The No. 2 Clemson Tigers (6-0, 4-0) overpowered the unranked Florida State Seminoles (3-3, 2-2) at Memorial Stadium on Saturday. Winning 45-14, the Tigers led 28-0 at halftime and coasted to a comfortable victory in the second half. Per usual, quarterback Trevor Lawrence and running back Travis Etienne led the charge for Clemson, accounting for 360 of the 552 yards accrued by the Tigers. However, the contest also featured several notable performances from less-heralded Clemson gridders, with impact players in each phase of the game bolstering Clemson’s route to the team’s fifth consecutive triumph against rival Florida State.
NFL Draft prospect Isaiah Simmons, a starting linebacker for the Tigers, made his presence felt on the defensive side of the ball throughout the game. Simmons amassed eight tackles, including a game-high seven solo tackles, picked up a sack and recovered a fumble while wreaking havoc on FSU’s offense. The safety-turned-linebacker has established himself as Clemson’s top weapon on defense this fall, as he has already collected a career-best three sacks and is on pace to set a new career-high mark in combined tackles. Simmons has a knack for covering a substantial amount of ground in a short amount of time, thanks in large part to his previous tenure as a defensive back, and he consistently limited Seminole ball carriers to short gains on Saturday.
After establishing himself as a superstar wideout in last season’s College Football Playoff, Clemson wide receiver Justyn Ross endured an up-and-down start to the 2019 slate. While his statistics in a few of the Tigers’ first five games were commendable, Ross occasionally struggled to secure the football. Ross was one of the ACC’s most sure-handed receivers in 2018, but he dropped multiple passes in September of this year, luckily leading to a redeeming outing versus the ‘Noles. With fellow starting Clemson wideout Tee Higgins battling a hamstring injury, Ross stepped up and filled the void by nabbing a team-high five receptions for 61 receiving yards, which was also a team-best total. Two of Ross’ five catches resulted in touchdowns, with the super-talented pass catcher reestablishing himself as a force to be reckoned with up the seam.
One of the few lowlights of the afternoon for Clemson was starting kicker B.T. Potter missing a chip-shot field goal in the second quarter and being benched for the remainder of the matchup. Potter has whiffed on a few relatively easy kicks this year, including the 24-yarder that caused Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney to openly scold and subsequently replace Potter. This resulted in backup kicker Steven Sawicki taking Potter’s place. Sawicki went on to make a 26-yard field goal in addition to both of his extra-point tries. A former transfer from the FCS level, Sawicki’s lone in-game action as a Tiger prior to Saturday was when he kicked off a few times in 2018. Therefore, Sawicki’s reliability after being abruptly ushered into the battle with Florida State was rather impactful, especially considering the circumstances, and enough for Swinney to tell reporters after the game that Sawicki would remain the first-team kicker for the time being.
In college football, a winning performance is impossible without a well-rounded team effort, and one of the characteristics of a well-rounded team effort is that of a wide variety of players making the most of the opportunities presented to them. Of course, key competitors, such as Etienne and Lawrence, are expected to perform at a high level, but the supporting cast is often what sets the stage for the stars to shine. In the case of Ross, Sawicki and Simmons, who have responded well to adversity and change during their Clemson tenures, they proved to be the perfect impact players for the troupe of Clemson performers in their Week 7 production.
