Clemson football bowl projections: Where the Tigers, Dabo Swinney could play

Clemson football started the 2023 season talking of a College Football Playoff. Now at season's end, the Tigers are awaiting the announcement of what non-playoff, non-New Year's Six bowl they'll play in.

Bowl announcements will start to roll in Dec. 3 after the playoff field is announced. Clemson (8-4) finished the season strong with a four-game win streak, including a 16-7 win over rival South Carolina, and the Tigers stand to make a solid Tier 1 bowl game.

But which bowl will it be? Here are our three frontrunners for where Clemson will play in the postseason.

Holiday Bowl

Date: Dec. 27

Location: San Diego

Opponent affiliation: Pac-12

The Holiday Bowl is a popular pick for the Tigers: Both CBS' Jerry Palm and Action Network's Brett McMurphy project Clemson to play in San Diego, and both have the Tigers facing an interesting opponent: Oregon State (8-4). A meeting between Clemson and former quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei would certainly be a compelling bowl season storyline.

Gator Bowl

Date: Dec. 29

Location: Jacksonville, Florida

Opponent affiliation: SEC

The Gator Bowl would be a good draw for the Tigers. It's a roughly six hour drive from Clemson and could bring an interesting matchup against an 8-4 or 7-5 SEC team such as Texas A&M or Kentucky. Fans traveling to Jacksonville could even stick around to watch former Clemson star Trevor Lawrence when the Jaguars host the Carolina Panthers two days after the bowl game.

Tennessee is a common projection for the SEC half of the Gator Bowl, which wouldn't favor Clemson going to Jacksonville. The Tigers just played the Volunteers in last season's Orange Bowl, and bowls try to avoid recent repeats.

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ReliaQuest Bowl

Date: Jan. 1

Location: Tampa, Florida

Opponent affiliation: SEC

Formerly the Outback Bowl, the ReliaQuest Bowl might be a reach for Clemson. The last five editions have included at least one ranked team, and current projections have 9-3 LSU and 9-3 Notre Dame facing off in the Tampa game. NC State is also a good candidate with its 9-3 finish.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Here are top 3 bowl destinations for Clemson football, Dabo Swinney