Ninth-Ranked Tigers Open Season Against UCF

CLEMSON, S.C. – The ninth-ranked Clemson men’s soccer program is set to open the 2023 season on Thursday, welcoming the UCF Knights to Historic Riggs Field for a 7:00 p.m. kickoff. The season opener is set to be broadcast on ACCNX.

The Tigers, who finished 2022 at 13-7-1, are ranked as high as No. 4 in 2023 preseason polls (Top Drawer Soccer) and were picked to win the ACC by the league’s head coaches. Clemson was also picked to win the Atlantic Division by the ACC’s coaches.

Two of Clemson’s off-season pickups (Joran Gerbet and Alex Meinhard) have been named to United Soccer Coaches Preseason Watch lists (midfielder and forward, respectively), while Ousmane Sylla has been named to the ACC’s Preseason Players to Watch list, as well as the USC Forwards to watch list.

Clemson and UCF have met once in history, with the third-ranked Tigers taking a 3-0 victory in September of 1995. The Knights finished 2022 at 6-7, including 3-6 in their final year of the AAC before transitioning to the Sun Belt for 2023.