Heather Dinich, ESPN‘s lead College Football Playoff insider, gave her playoff prediction for each power conference (subscription required) heading into the 2023 season.

Dinich sees Clemson making what would be its eighth ACC Championship Game appearance in the last nine years, though she doesn’t believe the Tigers will win the conference for the eighth time in nine years.

While Dinich predicts the Tigers to earn their eighth straight victory over Florida State when the two teams meet during the regular season on Sept. 23 at Death Valley, it’s the Seminoles that Dinich has winning a rematch in the conference title game — and making the playoff.

“Clemson will face Florida State for the ACC title, but won’t go 3-0 during the regular season against FSU, Notre Dame and South Carolina,” Dinich wrote. “Clemson will beat the Noles at home Sept. 23, but FSU will have the upper hand in the ACC championship game, where the program will return for the first time since 2014. The Noles return the most overall production in the FBS, according to ESPN’s Bill Connelly. With quarterback Jordan Travis leading the offense and almost every key starter returning from a group that led the ACC in total defense last year, FSU will beat LSU for a key nonconference win that will help catapult the ACC champion Noles into the CFP.”

If Dinich’s prediction comes true, it would be FSU’s first playoff appearance since 2014, the first year of the CFP era, when the Noles lost 59-20 to Oregon.

Clemson is looking to get back to the playoff for the first time since 2020 and seventh time in 10 years of the CFP’s existence.

Clemson begins the 2023 campaign ranked No. 9 in both the AP Top 25 and Coaches Poll, while FSU is No. 8 in both polls to start the year.

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