More than a few people had their doubts about the Clemson Tigers‘ chances of reaching the College Football Playoff after their 34-3 drubbing at the hands of the Georgia Bulldogs in Week 1.

But Week 1 was never going to be the sole determination of the Tigers’ postseason fate, especially with the CFP expanding to 12 teams. And after three straight wins and a 2-0 start in ACC play, a reenergized offense led by Cade Klubnik, and the collapse of conference foes like Florida State, Clemson at 3-1 looks like a much better bet as a playoff team than it did this time last month.

Earlier this week, USA TODAY Sports released their latest bowl and playoff projections heading into Week 6. Analysts Paul Myerberg and Erick Smith see the Miami Hurricanes winning the ACC and getting a first-round bye, along with the No. 3 seed.

Dabo Swinney’s Tigers are projected as the No. 9 seed in USA TODAY Sports’ latest playoff and bowl projections. As the would-be ACC runner-up, Myerberg and Smith forecast that Clemson would face the Penn State Nittany Lions at Beaver Stadium in the first round of the playoffs.

As strange as a Clemson vs. Penn State matchup might sound, the two programs have met once before. In the Citrus Bowl on New Year’s Day 1988, Danny Ford’s 12th-ranked Tigers defeated Joe Paterno’s 19th-ranked Nittany Lions, 35-10, in Orlando.

Myerberg and Smith see the Alabama Crimson Tide as the projected No. 1 overall seed among the four conference champions to receive automatic bids/first-round byes. The Tide took down previously No. 1-ranked Georgia last week in Tuscaloosa in a thrilling 41-34 finish, handing the Bulldogs their first regular season loss since 2020.

The Ohio State Buckeyes are the projected No. 2 seed and Big Ten champion, with Miami the No. 3 seed and a new Big 12 conference champion projected as the No. 4 seed: the Kansas State Wildcats.

Clemson will look to stay hot when they take on the Florida State Seminoles in prime time at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET. The game can be seen on ESPN.

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This article originally appeared on Clemson Wire: Where does Clemson land in latest USA TODAY Sports College Football Playoff projections?