“Everyone’s going to circle that Clemson game, and you’ve got to … prepare each week like it’s the national championship”. Clemson lost narrowly in the title game and returns the nation’s best quarterback in Deshaun Watson.
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Although ACC Media Days wrapped up last week, the conference released its preseason media poll on Monday, and for the most part, the 191 voters are going chalk, as Clemson was chosen to win the Atlantic with North Carolina taking the Coastal. “We’ve had the ball on the 1-yard line and missed a field goal the last two games against Clemson, so we certainly were right there”.
“We’re excited about the season just like everybody”, said Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney.
“That’s a game that the fans and the players, our whole staff looks forward to”, said FSU’s Dalvin Cook, who led the league with 1,691 yards rushing past year.
“Just another step in our journey previous year”, Swinney said.
“I think Coach Saban’s just trying to kiss up for that onside kick”, Swinney said, referring to the game-changing special-teams play in the national championship between the teams in January. Florida State had five players on the team, while Louisville and North Carolina had three apiece. Despite the fact that Watson was the Heisman runner-up to Christian McCaffrey last season and that Cook was about as close to the Heisman ceremony as a non-invitee can be, neither player was named a unanimous All-ACC selection.
How do the Tigers go from making that game previous year to winning it this season? “We just try to take every game as if, truly, our season depends on it”. – Clemson linebacker Ben Boulware was the highest-voted defensive player getting 149 votes, while Florida State defensive end DeMarcus Walker got 142.
The Tigers earned 148 first-place votes as the Atlantic favorite over FSU, which had 42 votes. What we did last year isn’t going to win it for us this year.
Last year, the Panthers received only three first-place votes and 535 total voting points while being picked to finish in sixth place, ahead of only Virginia.
The Tigers beat visiting Florida State 23-13 last year, but this year’s meeting will be at FSU (on October 29).
“We have a great wide receiving corps, a lot of talent coming back, a lot of potential”, Watson said. UNC’s Hood rushed for 1,463 yards and 17 touchdowns as a sophomore last season.
“They can lose a guy and the next guy comes off the bench and doesn’t look any different”.
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Cook set new FSU single-season records for rushing yards (1,691) and all-purpose yards (1,935), while scoring 20 total touchdowns in 2015.
