After doing my usual perusing of all the pre-season college football magazines and web sites I could find, I couldn’t help but notice a reoccurring theme – Clemson has an underachieving football program.

Reporters, bloggers, prognosticators, radio hosts and other miscellaneous sports gurus from the immense community of cyberspace to publications across the southeast, and indeed the country, have made their points very clear. Readers are consistently reminded that Clemson has not won the ACC since 1991, and made to endure dozens of “could this finally be the year,” “can they get over the hump” and “if they don’t do it this year” comments usually provided as caveats to those who may see the Tigers making a run at something special.

My favorite cautionary statement, however, is the inevitable gem about how Clemson is a favorite to win the crown this year, but “how many times have we heard that before?”

How about never, chief?

The problem with many of the writers who aim to fill the public’s need for something, anything about college football during the lull of the summer, is their penchant for premising their arguments on Web site chatter and fan base expectations. A close look at the Lindy’s, Athlon, Phil Steele and more importantly, the coaches’ and writers’ preseason polls during Tommy Bowden’s tenure reveal the truth of the matter: Clemson has not been the favorite to win the ACC. They’ve been pegged anywhere from second to fifth most often in polls during Bowden’s time at the helm, with several publications calling Clemson a “contender” for the title.

The problem, of course, is that many publications base their statements on ambiguities. It is very deliberate. The most popular method of justifying claims of the Tigers’ ineptness is the implementation of a simple indefinite article. Instead of calling the Tigers the favorite, readers are treated to wisdoms calling Clemson “a” preseason favorite, which to me is a misnomer if ever there was one. Isn’t calling any team “a” favorite in the same league as saying Virginia Tech was “an” ACC champion last year? If a favorite is a squad “considered likely to win,” as the dictionary denotates, then can it not be reasonably deduced that there is one true favorite, as there is only one winner? When Clemson, cleverly tabbed “a” past favorite does not claim the title, it serves as chum bait for the sports sharks needing a storyline for each team’s profile.

That is not to say the football Nostradamuses sit in a room rubbing their hands together in delight while thinking of ways to portray the Tigers as an undeserving hype machine. Facts are facts, and they should be told – Clemson has come within a win of the ACC championship game the last two years, and there is undoubtedly abounding curiosity as to whether or not Bowden can get the monkey off of his back this year. The orange cats from Pickens County have a history of almost taking the next step towards becoming an elite program. Almost. No word better describes the football program up to this point.

So have the Tigers disappointed in some regards? Of course. But please, let’s not take such creative license with what is a very clear history of conference preseason polls. When Clemson is named the favorite to make its debut in the ACC championship game this year, it will be a first. And sure, Clemson has certainly disappointed on the national level in the last 10 years, as evidenced by the discrepancy between their national preseason rankings and how they finish up. In the realm of conference competition, however, criticisms lobbed the Tigers’ way regarding perceived underachievement are not only unfounded, they are dishonest.

By the way, the last time the Tigers were the preseason favorite to bring home a conference title was 1991. I think that season turned out okay.