Tag: Florida State football

Clemson vs. Florida State is one of college football’s 10 most meaningful games in 2024

Clemson vs. Florida State has huge implications in 2024.

Dabo Swinney and Clemson are gearing up for a rematch against Florida State in the 2024 season, eager to avenge their previous encounters. The anticipation for this showdown is palpable, with both teams intensifying their preparations during the offseason. As the season draws closer, the rivalry between Clemson and FSU only grows stronger, promising an electrifying clash on the field.

Adding to the intrigue is DJ Uiagalelei, former Clemson starting quarterback and now leader of the Seminoles’ offense. His transition to Florida State has injected new energy into the matchup, sparking debates and speculation among fans and analysts alike. With Uiagalelei at the helm, the stakes are higher than ever, setting the stage for a fiercely contested battle between these college football powerhouses.

According to 247Sports, Clemson’s matchup with Florida State is the No. 8 most meaningful game for the 2024 season.

The Seminoles snapped a seven-game losing streak to Clemson with last season’s overtime win in Death Valley, a victory that catapulted Florida State to bigger and better things under coach Mike Norvell. This is one of four nationally-ranked opponents the Tigers have to deal with this fall amid one of the toughest schedules Dabo Swinney’s program has had to face in recent years as a national title contender. This is Clemson’s fifth game of the year and likely third against a top-25 team.

ACC Football Teams Ranked by Returning Production for 2024

A look at each ACC team’s returning production for the upcoming 2024 season.

Forecasting which teams will rise to greatness in college football in any given season can prove challenging. However, a key indicator often lies in the roster’s returning players.

From seasoned fifth-year senior linebackers to up-and-coming junior quarterbacks, the presence of experienced athletes opting to continue with their respective programs can significantly bolster a team’s competitive advantage. This continuity becomes particularly crucial as other teams contend with talent depletion due to NFL draft selections, transfers, or eligibility regulations.

ESPN recently released a list of all 134 FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) teams, with each ACC team naturally being listed. Here is a look at each ACC team’s returning production on offense, defense, and total.

Updated 4/7

On3 identifies Clemson and Florida State as the only ACC legitimate College Football Playoff contenders

Clemson and Florida State are expected to be the top dogs in the ACC.

As college football teams prepare for the upcoming 2024 season, they’re busy recruiting new players and looking at transfers to strengthen their squads.

One team, the Clemson Tigers, is known for their history in the College Football Playoff era. They’re aiming high for the upcoming season, hoping to make it to the College Football Playoff. To do that, they need to play really well in 2024. That might mean winning the ACC Championship to secure a playoff spot, or getting picked as one of the best teams overall.

This year, the playoffs are bigger, with 12 teams instead of just a few. This is a big deal for college football because it gives more teams, like Clemson, a better chance to show what they’ve got and maybe even make it to the playoffs.

On3 recently evaluated the legitimate College Football Playoff contenders in the ACC, with Clemson and Florida State being the two schools mentioned.

“Let’s talk about the ACC and the Big 12 because we’ve only mentioned SEC and Big Ten teams so far,” Andy Staples said. “The supposition is that the national champ will come from one of those two leagues. Perfectly understandable. I think the ACC and the Big 12 are different in this respect, because in the ACC I do think Florida State and Clemson can do this.”

“They can be deep enough. I worry about Clemson for the same reason you do, I don’t think their roster is as efficiently built as everybody else’s because Dabo [Swinney] doesn’t use the Transfer Portal. Florida State is a more efficient roster. It may not have as much top-end talent that you signed out of high school, but they probably have a more functionally talented roster because they’ve been evaluating as they go and changing pieces as they go.”

Once again, it is the transfer portal that people are bringing up with the Tigers, which is understandable when comparing Clemson’s complete roster to others. While some are filling holes in the portal, the Tigers are doing it in recruiting.

That doesn’t mean the roster won’t be complete… if the Tigers hit on their recruits and the outstanding 2023 class continues to develop, Clemson could be a powerhouse in the ACC. It will be interesting to see how they and Florida State compete in 2024 with how differently they’ve built there squads.

Last season, Florida State proved that fully utilizing the transfer portal can work. This season, it’s Clemson’s turn to prove that you can still be elite solely through recruiting.

