Doak Campbell Stadium – Tallahassee, FL
Kickoff: Saturday, 8:00 p.m. ET
Line: Clemson -5.0, Total: 59.5

#3 Clemson will be hoping to pick up yet another impressive victory when the team faces #12 Florida State in Tallahassee on Saturday.

Clemson is once again a national championship contender, but that could all change with a loss to Florida State on Saturday. The Tigers started off the season a bit slow, but they’ve turned it on recently. Their most impressive win of the year was a 42-36 victory as one-point home underdogs against Louisville on Oct. 1. They’ll need to play with the same intensity in this game, as the atmosphere in Tallahassee will be electric. The Seminoles don’t have much of a chance to make the College Football Playoff, but they still could play in one of the bigger bowl games and they’d love to spoil Clemson’s season on Saturday. The Tigers won 23-13 as 12.5-point home favorites when the teams met last year, but this series has been all Florida State otherwise. The Seminoles had won three straight against Clemson before that loss and they are also 11-1 SU when hosting the Tigers since 1992. The average score in those games was Florida State 37 and Clemson 15. One trend worth pointing out is that the Tigers are 1-11 ATS after playing three straight conference games over the past three seasons. RB Wayne Gallman (Head) is, however, expected to play for Clemson and that should really help this team on Saturday.

It hasn’t been the Heisman-type season that QB Deshaun Watson (1,950 yards, 20 TD, 8 INT) was hoping for, but he is still one of the best players in the nation and his play in this game will likely determine the outcome. When Watson faced FSU last season, he finished the game 28-for-42 passing with 297 yards and a touchdown. He also added 107 yards on the ground in that one. This Seminoles defense is a lot worse than it was a year ago, so you can expect Watson to do whatever he wants on Saturday. It’ll really just come down to whether or not the Tigers can stop Florida State as well. That’s not going to be easy with Dalvin Cook on the other side, but Clemson has been good against the run this season. The Tigers are allowing just 132.4 yards per game on the ground (34th in NCAAF) and have allowed just seven touchdowns total on the year (7th in NCAAF). The secondary has been strong as well, as the team has picked off its opponents 11 times this season (t-8th in NCAAF). The Tigers will need to capitalize on any of Deondre Francois’ mistakes on Saturday.

The Seminoles have won three of their past four games and RB Dalvin Cook (900 yards, 7 TD) is back on track after a rough start to the season. Cook did not crack 100 yards rushing in each of the first three games this year, but he is averaging 168.0 YPG on the ground over the past four. Florida State will need him to come through in this one, as it is not realistic for the Seminoles to expect QB Deondre Francois (1,876 yards, 10 TD, 3 INT) to do everything himself in this one. Francois has had his fair share of big games this season, but this is going to be a tough battle and he’ll need Cook to play to his potential on Saturday. He should have no problem doing that, though, as he rushed for 194 yards and a touchdown on only 21 carries when the ‘Noles faced Clemson last season. Defensively, Florida State will need to contain Deshaun Watson in this one. Watson is one of the toughest players to cover in the nation, as he has a great arm and can beat opponents with his legs. For that reason, DE Josh Sweat (14 tackles, 2.5 sacks) is going to be crucial in this one. Sweat is one of the Seminoles’ best pass rushers and he’ll need to have an eye on Watson at all times in this one.