Clemson made a habit of beating Florida State. They'd done it seven times in a row going into Saturday's matchup.
But times have changed. The Seminoles pulled off a 31-24 overtime victory, leaving the Tigers to wonder what went wrong.
First things first, there's no universe in which kicker Jonathan Wietz deserves blame. He missed the potentially game-winning kick, yes. But he was also retired from football until Clemson called him up this week. Putting him in that spot was the mistake.
So who does deserve blame for the loss? Let's have a look.
Clemson Tigers to blame for loss to FSU: QB Cade Klubnik
Cade Klubnik was 13-of-18 for 190 yards and a touchdown in the first half. In the second, he was 12-of-20 for just 93 yards. His fumble handed FSU seven points. In overtime, he was 1-of-2 for zero yards.
Clemson was undoubtedly spoiled by a quarterback of Trevor Lawrence's stature. The QB play since he left has left plenty to be desired, especially in the most critical moments.
Klubnik simply needed to make a play. Whether it was before the end of regulation or in overtime, he needed to make a play to win the game for Clemson. He didn't.
But let's also be fair to Klubnik, because the adults in the room weren't exactly setting him up for success...
Clemson Tigers to blame for loss to FSU: OC Garrett Riley
The play that lost Clemson the game was on third-and-one in overtime. Will Shipley had just rushed for nine yards to move the Tigers into a third-and-less-than-one situation.
With just a few inches to gain, offensive coordinator Garrett Riley dialed up...a wide receiver screen?
It turns out, the call was a run-pass option. Klubnik flubbed the read and threw the pass instead of handing the ball off for an easy conversion. But why even give the QB that option? The playcall should have been obvious: Hand the ball off, preferably to Shipley. Keep it simple. Stay alive.
Instead, Riley messed up the third down call and then slipped up again on fourth down by calling another pass. What did Shipley do to Riley to not have the ball in his hands with the game on the line?
Even before that play, Riley's playcalling was suspect in the biggest moments. The Tigers faced a third-and-11 from the FSU 13. They were in close field goal range, but with such an unknown at kicker, they should have been aggressive there. A toothless Klubnik run for one yard instead set up a 29-yard kick attempt that Weitz missed.
But even with Riley messing up some obvious play calls, the buck stops somewhere else...
Clemson Tigers to blame for loss to FSU: HC Dabo Swinney
Dabo Swinney was an exceptional head coach when he was going toe-to-toe with Nick Saban's Alabama year in and year out. He didn't become a bad head coach overnight. And he wasn't totally propped up by Trevor Lawrence either.
But it seriously does look like the times have passed Swinney by.
In order to be an exceptional head coach in 2023, you have to be willing to use every part of the college football landscape at your disposal. Swinney isn't. That's why his teams have been in a steady decline since the rise of the transfer portal and NIL.
Clemson is still a decent team, but they aren't able to run with the best teams in the country like they used to do because of Swinney's stubbornness.
FSU quarterback Jordan Travis was a transfer. Keon Coleman, the receiver who caught the winning touchdown pass in overtime, was a transfer. Johnny Wilson, the receiver who led the Seminoles in receiving yards, was a transfer.
So Swinney has put Clemson at a disadvantage against every other premier team by failing to utilize the transfer portal.
On top of that, he made head-scratching decisions in the game. He decided to rely on a kicker that had come in from the cold. He let Riley complicate the critical end-of-game play calls. Hell, he insisted that Riley come in and run a "Clemson" offense even though that's been ineffective since Lawrence left.
Dabo only has himself to blame for the loss to FSU.
