CLEMSON — Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney says the only advantage of playing Georgia in the season opener is winning it.

The Tigers and Bulldogs open their season on Aug. 31 in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic in Atlanta.

“The advantage is if you win it,” Swinney said. “Other than that, I think you get exposed to playoff football right out of the gate. That is really what it is. It is that caliber of football.

“Both teams get better as you go through the course of the season, but there is an edge to it for sure.”

It is not usual for Clemson to open the season away from Memorial Stadium, or against an opponent like Georgia. The Tigers began the 2012 season in this same game against Auburn and came away with a win.

They also played at Georgia in 2014, at Auburn in 2016 and against Georgia in Charlotte in 2021. Clemson also hosted Auburn in 2011 and 2017, while also hosting the Bulldogs in 2013 and a home-and-home series with Texas A&M in 2018 and 2019.

Next year, LSU comes to Clemson’s Death Valley before the Tigers repay the visit in 2026. Clemson then plays a home-and-home with Georgia beginning in 2027.

“We have opened up at Auburn. We have opened up in Atlanta a couple of times. We started last year on the road,” Swinney said.

In fact, this year will mark the eighth time Clemson has opened the season away from Death Valley during Swinney’s 16-year tenure, and they have done it in each of the last five years.

“It has been a while, so opening up on the road against Georgia, who to me has been the best team in the country the last three years… It certainly brings an edge to our preparation,” Swinney said.

With the College Football Playoff expanding, Swinney feels non-conference games like Clemson vs. Georgia will become more and more common.

“What it all comes down to in the end, like in basketball when they are talking about the tournament, because we have created a tournament, if you will, so that strength of schedule will be important,” he said. “You play games like this and maybe another team beats East Dubuque Community College, and they are undefeated and you’ve played the best of the best and maybe vice versa and you have a win against the best team in the country.

“So, all of those things can factor into it, and vice versa for Georgia, for them to step out of conference and play Clemson. It works both ways. I think it is definitely something.”