When Jimbo Fisher looks at Clemson’s defense, he understands why they are rated as the fifth-ranked defense in the country.

“They’re multiple in what they do,” he said. “They present tons of problems, athletically and scheme wise and how well they’re coached.”

What worries Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney is running back Dalvin Cook. Even with taking a week off to heal an ankle and a hamstring, the sophomore still ranks second nationally in rushing with a 148.1 yards per game. In just seven games he is already over the 1,000-yard mark with 1,037 yards, 163 more than Clemson running back Wayne Gallman, who ranks second in the ACC with 874 yards in eight games.

“We haven’t seen (a running back) like Dalvin Cook,” Swinney said. “I mean, this guy is averaging 8.2 yards a carry and 140-something yards a game. He leads our league in all-purpose yards, so I mean, that just tells you the dynamic play-making ability he has.”

It is strength vs. strength when No. 1 Clemson hosts No. 16 Florida State on Saturday (3:30 p.m.) in Death Valley.

The Tigers (8-0, 5-0 ACC) are allowing just 109.1 yards a game on the ground and have one of the more physical and aggressive defenses in the country. The last time the ‘Noles played a defense built to slow down the run they did not fare too well.

Boston College, who leads the nation in rushing defense, limited the Seminoles to 98 yards on the ground, while holding Cook to a season-low 58 yards.

“Both are very effective, obviously. They’re both very physical and big,” Fisher said “Both have big guys, athletic guys. Clemson can really, really run, and with their size, also. So, I mean, they’re both really good. I don’t know how I can compare them, really. They’re both efficient in their own ways and very effective.”

Cook is very effective, too. Besides the way in which he can run the football, the sophomore is also used very well in the screen game. He has 15 catches for 181 yards and a touchdown which went from 36 yards.

“They get him the ball in the passing game,” Swinney said. “He’s a big-time threat in the passing game. They screen to the backs as good as anybody you play, and oh, by the way, they’ve got great other skill around him with their receivers and tight ends and so forth. But you know, Dalvin Cook … I haven’t seen a guy like him in a long time. He is a really special player in every regard of that word.”

And that’s the way Fisher thinks about Clemson’s defense, though the Tigers did allow NC State to score 41 points in last week’s game.

“I mean, NC State did score points, but NC State is good,” Fisher said. “(Jacoby) Brissett and those guys, they’re really good players now. You can’t just shut everybody out all the time, but defensively they’re dynamic. They’ve got Shaq (Lawson) and (Kevin) Dodd and those guys up front, and I mean, the backers are very experienced, the secondary can run.”