ACC starting quarterback rankings for 2024

Here are our ACC quarterback rankings for 2024, with projected starters.

We are still some time away from the start of the 2024 college football season, but that doesn’t stop us from looking ahead.

Today, we are looking at the ACC starting quarterbacks for 2024 and ranking them ahead of the season. This is just a preview, as it is still many months from the season, and things can change fast. While every team doesn’t have a starting quarterback on paper, we are making projections on these starters based on what we know right now.

The ACC is a bit different now, with the addition of new programs and new faces to the conference. Try not to get mad with these, they’re subjective! That said, here are our ACC starting quarterback rankings heading into the 2024 season.

– Updated 3/31

A look at Clemson football’s complete 2024 schedule

Here is a look at Clemson football’s entire 2024 schedule.

After a long wait, we finally have a complete look at the Clemson football team’s 2024 schedule.

While we have known who the Tigers will be facing for some time, we now have the date and week for each game. Times are yet to be determined, as many factors go into the time choices for each game. Even so, we know what week each game will take place, so Clemson fans can now plan accordingly.

With the release of the schedule, we put together a week-by-week schedule of our own for you to see who Clemson will face each week and where it will be. Take a look at Clemson’s complete 2024 schedule below.

Updated 3/31

Clemson vs. Florida State is one of the 10 most anticipated rematches of the 2024 college football season

Clemson vs. Florida State is one of the most highly anticipated games for the 2024 season.

Dabo Swinney and the Clemson football program will look for revenge against Florida State in the 2024 season, with the game adding even more intensity this offseason. 

When Clemson and FSU face off, you know it’s a big game. However, the addition of former Clemson starting quarterback DJ Uiagalelei as the Seminoles’ new starting quarterback has made things much more interesting. According to Bleacher Report, the game is one of the 10 most anticipated rematches of the 2024 college football season.

With 1:45 left in the fourth quarter, Clemson had a chance for a 29-yard field goal. But former backup Tigers kicker Jonathan Weitz, who joined the team just earlier that week to help with the Tigers’ kicking woes, missed it, forcing overtime. FSU scored a touchdown in overtime, and Clemson was stuffed on fourth down on its ensuing possession. FSU finally beat Clemson, and the Tigers were knocked out of playoff contention before September was over.

This game is just as important in 2024. Dabo Swinney likely can’t miss the playoff for a fourth consecutive season if he wants to stay at Clemson. The Tigers return quarterback Cade Klubnik and 79 percent of their production on offense overall.

Florida State, meanwhile, has to massively reload to replace quarterback Jordan Travis, running back Trey Benson, wide receiver Johnny Wilson and defensive end Jared Verse. SP+ predicts FSU as a team most likely to regress next season.

The 2024 edition of this ACC rivalry should be a good one.

The ACC is wide open next season, with these two powerhouses as the favorites to win the conference. Neither feels like they’ll be a powerhouse in 2024, but that doesn’t mean one of these teams won’t be, especially for a team like Clemson, where the potential is there.

Like last season, it likely comes down to Clemson’s offense and how they progress throughout the season. If offensive coordinator Garrett Riley can get Cade Klubnik and this offense on track, the Tigers will be the favorites to win the conference.

ACC files motion to dismiss Florida State’s grant of rights lawsuit against the conference

The ACC is going back at Florida State and their grant of rights lawsuit.

Things are heating up with Florida State and the ACC.

Recently, news released that the ACC has filed a motion in Florida to dismiss or stay Florida State’s lawsuit against the conference, not backing down from the Seminoles’ actions. Back in December, Florida State’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously to go against the conference’s grant of rights as they look to leave the conference. ACC commissioner Jim Phillips and board chair Jim Ryan were quick to respond.

“Florida State’s decision to file against the conference is in direct conflict with their longstanding obligations and is a clear violation of their legal commitments to the other members of the conference, “Phillips and Ryan said. “All ACC members, including Florida State, willingly and knowingly re-signed the current Grant of Rights in 2016, which is wholly enforceable and binding through 2036. Each university has benefited from this agreement, receiving millions of dollars, and neither Florida State nor any other institution has ever challenged its legitimacy.”

The ACC’s grant of rights ensures that schools remain affiliated with the conference until 2036. Its media rights deal with ESPN extends until 2027, with ESPN holding the unilateral right to extend the agreement for an additional nine years through 2036.

