No. 12 Clemson can’t seem to get out of its own way — sometimes literally. A team bus reportedly crashed into a light pole in Atlanta on Saturday morning while leaving the hotel ahead of the Week 3 matchup against Georgia Tech, according to David Hood of TigerNet.com. While no injuries were reported, the side of the bus didn’t escape without some visible damage to the carrier doors.
The Tigers still managed to make it into Bobby Dodd Stadium in time for kickoff, but the incident only added to the growing list of Clemson mishaps early in the season.
Unfortunately for coach Dabo Swinney’s squad, this wasn’t the first time the program has had issues running into things — both on and off the field. Just two weeks ago, Clemson dropped a tightly contested 17-10 season opener to LSU, a game with early College Football Playoff implications. The on-field setback was compounded by a series of strange accidents at Memorial Stadium.
The LSU equipment truck accidentally collided with a garage door on its way out, leaving behind bent metal and dents. To make matters worse, a malfunction with the stadium fireworks show set off a small fire on the videoboard during the game, sending flames and smoke into the air in what felt like an ominous sign for the Tigers.
Fast forward to Atlanta, and Clemson is literally crashing into light poles hours before kickoff.
Symbolic or not, the bumps keep piling up, and the product on the field hasn’t inspired much confidence, either. Between bus accidents, stadium fires and early season losses, the Tigers’ path to playoff contention is already looking more like an obstacle course than a smooth ride.
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