DJ Uiagalelei

Clemson has become synonymous with success in college football. In the last six years, the Tigers have six ACC titles, six trips to the College Football Playoff and two national championships. It won't surprise anyone to read that Clemson will be a good team in 2021.

But as most attention focuses on 2020 5-star signee D.J. Uiagalelei, who's replacing star quarterback Trevor Lawrence—the expected top pick in the 2021 NFL draft—the defense may be overshadowed.

That would be a major mistake.

Yes, the unit played a disastrous game in the season-ending 49-28 loss to Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl. However, the Tigers had another strong year defensively to that point. They otherwise allowed just 4.6 yards per play and 17.5 points per game.

Short of two rotational linemen, everyone will return to the defense next season. And we mean everyone.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the NCAA determined 2020 wouldn't count as a year of eligibility. As a result, Clemson is set to bring back three key seniors: linebackers Baylon Spector and James Skalski, along with safety Nolan Turner. They finished as three of Clemson's top-five tacklers.

Additionally, draft-eligible cornerback Derion Kendrick returned. He ranked as the No. 21 prospect in the 2021 class, according to Bleacher Report's Matt Miller in mid-December.

With two exceptions, freshmen and sophomores composed the rest of the depth chart. Defensive tackles Nyles Pinckney and Jordan Williams played in 11-plus games but have since transferred. They're the only notable losses from a top-20 defense (that entered bowl season as a top-five defense).

Expectations will be incredibly high for this unit in 2021. Considering the depth of highly recruited talent up front and those players' actual production, that should be the case.

Most importantly, this isn't praising some previous top recruits simply for being on the roster; the front seven is proven.

In 2020, the Tigers finished third nationally in tackles for loss per game (9.1), fifth in sacks per game (3.8) and seventh in yards allowed per carry (3.1).

Freshman end Myles Murphy led Clemson with 11.5 stops for loss. Freshman tackle Bryan Bresee, sophomore end K.J. Henry and freshman linebacker Trenton Simpson each had 6.5 tackles for loss, and all four players were 5-stars. So was Xavier Thomas, who notched 3.5 sacks in a limited role after a long and difficult recovery from COVID-19. Tyler Davis, a 4-star, is a two-year starter at tackle.

At linebacker, Spector notched a team-best 65 tackles this past season. Skalski, who amassed 90 stops in 2019, communicates the defensive calls from coordinator Brent Venables.

Mike Jones Jr. tallied 26 stops at his strong-side linebacker spot, and Jake Venables had 31 tackles. He's a backup for both Jones and Skalski, while Simpson will play behind Jones. For good measure, Kane Patterson and LaVonta Bentley combined to make 31 tackles as reserves too.

While the secondary needs improvement, Clemson should be optimistic.

Kendrick earned first-team All-ACC honors, while Turner and cornerback Andrew Booth landed second-team recognition. Lannden Zanders started alongside Turner at safety, and both Joseph Charleston and Sheridan Jones held significant roles.

Cornerbacks Mario Goodrich, Malcolm Greene and Fred Davis II and safeties Tyler Venables and Ray Thornton III all played regularly too. The secondary is stacked with experience.

Let's be perfectly clear: Development isn't always linear, and experience doesn't guarantee success or even improvement. Yet with eight defensive backs selected in the last five NFL drafts and a top-30 pass defense every season from 2014 to 2019, Clemson has earned some benefit of the doubt.

Plus, as the Tigers lose only two rotational pieces, they're bringing in a new wave of top talent.

Five-star linebacker/safety Barrett Carter headlines the defenders in the 2021 class, which includes six 4-star prospects. Clemson will be even deeper next season.

Best of all, though, this defense will be tested immediately.

Clemson kicks off the campaign against Georgia—a likely Top Five team—in Charlotte on Labor Day weekend. Georgia returns quarterback JT Daniels, running backs Zamir White and James Cook and a host of receivers led by George Pickens.

While anyone can spend several months touting Clemson's defense, the result of that matchup is infinitely more important than offseason hype. But with every starter and practically the entire depth chart returning, the unit is built to thrive immediately.

If this defense plays anywhere near its enormous potential, Clemson will assemble a dominant year that results in a seventh straight trip to the College Football Playoff.

           

All recruiting information via 247Sports. Stats from NCAA.com, cfbstats.com or B/R research. Follow Bleacher Report CFB Writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.

Week 10 of the college football season presents us with the most important Saturday of the campaign to date. 

A pair of Top 10 matchups will determine the favorite to come out of the ACC and could put a bow on the SEC East race. 

The Clemson Tigers will defend their No. 1 ranking against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in a battle that could be the first of two meetings between the ACC powers. 

Over in the SEC, the Georgia Bulldogs can effectively seal the SEC East crown with a win over the Florida Gators that would give them the head-to-head tiebreaker over their two closest divisional rivals. 

