Quick Reaction in Tallahassee: Tigers go conservative in win over Seminoles (2024)

TALLAHASSEE – We’re going to call this one a Dabo Swinney Special.

Phil Mafah rushed 25 times for 154 yards and Nolan Hauser kicked five field goals as No. 15 Clemson walked off of Bobby Bowden Field with a 29-13 victory over Florida St. Saturday night at Doak Campbell Stadium.

Clemson improved to 4-1 overall and 3-0 in the ACC, while Florida St. fell to 1-5 overall and 1-4 in league play.

In a game reminiscent – in ways – of Clemson’s 16-7 victory over South Carolina last season, the Tigers relied on the defense and special teams to secure the victory. The last touchdown of the night for the Tigers came with two seconds left in the first quarter. Clemson kicked four field goals – and attempted six – the rest of the way. In all, Hauser attempted a Clemson-record seven field goals and hit five.

The Tigers tallied an even 500 yards of total offense and quarterback Cade Klubnik threw for 235 yards (19-of-33) and two touchdowns, and he added 62 yards on 11 carries on the ground. The offense rang up 265 yards on the ground and 235 through the air in the balanced attack, running 74 plays for an average of 6.8 yards per play.

The defense was good enough for most of the night and Florida St. finished with 250 total yards. However, the Seminoles managed just 22 rushing yards on 23 attempts and running back Lawrance Toafili gained just 16 yards on ten attempts.

The Seminoles ran just 64 plays and averaged 3.9 yards per play. The Seminoles gained just 120 yards through three quarters but gained 130 in the final quarter.

How conservative were the Tigers? Leading 17-7 and facing a 3rd-and-23 at the FSU 30-yard line, the call was a Klubnik rush up the middle to set up a field goal (which was blocked). On the ensuing drive and facing a 3rd-and-6 at the FSU 21 – and out of a timeout – the call was a short pass to Antonio Williams on the sideline that was incomplete. The Tigers settled for a field goal.

With time running out in the half and the Tigers facing a 3rd-and-10 at the FSU 15, the pass was short of the line to gain and appeared to be designed to get the ball in the middle of the field for a field goal.

Late in the third quarter, the Tigers reached the FSU eight-yard-line and on 3rd-and-7, the pass was a quick slant to Cole Turner (short of the line to gain). Turner was easily knocked off his route and the Tigers settled for a field goal attempt that was blocked.

And that, with 31 seconds left on the clock in the third quarter, was the last pass the Tigers would throw all night. Indeed, with the defense on skates for much of the fourth quarter (the Seminoles ran a whopping 25 plays), the offense had the ball for just 11 plays and ran on all of them.

As the game settled into the second half, standout freshmen Bryant Wesco, Jr., and T.J. Moore were on the sidelines as Turner, Stellato, and Williams appeared to carry much of the load.

The issues with the field goal unit – Vic Burley was pushed around on one play – were fixed when Peter Woods was plugged in later in the game.

So, a Dabo Swinney Special? Yes. He believed early on that the Tigers were in control and didn’t force the issue, a far cry from the explosive offense the last few games. A lot of the “eye candy” and motions and deep shots disappeared, and the coaches were satisfied to get out of Doak with the win.

Worrisome? Not finishing in the redzone is a concern, but, again, I think a lot of that was the offense simply going conservative. Special teams were good despite the two blocks, and the defense gave up just the 120 yards and seven points through three quarters.

For both the offense and the defense, the word this week might be “finish.”

But the key component is that Clemson finished with a win and marches on. Swinney knew the Tigers were much better than the Seminoles, and he was right. It wasn’t pretty or glamorous, but it was a win.

The Tigers are back on the road next week, traveling to Winston-Salem to take on Wake Forest at noon.