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CLEMSON | Somewhere around the spring or summer of 2015, we began openly conversing about the long-term possibilities for a Clemson program that looked to be rising.

The presence of Deshaun Watson made it obvious the Tigers were on the move, but back then it was still a little fanciful to think they were on a national-title type move.

So back when just one trip to the playoff seemed like something magical, it felt like all the stars had to align for Clemson to win the whole damn thing.

We thusly looked ahead to the 2016 playoff sites and saw that one of the semifinals was in Atlanta, followed by the championship in Tampa. That was precisely the star alignment that conventional wisdom of the day dictated was necessary for the Tigers to have a chance.

You know what happened after that. The Dabo Swinney monster was a year ahead of schedule and a play or two away from winning it in 2015. And they didn't need the Atlanta home-field advantage in 2016 to murder Ohio State; they did it in Glendale before a backdrop that felt like a Buckeyes home game.