CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

1985 Clemson

6–⁠6 (4–⁠3 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Danny Ford.

Schedule and results

Clemson in 1985, game by game: won at Virginia Tech 20–17; lost vs. Georgia 13–20; lost vs. Georgia Tech 3–14; lost at Kentucky 7–26; won vs. Virginia 27–24; won at Duke 21–9; won vs. NC State 39–10; won vs. Wake Forest 26–10; lost at North Carolina 20–21; lost vs. Maryland 31–34; won at South Carolina 24–17; lost vs. Minnesota 13–20+29−19Won 20–17 at Virginia Tech+3Virginia TechLost 13–20 vs. Georgia-7GeorgiaLost 3–14 vs. Georgia Tech-11Georgia TechLost 7–26 at Kentucky-19KentuckyWon 27–24 vs. Virginia+3VirginiaWon 21–9 at Duke+12DukeWon 39–10 vs. NC State+29NC StateWon 26–10 vs. Wake Forest+16Wake ForestLost 20–21 at North Carolina-1North CarolinaLost 31–34 vs. Maryland-3MarylandWon 24–17 at South Carolina+7South CarolinaLost 13–20 vs. Minnesota-7Minnesota
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 14atVirginia TechW 20–⁠1762%
Sep 21vsGeorgiaL 13–⁠2063%
Sep 28vsGeorgia TechL 3–⁠1465%
Oct 5atKentuckyL 7–⁠2642%
Oct 12vsVirginiaW 27–⁠2449%
Oct 19atDukeW 21–⁠962%
Oct 26vsNC StateW 39–⁠1084%
Nov 2vsWake ForestW 26–⁠1077%
Nov 9atNorth CarolinaL 20–⁠2154%
Nov 16vsMarylandL 31–⁠3445%
Nov 23atSouth CarolinaW 24–⁠1750%
Dec 21Bowls & playoffvsMinnesotaIndependence BowlL 13–⁠2064%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Minnesota 20–⁠13 in the Independence Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 3rd in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 67th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 125 on file).

Players on this team

Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 1985.

Record
6–⁠6
Conference
4–⁠3 tied for 3rd in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
244–⁠222
Coach
Danny Ford
Elo
1556 −48 this season
SP+ rating
4.9 No. 44 of 106; offense No. 64, defense No. 35
SRS
5.7 No. 37 of 110 in Division I-A
Recruiting class
—
Offensive coordinator
Nelson Stokley
Captains
Steve Berlin and Steve Reese

All-ACC

3 first team

First team

From Wikipedia’s 1985 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

1985 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Maryland6–⁠09–⁠318
Georgia Tech5–⁠19–⁠2–⁠119
Virginia4–⁠36–⁠5
Clemson4–⁠36–⁠6
North Carolina3–⁠45–⁠6
Duke2–⁠54–⁠7
NC State2–⁠53–⁠8
Wake Forest1–⁠64–⁠7

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.