL	`54`	Zach Riggs	So
OG	`55`	Tyrone Crowder	So
OL	`57`	Jay Guillermo	Jr
OL	`58`	Ryan Norton	Sr
OT	`61`	William Cockerill	Sr
OT	`63`	Jake Fruhmorgen	Fr
OL	`64`	Pat Godfrey	Fr
OT	`65`	Daniel Stone	Sr
OG	`69`	Maverick Morris	So
OG	`70`	Seth Penner	Fr
OL	`71`	Noah Green	Fr
OL	`72`	Logan Tisch	Fr
OL	`73`	Joe Gore	Sr
OT	`75`	Mitch Hyatt	Fr
C	`77`	Zach Geilla	Fr
OG	`78`	Eric Mac Lain	Sr
OL	`79`	Harrison Tucker	Sr
TE	`80`	Milan Richard	Fr
TE	`81`	Stanton Seckinger	Sr
WR	`82`	Adrien Dunn	So
TE	`83`	Jesse Fisher	Fr
TE	`84`	Cannon Smith	Fr
WR	`85`	Seth Ryan	So
WR	`86`	Ty Thomason	Fr
TE	`87`	D. J. Greenlee	So
WR	`88`	Sean Mac Lane	Jr
TE	`89`	Jay Jay McCullough	Jr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
S	`1`	Jayron Kearse	Jr
CB	`2`	Mackensie Alexander	So
LB	`5`	Dorian O'Daniel	So
LB	`10`	Ben Boulware	Jr
LB	`11`	Travis Blanks	Jr
S	`12`	Korrin Wiggins	Jr
CB	`14`	Denzel Johnson	Fr
S	`15`	T. J. Green	Jr
S	`17`	Jefferie Gibson	Fr
S	`18`	Jadar Johnson	Jr
S	`19`	Tanner Muse	Fr
CB	`20`	Kaleb Chalmers	Fr
CB	`21`	Adrian Baker	So
S	`23`	Van Smith	Fr
CB	`24`	Mark Fields	Fr
CB	`25`	Cordrea Tankersley	Jr
CB	`29`	Marcus Edmond	So
LB	`30`	Jalen Williams	Fr
CB	`31`	Ryan Carter	So
S	`32`	Kyle Cote	Fr
LB	`33`	J. D. Davis	Fr
LB	`34`	Kendall Joseph	Fr
LB	`35`	Quentin Hall	Sr
LB	`37`	Judah Davis	Fr
S	`37`	Cameron Scott	Fr
CB	`38`	Amir Trapp	Fr
DE	`40`	Jaquarius Brice	So
DT	`40`	Roderick Byers	Sr
LB	`41`	T. J. Burrell	Jr
DT	`42`	Christian Wilkins	Fr
LB	`43`	Chad Smith	Fr
LB	`44`	B. J. Goodson	Sr
DE	`45`	Chris Register	Fr
LB	`46`	Jarvis Magwood	Fr
DT	`48`	D. J. Reader	Sr
S	`49`	Beau Brown	Sr
DE	`49`	Richard Yeargin	Fr
DT	`50`	Jabril Robinson	Fr
LB	`52`	Connor Prevost	So
LB	`53`	Martin Aiken	Jr
DT	`56`	Scott Pagano	So
DE	`59`	Collins Mauldin	Sr
DE	`60`	Kelby Bevelle	So
DE	`62`	Kaleb Bevelle	So
DT	`67`	Albert Huggins	Fr
DE	`85`	Dane Rogers	So
DE	`90`	Shaq Lawson	Jr
DE	`91`	Austin Bryant	Fr
DE	`93`	Sterling Johnson	Fr
DT	`94`	Carlos Watkins	Jr
DT	`95`	Gage Cervenka	Fr
DE	`98`	Kevin Dodd	Jr
DE	`99`	Clelin Ferrell	Fr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
P	`32`	Andy Teasdall	Jr
K, P	`36`	Ammon Lakip	Sr
K, P	`39`	Christian Groomes	Fr
K	`47`	Alex Spence	So
LS	`52`	Austin Spence	Fr
LS	`59`	Bradley Tatko	So
LS	`61`	David Estes	Jr
LS	`76`	Jim Brown	Sr
K	`92`	Greg Huegel	Fr
P	`96`	Michael Batson	Fr

Head coach

Dabo Swinney (8th season)

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Tony Elliott – Co-Offensive Coordinator / Running Backs
Jeff Scott – Co-Offensive Coordinator / Wide Receivers
Danny Pearman – Assistant Head Coach / Special Teams Coordinator & Tight Ends
Robbie Caldwell – Offensive Linemen
Brandon Streeter – Quarterbacks / Recruiting Coordinator
Brent Venables – Defensive Coordinator / Linebackers
Marion Hobby – Co-Defensive Coordinator / Defensive Ends
Mike Reed – Associate Head Coach / Defensive Backs
Dan Brooks – Defensive Tackles
Thomas Austin – Graduate Assistant
Tyler Grisham – Graduate Assistant
DeAndre McDaniel – Graduate Assistant
Corico White – Graduate Assistant

