FSU football: Some media doesn't respect Clemson, and why that's bad for the Noles

FSU football and Clemson were the highest-ranked ACC teams in the Preseason AP and Coaches Poll released over the past week. FSU was No. 10, and Clemson was No. 14 in both polls. However, it should come as no surprise that ESPN talking heads have already started planting seeds that those ACC teams don't belong. Paul Finebaum said he believes FSU shouldn't be anywhere near the top 10(after finishing No. 6 in the 2023 final poll), and Heather Dinich doesn't think Clemson deserves its No. 14 ranking:

That take is mighty rich coming from someone who believes a 10-3 Notre Dame team with a transfer quarterback who's coming off an injury that kept him out of the second half of the season has the best shot of anyone ranked outside the top six in the Preseason Poll to win the College Football National Championship. A program that literally chokes every time they get into the postseason over the past decade.

I'm no Clemson lover, but they finished the season 9-4 and were a couple of plays away from winning 11 games in 2023. However, it's more to the point that ESPN people are already trying to downplay the two top-ranked teams in the ACC before the season starts. It's incredibly difficult to do what FSU did last year, going undefeated in the regular season. Clemson opens the 2024 season against the Georgia Bulldogs and will be double-digit betting underdogs. If Clemson loses that game big, they will have difficulty getting credibility back. That sentiment will not help FSU's cause when they match up in the sixth game. If FSU beats Clemson, they won't get the credit they deserve, much like they didn't when they beat the Tigers in Death Valley last year. If FSU doesn't get credit for beating the team everyone considers the second-best in the conference going into the season, it could come into play when seeding for the top 12 College Football Playoff spots takes place.