For all the hype – and Showtime cameras – surrounding No. 12 Florida State’s 2016 season, one might think head coach Jimbo Fisher would have plenty to discuss Monday after coming off a bye week and with a showdown against No. 2 Clemson looming Saturday.
Or not.
The seventh-year Seminoles head coach was unusually short and to the point Monday during his weekly meeting with the media, holding court for just over 26 minutes, which was by far his shortest press conference of the year — and before arguably Florida State’s biggest game of the season.
In his opening, Fisher briefly praised Clemson’s season; called Tigers quarterback and Heisman candidate Deshaun Watson “special;” and referred to the Tigers’ offensive attack with Watson and running back Wayne Gallman as a “two-headed monster” before taking a few questions.
But throughout, one thing seemed clear: Florida State (5-2 overall, 2-2 in the ACC) is laser-focused on their ACC rivals this week. And not just on pulling the upset of the Tigers (7-0, 4-0), but making a late push up the polls.
“This is a great opportunity for us,” said Fisher, whose program – which climbed from No. 13 to No. 12 during its bye week — is 4-2 against the Tigers since 2010. “Clemson’s great on offense, great on defense. It’ll be a challenge for us. We’re looking forward to it.”
But that was about as much fire and brimstone as Fisher displayed during the conference — that is, until he was asked this question: With all the Top 10 teams falling every week — and with many of those top ranked teams still facing huge games ahead of them — is it crazy to think a two-loss team could make the College Football Playoff this year?
“No,” said Fisher, shaking his head and lighting up some. “Anything could happen.”
Fisher then expounded on his answer.
“If you can figure out college football right now, tell me,” Fisher added. “You can’t. We’re in a crazy time right now. You don’t know what’s gonna happen. I could see it happening, I could see it not happening. But it wouldn’t surprise me a lick (if it did happen). LSU was the first two-loss team to get in and win it – didn’t they lose the last game of the year to Arkansas and still get it? I mean, and that was before the playoff (was created).”
To be fair, Fisher wasn’t campaigning for Florida State to be the two-loss team that made it, if one did; he was simply answering whether he thought it was possible. However, there’s no denying that a win against the second-ranked program in the country Saturday – then winning out with a regular-season finale victory against No. 14 Florida – could have the Seminoles making an argument come late November.
After all, Florida State has one of the Top 10 toughest schedules in the country — including the third-hardest non-conference slate, according to ESPN — and the combined record of the Seminoles’ FBS opponents at kickoff this year is a staggering 24-2.
“You gotta perform every week. It’s pressure,” Fisher said. “Anybody can get beat at any time.”
Last year, Clemson and Florida State played one week later in the season — Week 10, to be exact — and it was Clemson getting the better of Florida State in Death Valley and sending the Seminoles to a second loss that all but ended their push to get back in the playoff conversation. This year, they meet in Week 9, and a win for the Seminoles — especially if convincingly — would likely shoot them back in the Top 10 and on the fringe of the Top 5 with a whole lot of football left to play.
And Tigers coach Dabo Swinney is well aware of how hard Saturday’s task will be to come into Doak Campbell Stadium and beat Florida State, which hasn’t lost to the Tigers on their home field in 10 years.
“They’re just typical Florida State,” said Swinney, who was not the coach the last time Clemson topped Florida State in Tallahassee, doing so 27-20 in 2006. “They’re a very good football team. I know that this will be a huge challenge for us to go down there and do something we haven’t done there in a long time.”
One thing that bodes well for Florida State coming into this matchup is the recently improved play of its defense, coupled with the sometimes inconsistent play of Clemson’s offense. After giving 135 points in a string of three games — going 1-2 in that stretch — Florida State has found rhythm on the defensive side of the ball, holding then-No. 10 Miami to 19 points three weeks ago, followed by a near shutout of Wake Forest, which only managed two field goals.
And, yes, while Clemson did score 42 points and beat No. 3 Louisville three weeks ago, the Tigers struggled at home two weeks ago to beat an unranked Wolfpack team — which had a chance to upset the Tigers at the gun and probably should have won, but missed a short, 33-yard field goal — and Clemson also was shaky against Troy in Week 2, winning just 30-24.
The Tigers will, however, get back Gallman — and his 489 yards and five touchdowns — this week after he suffered a concussion against N.C. State, so Clemson’s offense expects to be improved when the two ACC rivals kick off at 8 p.m. on Saturday.
And while Florida State’s offense didn’t exactly sparkle its last time out with a 17-6 win against the Demon Deacons, an extra week of practice to both rest and prepare was huge Fisher said Monday.
“(The bye week) just gets your mind away,” Fisher said. “I mean, the coach is right there but not having a game and getting back to school and some of the things — there’s lots of pressures on these kids. You see it across the board. It’s more pressure now than ever, and I keep saying that. It’s good for these guys just to get that break and just to take a deep breath.”
NOTES, QUOTES
PLAYERS TO WATCH
–RB Dalvin Cook — Team success — or lack thereof — seems to be factoring into the decision by the national media not to include Cook in the current Heisman conversation, despite the fact he leads all players in the Power 5 conferences in yards from scrimmage with 1,256, which also ranks him fourth nationally. Cook led both categories following the game against Wake Forest — in which he ran for a 115 yards — but the bye week allowed others to catch up with him. However, those same pundits who are currently not ranking Cook in their Heisman Top 5 also seem to agree that should he put together a big game against Clemson on Saturday — and lead the Seminoles to a win — he will be hard to not invite to New York. Cook is second in the ACC in rushing with 900 yards, only eight yards behind leader and Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson (908) — and Jackson is already all but considered a lock to get an invite. Look for Cook to play with an extra chip on his shoulder Saturday as he tries to atone for last year’s 23-13 loss to the Tigers. Cook, however, did his part in that game, rushing for 194 yards and the Seminoles’ only touchdown. And Saturday, look for him to do it again.
–QB Deondre Francois — It’s been a year of ups and downs for the redshirt freshman, but he’s shown a lot poise, play-calling smarts and all-around toughness in his debut season. Francois is the fifth-leading passer in the ACC with 1,876 yards and 10 touchdowns, and all four players in front of him in the ACC passing ranks are sophomores and juniors with an extra year of experience under his belt. His resiliency this year to fight through adversity — like his 22-point comeback win against Ole Miss in his collegiate debut on Labor Day, or getting back on the field after taking some brutal shots in the pocket — has been nothing short of admirable. And now, with a chance to knock off No. 2 Clemson, look for Francois to play the game of his life — win or lose.
–DE DeMarcus Walker — The senior defensive lineman leads the ACC in sacks with 8 1/2, and he ranks second overall in the FBS. As a team, Walker has inspired a sack revolution at Florida State after two seasons of the program — as a whole — being one of the worst in the country in that category. The Seminoles are 10th overall nationally with 24 sacks this season, and Walker’s ability to disrupt — like when he blocked the game-sealing extra point against Miami two weeks ago — is the reason why. And because he’s forcing double teams a lot of times, it’s freeing up teammates to get their own share of sacks. Look for the same thing against Clemson — and also look for Demarcus to still find a way to get to the quarterback.