It will be interesting to see where things go from here.

Every ACC football team’s ESPN preseason SP+ ranking

The ACC has some strong teams heading into the 2024 season, according to ESPN’s SP+.

The 2024 college football season is months away, but we all know that football remains on the mind throughout the offseason. 

Early rankings have been released all over the place, with ESPN’s Bill Connelly recently releasing the preseason ESPN SP+ rankings ($$$) for the 2024 season. These SP+ rankings consider multiple key factors regarding a football team, including returning production, recent recruiting, and recent history. A strong model; here is a bit more of what Connelly had to say about the rankings. 

“It’s a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency. It is a predictive measure of the most sustainable and predictable aspects of football, not a résumé ranking. Along those same lines, these projections aren’t intended to be a guess at what the AP Top 25 will look like at the end of the season. These are simply early offseason power rankings based on the information we have been able to gather to date.”

Straightforward and to the point, these are power rankings based on what we know right now. So, how do Clemson and the rest of the ACC stack up in the first SP+ rankings for 2024? Check it out below.

Updated 2/16

DJ Uiagalelei Discusses Facing Clemson as Florida State’s New Starting Quarterback in 2024

DJ Uiagalelei recently discussed what it will be like facing Clemson as Florida State’s new starting quarterback.

Dabo Swinney and the Clemson football program will take on a familiar face in the 2024 season when they play against one of their top rivals.

Former Clemson and Oregon State starting quarterback DJ Uiagalelei transferred to Florida State this offseason, becoming the Seminoles’ new starting quarterback. From a three-year start for the Tigers to the Seminoles starter under center, things can change fast in modern college football.

Uiagalelei met with the media recently, his first time since joining the Florida State football program. During this time, he touched on what facing the Tigers will feel like.

“I think yeah [it will be weird], because that’s somewhere I played at,” the former Clemson and Oregon State quarterback said. “That was my first place I played at. That’s the place I graduated from. A lot of my friends are still on the team, a lot of the coaches I still know, and I still have a lot of love for Clemson, and they did nothing but—it was an amazing time I had at Clemson.

“Granted, my journey ended up taking me somewhere else, but I loved my time at Clemson. Coach Swinney is an amazing coach. All the guys there were great. Every single staff member there was great, and I loved it. I graduated. My best friends still play there. I still talk to them to this day. Like, my brothers are still on that team. When that time comes, it’ll definitely be different.”

Leading Oregon State to an 8-4 season in 2023, Uiagalelei completed 180 of 315 passes for 2,638 yards with 21 touchdowns and seven interceptions. During his career at Clemson, from 2020-22, he completed 515-of-861 passes (59.8 percent) for 5,681 yards with 36 touchdowns and 17 interceptions in 1,913 snaps over 36 games (28 starts).

Watch: 5-star football recruit Kendre Harrison shatters the backboard in his high school game

Kendre Harrison destroyed a rim on Tuesday night.

While playing basketball on Tuesday night, Kendre Harrison brought the house down. He did so by first bringing the rim down.

Harrison, a five-star football recruit, ripped down the rim and shattered the backboard in a basketball game for Reidsville (Reidsville, North Carolina). For one of the nation’s top football recruits, it was certainly a surreal moment.

In the 247Sports Composite, Harrison is a five-star and is ranked as the seventh-best prospect in the nation. He is also the nation’s top-ranked athlete prospect.

On Tuesday night, Harrison drove to the rim with authority and using the full power of his 6-foot-7, 235-pound frame. There was nothing added or special about the dunk, no hanging on the rim. Just sheer power.

He had ripped down the rim before, but this time it was different. Everything came down with it.

“Kinda last year,” Harrison told USA TODAY High School Sports on Wednesday. “But this was my first time breaking the backboard with it.”

The game got called with Reidville up 63-43 over Morehead (Eden, North Carolina).

 

“Every time I dunk I’m trying to rip it down,” Harrison said before diving into his emotions after the dunk.

“Crazy, it was unbelievable after I did it. I got up and walked to the student section and we got lit.”

In terms of his football recruitment, Harrison said that North Carolina, Penn State, Florida State and Tennessee are showing him the most interest right now.