RALEIGH, N.C. — Clemson likes to emphasis that each game is the biggest game of the season.
“The next game is always the biggest game,” they like to say.
However, that has been the case for quite some time in when it comes to NC State, who the Tigers play Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, N.C.
With the ACC’s Atlantic Division Championship at stake, wide receiver Hunter Renfrow admitted the Tigers have been looking forward to and paying attention to the Wolfpack for a while now.
“It’s been at the back of our minds for a few weeks now,” the junior said. “We have seen how they have played over the course of the season. It’s something that we kind of saw in the future, but we were focused on the game at hand. We saw it coming and we’re ready to play our best game.”
What the fourth-ranked Tigers saw coming was an NC State team that, with the exception of last week’s loss to Notre Dame, has gotten better each week. Now the 20th-ranked Wolfpack (6-2, 4-0 ACC) have themselves in position to win their first championship of any kind since 1979, the last time they won the ACC.
However, to do it, they will have to beat two-time defending ACC Champion and defending national champion Clemson. The Tigers have won the last five meetings in the series and 12 of the last 13 overall.
“We want to control where we go and as a football team, a coaching staff, that’s something you always want to do,” NC State head coach Dave Doeren said. “We’re into November now and we want this conversation to continue. Every game we play brings us closer and closer and closer to where want to be at the end.
“It’s just a short term focus, knowing we’ve got to beat Clemson. To do that we’ve got to play much better than we did last week. It’s just how do you get them from where they were to where they want to be. Focusing on those details and making sure we put a game plan together that the kids can play fast with and execute with and make the plays needed.”
Clemson (7-1, 5-1 ACC) is used to being in these kinds of situations. In fact, the Tigers have lived in these moments the last six years.
“Really, it’s just to keep things simple. That’s kind of the message,” Renfrow said. “Not to overcomplicate things just control what you can control really … make it internally rather than an external factor.
“Just worry about being a better teammate and getting better every day and those little things. If you focus on those, then you kind of drown out what’s happening around you.”
And what is happening on Saturday? The Tigers have an opportunity to put themselves in position to win another championship.
“We’ve got a big challenge with NC State,” Swinney said “This is a really, really good football team. That’s why it’s come down to these two team in November. You’ve got two teams that are well-positioned to try to win the division, so it’s exciting to be a part of this type of games. This is playoff football…that’s what it really comes down to. It’ll be a big challenge heading up there.”