FSU Football: ACC Coaches Taking Clemson Over FSU?

John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports /

The FSU football game against the Clemson Tigers will likely determine the ACC championship this year like it has since 2011.

Oddsmakers have both FSU football and Clemson pegged to win 10 games in 2016 with Clemson as a slight betting favorite when they matchup later this season in Tally.

Clemson hasn’t won at Doak in a decade, so that likely means Clemson would be favored by a little more than a field goal in their home stadium of Death Valley.

Vegas are not the only entity that likes the Clemson Tigers this year over the ‘Noles. A number of ACC coaches (both head coaches and assistants) gave their thoughts to Andrea Adelson (ESPN) on the budding rivalry.

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"ACC head coach: “[Clemson is] the most talented team in the ACC regardless of divisions. … When you talk about defending their offense, you can’t make mistakes. Your guys have got to be in the right place because you’re not going to be as talented as them. … I don’t think anybody in the ACC is [as talented], even Florida State.”"

Recent recruiting rankings over the past years would disagree with this statement as FSU consistently fields the best recruiting classes in the ACC.

The great equalizer is Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson when it comes to who could impact winning or losing the game later this year. Overall, FSU has the edge at running back, offensive line, and definitely the secondary.

"ACC assistant coach: “I’d give the nod to Clemson. Florida State has all of those thoroughbreds and horses but doesn’t seem like they use those guys as much as they could be.”"

This coach is probably referring to the offensive side of the ball. Because Clemson does a great job of getting the ball into its playmakers hands with short bubble and tunnel screens, etc. The ‘Noles don’t do that much at all as the offense is much more traditional pro-style.

"ACC assistant coach: “[Florida State is] so big up front and can mash you, but I wonder if they will cut it loose. How good could they be? That style of offense allows you to stay in the game if you can bring down the run game.”ACC head coach: “Last year, Florida State when they had [Dalvin] Cook was really scary. When they didn’t have him, they seemed to come down to the pack a little bit. Florida State got so much better on defense last year, too. Their defensive coordinator did an awesome job last year of really getting their kids to play better team defense than the year before.”"

True and True. The FSU defense really kept the Clemson offense in check until the final minutes last season and the FSU defense should be even better this year as well. A costly ‘Noles redzone turnover changed the complexion of the game early last season too.

"ACC head coach: “I think what’s scary about Clemson is they had the year they had and they did it with a brand-new offensive line. They probably created as much yards as anybody I’ve ever seen with really a patchwork offensive line that progressively got better. They spread you out so much and they’re so good at the skill positions that as their offensive line continues to grow and get better, they have a chance to continue to get better on offense. Their defensive coordinator last year did an exceptional job. For everything they lost the year before, you expected some type of drop off and they really didn’t have one. Right now with the season they had, they’re even recruiting in a different area than they have before. If the QB stays healthy, they’ve got to be the preseason favorite.”"

True. I expected some drop off with their offensive line, but that was band-aided by the Clemson offensive scheme of getting rid of the ball quickly in the passing game or running Deshaun Watson. As we mentioned, he’s their equalizer in overcoming the ‘Noles overall talent advantage.

I’m sure as a coach it’s always interesting to hear what your peers think of your teams.

We hope the ‘Noles take these statements from these coaches and conjure up some inner Nick O’Leary like the video above.

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