Jason Priester All Clemson
Wednesday’s Practice Report: Pump in the Noise, FSU’s WRs can be an Issue
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CLEMSON, S.C. — Most of Clemson’s roster has never played at Florida State’s Doak Campbell Stadium before, which should add a little intrigue to the fourth-ranked Tigers’ ACC showdown against the Seminoles on Saturday night.
Clemson (6-0, 4-0 ACC) did not play at FSU in 2020 because the game was canceled by the Seminoles three hours before kickoff due to COVID 19-related issues. The last time the Tigers played the ‘Noles in Tallahassee, Fla., was in 2018 – a 59-10 victory.
“It is going to be a lot of noise for sure,” Swinney said following Wednesday’s practice. “It will be a lot of noise.”
Florida State (4-2, 2-2 ACC) is expecting more than 79,000 fans at Doak Campbell Stadium for the 7:30 primetime game on ABC. To make sure his team is ready for it, Swinney said they have been pumping in crowd noise all week.
“You try to make it unrealistic in practice as you can,” Swinney said. “So, when they get there, they are not overwhelmed by that. It will be loud, and it will be a great environment. You just try to prepare them for the type of focus that they have to execute what we need to do.”
Clemson has not had to worry about crowd noise so far this year. The Tigers played in front of 45,000 in Atlanta to open the season, then just 33,000 at Wake Forest and 42,000 at Boston College last week.
Wednesday’s notebook
- Swinney said he is “super pumped” he will have most everyone back for the first time on defense this season. The only starter who could miss the FSU game is cornerback Sheridan Jones. He is still day-to-day.
“They have all been there at one point or another, but having everybody available at one time, we really have not had that just yet,” Swinney said. “So, hopefully, we will be able to play at a high level and play sharp, smart, keep guys fresh, but we have a tough challenge on our hands, especially with this quarterback they got.
“But it is great. I am really happy to have Bryan [Bresee] back. I am excited for him. Obviously, he has been through a lot. It has been good to watch him in practice. Obviously, to get some of these secondary guys back, as well.”
- Swinney is anxious to see how his defensive backs respond to FSU’s talented corps of wide receivers.
“They are a big challenge,” he said. “(Ontaria Wilson) is a very seasoned veteran. He is a very good player. I really like his game. I think (Mycah Pittman) is a great slot. He does a lot of good stuff. He makes some competitive plays, back shoulder balls. They use him in a lot of different ways.
“Then that big No. 14 (Johnny Wilson). He is a giant. You can have a guy there but making a play on him is hard.”
The Clemson coach also likes the way FSU uses tight end Markeston Douglas.
- Florida State is averaging 204.1 yards per game on the ground. Swinney said a large part of that is due to how improved the Seminoles are on the offensive line.
“They are much improved for sure,” he said. “They brought three starters back who have now played a lot of football for them. They brought in a lot from the transfer portal. They are definitely more seasoned. Definitely, the best they have been in a while.”
