The Clemson Tigers haven’t been a buzzsaw this season, but that may have changed after welcoming a rebuilding Florida State Seminoles team to Death Valley.
The Clemson Tigers haven’t lost a college football game in well over a year. They are the defending national champions and look to be a lock to get to the College Football Playoff for the fifth year in a row if they can get to Charlotte unscathed and beat whatever undermanned team meets them in Bank of America Stadium coming out of the Coastal Division.
So it’s good to be part of the Clemson Family these days, but the Tigers football team hasn’t exactly been the buzzsaw we all thought it would be in 2019. Yes, they lost a ton of talent on the defensive side of the ball to the 2019 NFL Draft. However, one would have expected the Tigers offense to be more explosive with the amount of weaponry return to the team this fall.
Two weeks ago, Clemson needed a poorly drawn up and executed 2-point conversion attempt by Mack Brown’s North Carolina Tar Heels to stay perfect in Chapel Hill, winning 21-20. Given how bad the ACC has been this season, Clemson has no room for error this season. The Tigers have to be a perfect 13-0 (8-0) after winning the ACC to get back to the College Football Playoff.
Simply put, the Tigers needed a get-right game to help them set the tone for the second half of the season. Fortunately, their division rival in the Florida State Seminoles looks to be in terrible shape under second-year head coach Willie Taggart. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence and running back Travis Etienne have certainly found the special sauce in this one, leading 28-0 at halftime.
Lawrence completed 17 of 25 passes for 170 yards, three touchdowns and an interception in the first half versus the ‘Noles. Etienne had 13 first-half carries for 89 yards, as well as a three-yard touchdown catch from Lawrence. He even completed a pass for 23 yards out of the backfield.
Add in that Justyn Ross had five catches for 61 yards and two touchdowns, Tee Higgins had two grabs for 44 yards and Amari Rodgers have five receptions for 44 yards, it’s safe to say that Lawrence was effectively spreading the ball around the gridiron in the first half to his receiving corps.
Having to get up for one mediocre team after another can result in even a great team like Clemson playing down to its competition from time to time. However, Florida State is a huge division rival for the Tigers. Seeing them beat down the Seminoles in the first half has to feel good for Clemson, knowing that the high-powered offense of the Tigers looks back to being dominant.
So if you ever find your ACC offense in a bit of a quagmire and looking to recalibrate, just hope Taggart’s Seminoles are coming up the schedule. You should be able to work out all the kinks and then some, just like Clemson did in the first half on Saturday’s ball game in Death Valley.
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