WHAT’S AT STAKE
Clemson is trying to reach 11 wins for the fourth time in school history and the first time since a 12-0 finish in its 1981 national championship season.
LSU, which one year ago was preparing for the national championship game, is hoping for a top-five finish and to close with four straight wins after its 21-17 loss to Alabama on Nov. 3.
KEY MATCHUP
LSU freshman cornerbacks Jalen Mills and Jalen Collins, who have had prominent roles since the dismissal of Tyrann Mathieu before the season, will be challenged to contain DeAndre Hopkins, who is second in the nation with 16 TD catches, and Sammy Watkins. Mills, the starter, and Collins, who plays on passing downs, have combined for four interceptions. Clemson QB Tajh Boyd has 34 TD passes.
FACTS & FIGURES
The ACC and SEC have split their 20 Chick-fil-A Bowl matchups. … LSU is 36-1 in non-conference games since 2005, with the one loss coming against Penn State in the 2010 Capital One Bowl. … LSU is 9-1 all-time in the Georgia Dome. ... Les Miles is 5-2 in bowls.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
LSU: LB Kevin Minter, a second-team All-American who leads the Tigers with 111 tackles, will be a key to LSU’s hopes of containing 1,000-yard rusher Andre Ellington and Boyd’s scrambles to make Clemson’s offense one-dimensional. Minter had 12 tackles and an interception in LSU’s 24-19 win against Johnny Manziel and Texas A&M on Oct. 20.
CLEMSON: Watkins has three TD catches, a big drop from the 12 he posted as a freshman last season. He could be ready for a strong finish after missing three games early in the season — two to a suspension and one to illness. He had 11 catches for 110 yards and a touchdown against N.C. State on Nov. 17 and could have another big game if LSU leaves him in man coverage while focusing on Hopkins.
The Associated Press
By the numbers
Turnover Margin
| Gained | Lost | |||||
| Fum. | Int. | Tot. | Fum. | Int. | Tot. | |
| Clemson | 10 | 12 | 22 | 5 | 14 | 19 |
| LSU | 13 | 18 | 31 | 10 | 6 | 16 |
Rushing Offense
| Car. | Yds. | YPG. | |
| Clemson | 538 | 2385 | 198.8 |
| LSU | 502 | 2159 | 179.9 |
Passing Offense
| Att. | Cp. | Yds. | YPG. | |
| Clemson | 424 | 282 | 3835 | 319.6 |
| LSU | 333 | 194 | 2487 | 207.3 |
Rushing Defense
| Car | Yds | YPG. | |
| Clemson | 460 | 1928 | 160.7 |
| LSU | 390 | 1222 | 101.8 |
Passing Defense
| Att. | Cp. | Yds. | TDs | |
| Clemson | 404 | 234 | 3004 | 22 |
| LSU | 407 | 218 | 2332 | 13 |
Scoring Offense
| G. | Pts. | Avg. | |
| Clemson | 12 | 508 | 42.3 |
| LSU | 12 | 363 | 30.3 |
Scoring Defense
| G. | Pts. | Avg. | |
| Clemson | 12 | 299 | 24.9 |
| LSU | 12 | 203 | 16.9 |
Clemson roster
OFFENSE DEPTH CHART
| No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
| Quarterback | ||||
| 10 | Tajh Boyd | 6-1 | 225 | Jr. |
