Florida State Football: 3 takeaways from overtime win at Clemson

2. Defensive takeaways for Florida State football

The Florida State defense kept the Seminoles in the game, allowing just seven second-half points. The ‘Noles sacked Cade Klubnik three times, but they did an excellent job of consistently pressuring him throughout the game. Clemson’s running game did somewhat improve in the second half. However, 79 of its 146 rushing yards came on three runs.

Clemson struggled to run the football down-to-down, with 67 yards on 38 rush attempts. Florida State played more man coverage in the second half, and Clemson’s receivers had trouble separating. Defensive coordinator Adam Fuller seemed to use the same tactics Duke used against Clemson.

Defensive takeaways for the Clemson Tigers

Clemson did everything right defensively, allowing 311 total yards and 22 rushing yards. They did not force any turnovers, but they did a good job limiting what the Seminoles wanted to do on offense. If FSU doesn’t have the scoop and score, today’s game might be a different story. That said, one or two plays usually determine the outcome of close games.

Clemson forced four three-and-out drives, and two of those drives went for negative yards. Clemson had trouble handling Florida State’s size on the perimeter, with wide receiver Keion Coleman hauling in two touchdowns.