Florida State and Clemson are two of the most successful football programs of the last three decades. Both ACC rivals first came to national relevance around similar times. The Tigers first did so when they won their first national title in 1981, and the Seminoles a little later in 1993.
The '90s are an appropriate time point of departure for this story since it was in 1992 that the Seminoles joined the ACC and this rivalry started.
Florida State vs. Clemson head-to-head
The first encounter between these two ACC powerhouses, was even before they shared the same conference. It goes all the way back to November 7, 1970, when the Seminoles defeated the Tigers 38-13.
Currently, the series is 20-15 in the hands of FSU but Clemson has been making up for lost time in the last few years, winning the last seven encounters. In 2001, the record was highly tilted in favor of FSU, with a 12-2 mark. It was especially disappearing for the Tigers was the decade between 1992 and 2002, as they won no games in that time period.
The Tigers do lead the Seminoles in the amount of ACC titles, with Clemson having 20 to FSU's 15. But if you consider that the Tigers had several decades of head start, the fact that the gap isn't as big is to the Seminoles' credit.
How long has the rivalry between Florida State and Clemson been going on?
The rivalry in itself started in 1988 when the No. 10 Seminoles defeated the No. 3 Tigers and dashed all hopes of a second national title for Clemson that year.
The encounter was a clash of styles between a well-regarded skill talent and passing offense of Florida State and the option defense of Clemson.
When was the last time FSU defeated Clemson?
The Seminoles got their last victory over the Tigers on September 20, 2014. At the time, FSU had just won a national the previous year and was ranked No.1 in the nation. Dabo Swinney was five years into his Clemson gig and had the Tigers as the No. 22 team in the nation.
Florida State won 23-17 in overtime. Deshaun Watson was in his first year with Clemson and started this game.
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