3 Clemson Tigers most to blame for heartbreaking loss to Florida State

Clemson Tigers to blame for loss to FSU: OC Garrett Riley

The play that lost Clemson the game was on third-and-one in overtime. Will Shipley had just rushed for nine yards to move the Tigers into a third-and-less-than-one situation.

With just a few inches to gain, offensive coordinator Garrett Riley dialed up...a wide receiver screen?

It turns out, the call was a run-pass option. Klubnik flubbed the read and threw the pass instead of handing the ball off for an easy conversion. But why even give the QB that option? The playcall should have been obvious: Hand the ball off, preferably to Shipley. Keep it simple. Stay alive.

Instead, Riley messed up the third down call and then slipped up again on fourth down by calling another pass. What did Shipley do to Riley to not have the ball in his hands with the game on the line?

Even before that play, Riley's playcalling was suspect in the biggest moments. The Tigers faced a third-and-11 from the FSU 13. They were in close field goal range, but with such an unknown at kicker, they should have been aggressive there. A toothless Klubnik run for one yard instead set up a 29-yard kick attempt that Weitz missed.

But even with Riley messing up some obvious play calls, the buck stops somewhere else...