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster
Last update: November 22, 2015

Game summaries

Wofford

	1	2	3	4	Total
Terriers	0	7	3	0	10
#12 Tigers	14	21	7	7	49

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
11–3	2011	CLEM, 35–27

Appalachian State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mountaineers	0	0	3	7	10
#12 Tigers	3	28	7	3	41

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
4–0	1997	CLEM, 23–12

Louisville

	1	2	3	4	Total
#11 Tigers	0	7	10	3	20
Cardinals	0	3	7	7	17

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
2–0	2014	CLEM, 23–17

Notre Dame

	1	2	3	4	Total
#6 Fighting Irish	3	0	0	19	22
#12 Tigers	14	0	7	3	24

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
2–1	1979	CLEM, 16–10

Georgia Tech

	1	2	3	4	Total
Yellow Jackets	3	7	7	7	24
#6 Tigers	19	14	7	3	43

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
27–51–2	2014	GT, 28–6

Boston College

	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	7	3	0	7	17
#5 Tigers	10	7	10	7	34

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
13–9–2	2014	CLEM, 17–13

Miami (FL)

	1	2	3	4	Total
#6 Tigers	21	21	3	13	58
Hurricanes	0	0	0	0	0

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
3–6	2010	MIA, 30–21

NC State

	1	2	3	4	Total
#3 Tigers	16	10	21	9	56
Wolfpack	13	7	7	14	41

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
54–28–1	2014	CLEM 41–0

Florida State

	1	2	3	4	Total
#16 Seminoles	7	3	3	0	13
#1 Tigers	3	3	7	10	23

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
8–20	2014	FSU, 23–17

Syracuse

	1	2	3	4	Total
#1 Tigers	21	10	0	6	37
Orange	14	3	7	3	27

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
2–1	2014	CLEM, 16–6

Wake Forest

	1	2	3	4	Total
Demon Deacons	0	7	0	6	13
#1 Tigers	20	10	3	0	33

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
62–17–1	2014	CLEM, 34–20

South Carolina

	1	2	3	4	Total
#1 Tigers	0	14	14	9	37
Gamecocks	0	3	14	15	32

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
66–42–4	2014	CLEM, 35–17

ACC Championship Game

#1 Clemson Tigers vs #8 North Carolina Tar Heels – Game summary

	1	2	3	4	Total
#1 Tigers	7	14	14	10	45
#8 Tar Heels	9	7	7	14	37

at Bank of America Stadium • Charlotte, NC

Date: December 5, 2015
Game time: 8:00 p.m.
TV announcers (ABC): Chris Fowler (play-by-play), Kirk Herbstreit (color), Heather Cox (sideline)
Sources:

Orange Bowl- CFP Semifinal Game

#4 Oklahoma Sooners vs #1 Clemson Tigers - Game summary

	1	2	3	4	Total
#4 Sooners	7	10	0	0	17
#1 Tigers	3	13	14	7	37

at Sun Life Stadium • Miami Gardens, Florida

Date: December 31, 2015
Game time: 4:00 p.m.
Game weather: Outdoors
Game attendance: 67,615
Referee: Mike Cannon (Big Ten)
TV announcers (ESPN): Brad Nessler (Play-by-Play), Todd Blackledge (Analyst), Holly Rowe (Sideline)
Sources:

CFP Championship Game

#2 Alabama Crimson Tide vs #1 Clemson Tigers - Game summary

	1	2	3	4	Total
#2 Alabama	7	7	7	24	45
#1 Clemson	14	0	10	16	40

at University of Phoenix Stadium • Glendale, AZ

Date: January 11, 2016
Game time: 6:33 p.m.
Game weather: Indoors
Game attendance: 75,765
Referee: Terry Leyden (Pac-12)
TV announcers (ESPN): Chris Fowler (play-by-play), Kirk Herbstreit (color), Heather Cox & Tom Rinaldi (sideline)
Sources:

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. ( ) = First place votes.
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	12	12	11	11	12	6	5 (1)	6 (1)	3 (6)	3 (6)	1 (31)	1 (34)	1 (55)	1 (53)	1 (51)	2
Coaches'	12	12	9	10	11	6	6	6	6 (1)	5 (2)	2 (21)	1 (28)	1 (58)	1 (53)	1 (55)	2
CFP	Not released									1	1	1	1	1	1	Not released

References

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v t e Clemson Tigers football
Venues	Bowman Field (1900–1914) Riggs Field (1915–1941) Memorial Stadium (1942–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Auburn Boston College (O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy) Florida State Georgia Georgia Tech NC State (Textile Bowl) South Carolina
Culture & lore	The Tiger "Tiger Rag" Marching band Clemson–South Carolina football brawl
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
National championship seasons in bold

2015 Clemson Tigers football team

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