5 Storylines for Clemson Heading into Final Home Game Against Pitt
Clemson was supposed to be coming out of a game against Florida State this week.
The conversations were supposed to be revolving around Trevor Lawrence's return, who else came back from injuries and how the Tigers have dominated that rivalry.
Instead, questions and debates over why FSU decided not to play the game continue into what's expected to be Clemson's final home game against Pitt on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
Trying to still make sense of if it all, here are five storylines heading into a game week, finally:
1. FSU isn't going away: Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney gave a spirited breakdown of the events that led to the Seminoles not playing last Saturday's game, including calling out the FSU administration and saying they "forfeited" the rivalry contest. Expect to hear plenty more about this bizarre story. The Tigers met ACC protocols despite traveling with a player who had COVID-19, but the players were left at the altar hours before kickoff. There will be responses from the Tigers this week on what that was like and how they handled it.
2. The waiting game: How long will it take before a decision is made on whether or not the Clemson-FSU game will be made up? Will the ACC come to a conclusion this week? It should. The caveat here is Swinney and athletic director Dan Radakovich made it clear they weren't shelling out another $300,000 to trek back down to Tallahassee, so the ACC has some serious damage control to do here. It might be in their best interest to call it a no-contest, although that won't make those who expect a forfeit very happy.
3. Healthy or nah?: Clemson was supposed to show everyone how healthy it was against FSU. Tyler Davis, Mike Jones Jr., Matt Bockhorst, Lannden Zanders and others have been banged up, but none were ruled out a week ago and could've played at FSU. A week off might do them some good, and hopefully, Swinney will address more of those players individually this week. It should also mean James Skalski and Frank Ladson are closer to returning. Stay tuned. This will be an important week for the healthy of Clemson's roster moving forward.
4. Trevor Lawrence and rust: The star quarterback hasn't played a down of football in a month. He had COVID-19 before the Boston College game, sat out the Notre Dame game because of protocols and then had his triumphant return halted by FSU. Will the talented signal-caller be able to get back into the Heisman Trophy race at this point or is it too late? Also, how rusty is he? That's a long time to go without playing. And while we're at it, how rusty is the entire roster? Three weeks is a long time to go without playing a football game. Add the events of last Saturday and it's worth questioning the team's mental state right now.
5. Oh yeah, Pitt: Clemson does have an opponent this week...at least we think so. The Pitt Panthers are traveling to Death Valley on a two-game winning streak. Once QB Kenny Pickett came back from injury, the Panthers outscored FSU and Virginia Tech 88-31 the last two weeks. Despite having Paris Ford, one of their best defensive players, opt out, this is a team playing its best ball at the end of the regular season. Even though the Tigers are a 26-point favorite, there's no reason to take Pitt lightly, and certainly, fans on both sides will remember the 2016 upset that nearly cost Clemson a shot at the national title.