There are a handful of other intriguing matchups across the Saturday slate, but the two most important to the rankings will take place in South Bend, Indiana, and Jacksonville, Florida. 

                      

Week 10 Polls

AP Top 25

1. Clemson (7-0)

2. Alabama (6-0)

3. Ohio State (2-0)

4. Notre Dame (6-0)

5. Georgia (4-1)

6. Cincinnati (5-0)

7. Texas A&M (4-1)

8. Florida (3-1)

9. BYU (8-0)

10. Wisconsin (1-0)

11. Miami (6-1)

12. Oregon (0-0)

13. Indiana (2-0)

14. Oklahoma State (4-1)

15. Coastal Carolina (6-0)

16. Marshall (5-0)

17. Iowa State (4-2)

18. SMU (6-1)

19. Oklahoma (4-2)

20. USC (0-0)

21. Boise State (2-0)

22. Texas (4-2)

23. Michigan (1-1)

24. Auburn (4-2)

25. Liberty (6-0)

               

Coaches Poll

1. Clemson

2. Alabama

3. Ohio State

4. Notre Dame

5. Georgia

6. Cincinnati

7. Texas A&M

8. Florida

9. BYU

10. Miami

11. Wisconsin

12. Oklahoma State

13. Indiana

14. Oregon

15. Marshall

16. Coastal Carolina

17. Iowa State

18. SMU 

19. Oklahoma

20. USC

21. Auburn 

22. Army (6-1)

23. Boise State 

24. North Carolina (4-2)

25. Michigan

        

Saturday night's ACC showdown has a similar feel to it as the marquee SEC matchup between Georgia and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

The winner of the contest will remain undefeated and in the driver's seat to be the conference's College Football Playoff representative. 

Depending on how the game shakes out, the loser may drop one or two positions in the polls and be poised to mount a playoff challenge by winning out and taking the rematch in the conference title game. 

Clemson will be at a disadvantage with D.J. Uiagalelei making his first road start in place of Trevor Lawrence, who will miss his second straight game following a positive COVID-19 test. 

Uiagalelei threw for 342 passing yards in his starting debut in a come-from-behind win over the Boston College Eagles. 

For the Tigers to leave South Bend with a win, their defense must improve after allowing 28 first-half points at home a week ago.

If Clemson sharpens its defense, it should put Uiagalelei in the best possible position to leave Notre Dame Stadium with a win. 

Since the start of the 2017 season, Clemson is 5-0 on the road against ranked opponents. Notre Dame is 5-1 versus Top 25 foes at home in the same span. 

The only defeat in that run occurred against Georgia in 2017, when the Bulldogs limited the Fighting Irish to 19 points. 

Notre Dame's Ian Book-led offense produced over 40 points on three occasions this season, so it could be equipped to go head-to-head with the Tigers if the contest turns into a high-scoring affair. 

If Clemson leaves South Bend with a victory, it will remain on top of the polls and could distance itself a bit from Alabama, who was two points away from overtaking the Tigers in the AP Top 25. 

If Notre Dame wins, it will be placed into the upper echelon of the sport alongside Alabama and the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Georgia is poised to be the top beneficiary of the weekend, if it pulls off its fourth consecutive victory over Florida. The Bulldogs sit at No. 5 following their minimal drop after the loss to Alabama and could slide into the top four if Notre Dame loses, or if Clemson falls by double digits. 

If Kirby Smart's team downs the Gators in Jacksonville, each of its SEC East rivals will have two or more conference losses. There are four unranked teams on Georgia's schedule after Saturday, and even if it slips up once, it would own the tiebreaker over Florida. 

Georgia's biggest fan could be the BYU Cougars, who stormed through the Boise State Broncos on Friday night and are poised to leap over Florida in the Week 11 polls. 

BYU could also make a case to surge past the Cincinnati Bearcats and Texas A&M Aggies depending on how their respective Saturday games pan out. 

The most poll movement on Sunday could occur in the middle of the rankings. The Indiana Hoosiers face a tough home test with the Michigan Wolverines, while the Oklahoma State Cowboys are forced to bounce back from a loss on the road against the Kansas State Wildcats. 

If Oklahoma State stumbles again, the Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns could jump in the Big 12 standings and both polls. 

The Sooners and Longhorns are back in the Top 25 after their nightmarish starts to the season, and both teams are one game back in the loss column in the Big 12 standings. 

Saturday will also give us an idea of how the Oregon Ducks and USC Trojans stack up against the rest of the nation's top programs.

USC hosts the Arizona State Sun Devils in a unique 9 a.m. PT start, and Oregon takes on the Stanford Cardinal.

Depending on how well either team performs, they could receive a bit of a boost in the rankings going into Week 11. 

         

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90

Statistics obtained from ESPN.com