LaSerre’s Look Ahead: Early glance at Clemson, Florida State’s next opponent

After starting the 2023 season ranked in the top 10 of both major polls, Clemson has fallen out of the AP Top 25 and is No. 23 in the coaches’ poll. This is mainly due to the Tigers’ opening loss to Duke two weeks ago.

Since then, Clemson has beaten both Charleston Southern and FAU at home very comfortably. Now, Dabo Swinney’s team looks to take on the visiting Florida State Seminoles, who are ranked No. 3 by the coaches and No. 4 by the AP.

The biggest question mark so far has been this Clemson offense and its former five-star quarterback recruit, Cade Klubnik.

Klubnik has thrown for 693 yards, eight touchdowns and two interceptions so far this season. This was after only throwing for one touchdown in Week One against Duke.

While the Tigers’ young signal-caller has shown improvement since the season opener, this Florida State defense could be the best he sees all season.

“It’s a progression of him gaining experience,” Swinney said. “The first couple of games … especially the first game, he’s learning that internal clock that comes from experience. And he’s learning, how long do I need to sit in the pocket? When to go manage the game?

“Because he can really, really run. He’s a problem. I thought this was his best game from that standpoint.”

The former top quarterback recruit doesn’t normally scramble a lot, but he did have a 16-yard run for a touchdown against FAU on Saturday.

Klubnik’s leading receiver has been junior Beaux Collins with 197 yards on 13 receptions. Sophomore Antonio Williams is close behind with 164 yards on 15 receptions. No other Clemson receiver has over 80 yards receiving in the first three games.

However, the running game has been the main strength of the Clemson offense. Junior Will Shipley has 225 yards on the ground on 36 carries. Junior Phil Mafah has also done decent out of the backfield so far; he has 166 yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries. As a team, Clemson is averaging just above 6.5 yards per carry.

As for the Clemson defense through the first few games, the Tigers’ linebacker corps has been one of the best in the ACC.

Jeremiah Trotter Jr. leads the team with 17 tackles, and Barrett Carter is close behind with 15. In addition to that, linebacker Wade Woodaz leads the team with two interceptions. This includes a 94-yard pick-six.

The defensive line, which is normally very good up in South Carolina, has not lived up to the hype thus far, at least statistically.

Through three games, two of them being against FAU and Charleston Southern, the defense has only totaled four sacks. To put that in perspective, Florida State has eight sacks so far.

Talk about this story with other die-hard Florida State football fans on the Tribal Council.

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