By Will Vandervort.
Each week we take a look back at what the Clemson Tigers did right and what they did wrong on the gridiron as we grade the Tigers’ performance at every position in Saturday’s 23-17 loss to top-ranked Florida State
Quarterback: A
Deshaun Watson was the best player of the field and it showed in how he almost willed the Tigers to victory Saturday night. He completed 19 of 28 passes for 266 yards, while also running for 30 yards and scoring on a two-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. After coming into the game on the Tigers’ fourth possession, he never relinquished the spot back to starter Cole Stoudt as he used his arms and his legs to put the Tigers in position to score most of the night. He completed passes of 33, 39 and 19 yards in the game. His 39 yard pass to Mike Williams in the fourth quarter was delivered between two defenders as Williams made a diving catch at the two, setting up Watson’s two-yard scorer. Stoudt did complete 3 of 5 passes for 40 yards, but was eventually replaced by Watson after he failed to deliver a scoring drive on the opening three possessions. He had an opportunity to throw a touchdown pass to tight end Jordan Leggett on Clemson’s second possession, but he bounced the ball off the ground after Florida State brought pressure.
Running back: B-
C.J. Davidson’s fumble at the Florida State 14-yard line with 1:36 to play in the game was the lone blemish really on what was a productive night in Tallahassee for the Tigers’ running backs. Davidson rushed for 54 yards on 12 carries, with most of his success coming between the tackles. Freshman Adam Choice really showed off his value on screen plays as he caught four screen passes for 46 yards. The backs also looked good in pass protection as they were asked throughout the game to help pass protect on max protection.
Wide receivers & tight ends: A
Mike Williams, Charone Peake, Germone Hopper, Artavis Scott and Adam Humphries all made plays down field. Williams had two catches for 72 yards, including an outstanding diving catch at the two-yard line to set up Watson’s touchdown. Hopper also had two big catches for 52 yards. Tight ends Jordan Leggett, Stanton Seckinger and Jay Jay McCullough all made plays that resulted in first down or set up a touchdown. Leggett went down with an injury in the second quarter and did not return, which left both McCullough and Seckinger playing as the only two tight ends in the game. They both did well, especially Seckinger who looked way better as a blocker than he had in the Georgia and S.C. State games.
Offensive line: C
The good news was Clemson’s quarterbacks were sacked only one time, the bad news was the Tigers failed to convert at times on short and goal line situations. There was also center Ryan Norton’s bad snap which cost the Tigers a touchdown. That drive ended with no points after kicker Ammon Lakip missed a 40-yard field goal at the start of the fourth quarter. Clemson averaged only 2.5 yards per carry.
Defensive line: A
Clemson’s defensive front dominated Florida State’s ballyhoo offensive line all night. Vic Beasley had two sacks, broke up a pass and had several quarterback pressures. Corey Crawford also had a sack and broke up a pass, while defensive tackle Grady Jarrett had two quarterback pressures and was disruptive all night. The Tigers ability to control the line of scrimmage limited Florida State to 13 yards rushing. The Seminoles went into overtime with minus-12-yards rushing.
Linebacker: A
Stephone Anthony had eight tackles, sack and another tackle for loss, while Tony Steward was also all over the field. He finished the game with six tackles, tackles for loss and broke up a pass. The linebackers also did a great job in coverage as they helped eliminate FSU’s ability to make plays in open space. Anthony and Steward also played a big role in putting pressure on FSU quarterback Sean Maguire all night.
Secondary: B-
I know Rashad Greene finished the game with nine catches for 135 yards, including his 74-yard touchdown, but freshman Mackensie Alexander kept the senior in check for most of the night. Greene’s touchdown came because Alexander slipped in man coverage. Take away that play and he had just 61 yards on the other eight catches, which adds up to 7.6 yards per reception. The Tigers held Christian Green to one catch for nine yards, while Jesus Wilson had just four catches for 56 yards. Martin Jenkins also had a sack and the tackling was much better this week than against Georgia. Jayron Kearse and Jadar Johnson each had interceptions from the free safety position.
Special Teams: C
The kick coverage was much better as the Tigers held Kermit Whitfield to just 56 yards on four returns. Greene did get a 28-yards in punt returns, but he never broke it for a super gain and punter Bradley Pinion was a real weapon with seven punts for a 43.1-yard average, including two punts downed inside the 20-yard line. Placekicker Ammon Lakip struggled, however, missing field goals of 23 and 40 yards and ultimately being replaced by Pinion after the Tigers last extra point.
Coaching: B
Clemson was prepared to play, but you wonder how the game might have turned out had Swinney started Watson from the beginning. The freshman more than likely makes that throw to Leggett for a touchdown that Stoudt missed on. And though I understand why Swinney went for the call on fourth-and-one in overtime, it either becomes a great call or a bad call based on the result and in this case it turned out to bad call because Choice was stopped for no gain. Chad Morris, in my opinion, called a good game and defensive coordinator Brent Venables might have called his best game as a member of the Clemson coaching staff as FSU was held to 318 total yards.