Could 'The Battle for Death Valley' be in the future?

Clemson's football program has prided itself in recent years scheduling games out of conference against the more prominent names.

Its success playing against Southeastern Conference opponents has increased Clemson’s brand with lights shining in primetime. The Tigers will always play in-state rival South Carolina at the end of the season, but there has been a priority lately to add at least another SEC opponent to Clemson’s schedule if it is possible.

That trend isn’t changing any time soon. Or, at least for the next decade.

Clemson Director of Athletics Dan Radakovich said Friday afternoon that the non-conference schedule for Dabo Swinney’s Tigers is almost ironed out for the entirety of the 2020s. Radakovich noted non-conference football scheduling is one of the hardest things to get done because of the constant moving parts.

“Football scheduling is like a cake that never bakes. It just kind of goes on and on,” Radakovich said. “We’re close. We’ll get that news out as soon as it is done.”

The rumors have been circling around a possible rejuvenation of Clemson rivalry with Georgia. The Tigers played the Bulldogs from 1962 to 1987 (except in 1966 and 1972), including some highly touted matchups in the early 80s. Most recently, Clemson and Georiga played a home-and-home series in 2013 and 2014 where the home team won each meeting.

Another possibility is Louisiana State University, which would be all sorts of fun for both fan bases as the battle between Tigers, and ‘Death Valleys', would commence. Radakovich used to work for LSU and said keeping the relationships with the staff there has helped develop the possibility of this matchup.

The last time Clemson played LSU was in 2012 on New Year’s Eve in the Peach Bowl. The Tigers won that battle 25-24.

Since 2010, Clemson has played two SEC opponents every year (except for 2015 when Clemson played Notre Dame). From Auburn, Georgia, Notre Dame, and now with Texas A&M, the schedule has created exciting matchups for fans on both sides.

“I think it would be great,” Radakovich said of the possibility of continuing the trend of playing SEC opponents. “You look at our past history, that’s kind of what we do. We have our rival game with the University of South Carolina, but we also try to look at playing another Southeastern Conference opponent each and every year. Auburn for three years, Georgia, Texas A&M, obviously, the next two years.”

There’s also a potential for Clemson to take part in season-opening neutral site contests. Radakovich said Clemson’s played in those games in the past, and there are plenty of dominoes that have to fall in to place for that to happen again.

As the cake continues to bake behind the scenes, there’s a great chance Clemson fans will continue to have their cake and eat it too when it comes to these primetime, non-conference matchups.

Would you be up for a home and home with LSU? Let us know in our forums on ClemsonSportsTalk.com