Clemson vs. Florida State Complete Game Preview

The Clemson Tigers will travel to Tallahassee to take on the top-ranked Florida State Seminoles on Saturday night. The game will be nationally televised, so it’s an opportunity for both teams to make a statement.

The Seminoles return a lot of talent from last season’s national championship team, while the Tigers will continue to rely on new faces offensively. Both defenses play physical, which should make for an exciting matchup.

Clemson's Keys to Victory

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Control the Line of Scrimmage

Florida State completely controlled the line of scrimmage last season versus Clemson, so it’s important for the Tigers to have a more physical mindset entering Saturday. The Seminoles offer one of the nation’s top offensive lines, and their defensive line has some playmakers as well.

Georgia was able to get a ton of pressure on Clemson’s quarterbacks in the second half two weeks ago, and it’s been clear that the offensive line needs to improve. It’s not just the offensive line that will need to improve, though.

In last season’s matchup, the Tigers weren’t able to get much pressure from their front four, and Jameis Winston had plenty of time to throw. Winston has a quick release, but the Tigers need to penetrate the line and try to force him into turnovers.

Get the Run Game Established Early

Clemson will need to come into this game with a balanced offensive attack. Florida State’s defensive line will make it tough on Cole Stoudt if the Tigers find themselves having to catch up. Chad Morris’ offense works best when the quarterback can throw off the play action, and getting those tailbacks going early will set that up.

Wayne Gallman and Adam Choice received the majority of the carries against South Carolina State, so don’t expect there to be just one back. The Tigers will likely use four or five running backs on Saturday, and all can help contribute.

Limit the Turnovers

The Tigers committed 10 turnovers in the two losses to Florida State and South Carolina last season, so it will be important to limit the mistakes in Tallahassee. For the Tigers to stay in this game, they have to sustain drives on third down and protect the football.

Florida State's Keys to Victory

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Win the Time-of-Possession Battle

Florida State was able to do this a year ago, and Georgia was also able to find success with it two weeks ago. The philosophy is simple: Clemson’s offense can’t hurt you if it’s on the sidelines. The Seminoles can score fast, but winning the time-of-possession battle will help them in the second half of this game.

Get Pressure on Cole Stoudt

The weakness for the Tigers on offense is the offensive line. We know that, and Florida State knows that. The Seminoles need to attack the Tigers offensive line and use multiple blitz packages on Stoudt.

Clemson Players to Watch

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Wayne Gallman or Adam Choice

C.J. Davidson did a solid job against Georgia, but Gallman or Choice will be the X-factor on Saturday. Clemson knows what kind of production it can get from Davidson, but getting solid production from one of the other backups will help the Tigers sustain drives.

Vic Beasley

Beasley is one of the best pass-rushers in college football, so it’s obvious that the Tigers need him to be effective in this one.

The entire front four will be important, but we highlight Beasley because he has the potential to change the game.

Cole Stoudt

He will likely be a player to watch in every game-preview article this season, but with good reason. He has to limit the turnovers and play efficiently to win most games on the schedule, but he needs to do a little extra Saturday night.

The Tigers will need him to have his best game yet to pull off the upset victory.

Florida State Players to Watch

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Karlos Williams

With Florida State’s experienced offensive line, expect a big dose of Williams in this one. The Seminoles will play physical and attempt to control the line of scrimmage with power runs early.

Jameis Winston

Whenever you have the reigning Heisman winner on your sideline, he’s a player to watch. One of my keys for the Tigers is getting pressure on Winston, so it will be interesting to see how he handles the pressure. He looked poised on the road at Death Valley last season, and the moment never seems too big for this quarterback.

Mario Edwards Jr.

Pressuring Stoudt will be essential for Florida State in order to create turnovers, and Edwards is the best pass-rusher on this team. It will be interesting to see how the Tigers offensive line handles him in this game.

What They're Saying

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Clemson

Offensive coordinator Chad Morris on his young freshmen (Gallman, Choice, Artavis Scott): Per Nikki Steele of TigerNet.com, Morris said, “They’ve definitely proven that the moment is not too big for them.”

Morris on how playing at Georgia in the opener can help the Tigers: Per Steele, Morris said, “Playing the first week of the season at Georgia, our guys have played in a hostile environment so I would think that works in our favor.”

Florida State

Head coach Jimbo Fisher on what he sees in the Tigers offense: Per Tom D’Angelo of The Palm Beach Post, Fisher said, “They’re still just as effective. … I still see a very dynamic team. I don’t see a huge, huge change.”

Predicted Outcome

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On the road against the top team in the country, it doesn’t look good for Clemson. At the same time, I think the Tigers will play better than most expect. Both teams had an off week heading into this game, so both have had time to put together the best game plan possible.

Morris spoke about wanting to go faster, and I expect the Tigers to take more shots than they did in the second half against Georgia. When it comes down to it, the Seminoles will win the battle at the line of scrimmage and be too much for the Tigers late in the game.

I think this game will be close at halftime, but the Seminoles will pull away in the fourth quarter. Four of the five guys on the offensive line are returning starters, and Cameron Erving and Tre’ Jackson could both be drafted high in next year’s draft. Controlling the line of scrimmage will ultimately lead to a Seminole victory.

Prediction: Florida State 37, Clemson 28