Clemson’s annual rivalry football game with South Carolina possibly could come to an end thanks to the SEC’s and Big Ten’s collaboration.
Yahoo’s Ross Dellenger reports the Big Ten and SEC could come to an agreement where the schools of the two leagues will play one another every year. He also reports the SEC is looking into adding a ninth conference game, which the Big Ten is already doing.
That means the Tigers’ future matchups with Georgia and Oklahoma could be in jeopardy, as well. Clemson is supposed to play Georgia in a home-and-home series in 2029 and 2030, as well as in 2032 and 2033.
The Tigers play Oklahoma in a home-and-home series in 2035 and 2036.
Clemson, of course, opens the 2025 season against LSU at Memorial Stadium. They are supposed to return the favor next year, and open the 2026 football season in Baton Rouge, La.
If the two leagues come to this agreement, it means their member schools will have just two non-conference games left to fill on their schedules. The Gamecocks can elect to still play the Tigers. However, how will the Clemson game fit in those seasons the Gamecocks have to play at Memorial Stadium.
Right now, the two teams balance their non-conference home games by playing a home-and-home series. Clemson hosts the annual rivalry game on even years and South Carolina on odd years.
It has been this way since 1960 when Clemson first hosted the annual rivalry game in Death Valley. From 1896-1959, the game was played in Columbia every year on the third Thursday in October during the South Carolina State Fair and was known as “Big Thursday.”
The SEC-Big Ten partnership could also but other SEC-ACC rivalry games in jeopardy as well, such as Florida State-Florida, Georgia Tech-Georgia and Louisville-Kentucky.
The Clemson-South Carolina rivalry is one of the oldest in college football. The series began in 1896 with a 12-6 South Carolina win.
Since then, the two schools have played every year except in 1901, 1903-1908 and 2020. They have met 115 times in the last 116 years, as the COVID pandemic interrupted a streak of 111 consecutive meetings from 1909-2019.
It was the second longest uninterrupted series in college football at the time. Clemson leads the all-time series 73-44-4.
Dellenger also reports last spring leaders of the Big Ten and SEC threatened to leave the current structure in College Football and create their own postseason system if they were not granted a majority of College Football Playoff revenue and authority over the playoff format.
Executives of the 10 FBS leagues and Notre Dame signed a memorandum, handing control over to both leagues. The understanding of the memorandum is the SEC and Big Ten hold sole discretion on the future CFP format starting in 2026.
The agreement grants the two leagues decision-making powers over the format but directs them to consult with the other conferences before making any decisions.
Leaders of each conference have spent the last several weeks working on the 14- or 16-team CFP model, which would grant four automatic qualifiers each to the SEC and Big Ten. Two each to the ACC and Big 12, and one to the highest-ranked Group of Five champion.
It includes one or three at-large spots, one of those intended for Notre Dame if it finishes ranked inside the top 14.
The 14-team playoff is described as a 4-4-2-2-1+1 model in which the top two seeds receive first-round byes. There would be no byes in a 16-team structure.
Dellenger also describes how the CFP selection committee’s role is diminished. The future of the committee is also controlled by the SEC and Big Ten.
Other conferences leaders are not happy about the SEC and Big Ten having so much control. ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips has been very outspoken about it. Group of 5 leaders are also prepared to fight.
SEC and Big Ten athletic directors are expected to meet on Wednesday in New Orleans to discuss the future of the CFP. Big 12 athletic directors will discuss the future playoff format at meetings this week, as well. The ACC’s athletic directors and presidents met last week in Charlotte.