| 8 | Cole Stoudt | 6-5 | 205 | So. |
| Running Back | ||||
| 23 | Andre Ellington | 5-10 | 195 | Sr. |
| 25 | Roderick McDowell | 5-9 | 195 | Jr. |
| 22 | D.J. Howard | 5-11 | 195 | So. |
| Fullback | ||||
| 40 | Darrell Smith | 6-2 | 250 | Jr. |
| Wide Receiver | ||||
| 18 | Jaron Brown | 6-2 | 205 | Gr. |
| 19 | Charone Peake | 6-3 | 200 | So. |
| Wide Receiver | ||||
| 2 | Sammy Watkins | 6-1 | 205 | So. |
| 16 | Adam Humphries | 5-11 | 190 | So. |
| Wide Receiver | ||||
| 6 | DeAndre Hopkins | 6-2 | 205 | Jr. |
| 1 | Martavis Bryant | 6-5 | 200 | So. |
| Tight End | ||||
| 80 | Brandon Ford | 6-4 | 240 | Gr. |
| 86 | Sam Cooper | 6-5 | 250 | So. |
| Left Tackle | ||||
| 63 | Brandon Thomas | 6-3 | 305 | Jr. |
| 79 | Isaiah Battle | 6-6 | 280 | Fr. |
| Left Guard | ||||
| 68 | David Beasley | 6-4 | 315 | So. |
| 67 | Kalon Davis | 6-5 | 330 | So. |
| Center | ||||
| 55 | Dalton Freeman | 6-5 | 285 | Gr. |
| 58 | Ryan Norton | 6-3 | 270 | Fr. |
| Right Guard | ||||
| 62 | Tyler Shatley | 6-3 | 295 | Jr. |
| 77 | Reid Webster | 6-5 | 285 | So. |
| Right Tackle | ||||
| 70 | Gifford Timothy | 6-6 | 310 | So. |
| 76 | Shaq Anthony | 6-4 | 265 | Fr. |
| Kicker | ||||
| 39 | Chandler Catanzaro | 6-2 | 195 | Jr. |
| 13 | Spencer Benton | 6-1 | 195 | Sr. |
| 36 | Ammon Lakip | 5-10 | 175 | Fr. |
Defense depth chart
| No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
| Defensive End | ||||
| 97 | Malliciah Goodman | 6-4 | 270 | Sr. |
| 6 | Tavaris Barnes | 6-4 | 275 | So. |
| Nose Guard | ||||
| 50 | Grady Jarrett | 6-1 | 290 | So. |
| 48 | D.J. Reader | 6-3 | 335 | Fr. |
| Defensive Tackle | ||||
| 91 | Josh Watson | 6-4 | 285 | So. |
| 99 | DeShawn Williams | 6-1 | 285 | So. |
| 94 | Carlos Watkins | 6-3 | 300 | Fr. |
| Defensive End | ||||
| 93 | Corey Crawford | 6-5 | 270 | So. |
| 3 | Vic Beasley | 6-3 | 225 | So. |
| Strongside Linebacker | ||||
| 34 | Quandon Christian | 6-2 | 225 | Jr. |
| 11 | Travis Blanks | 6-1 | 190 | Fr. |
| Middle Linebacker | ||||
| 33 | Spencer Shuey | 6-3 | 230 | Jr. |
| 12 | Stephone Anthony | 6-3 | 235 | So. |
| Weakside Linebacker | ||||
| 46 | Jonathan Willard | 6-2 | 225 | Sr. |
| 42 | Corico Wright | 5-11 | 230 | Sr. |
| 7 | Tony Steward | 6-1 | 235 | So. |
| Cornerback | ||||
| 9 | Xavier Brewer | 5-11 | 190 | Gr. |
| 29 | Cortez Davis | 6-3 | 200 | Fr. |
| Cornerback | ||||
| 26 | Garry Peters | 6-0 | 195 | So. |
| 17 | Bashaud Breeland | 6-0 | 195 | So. |
| Strong Safety | ||||
| 5 | Jonathan Meeks | 6-1 | 210 | Sr. |
| 27 | Robert Smith | 5-11 | 210 | So. |
| Free Safety | ||||
| 31 | Rashard Hall | 6-2 | 210 | Gr. |
| 9 | Xavier Brewer | 5-11 | 190 | Gr. |
| Punter | ||||
| 13 | Spencer Benton | 6-1 | 195 | Sr. |
| 92 | Bradley Pinion | 6-6 | 230 | Fr. |
SCHEDULE
| Date | Opponent | Score |
| Sept. 1 | at Auburn | W, 26-19 |
| Sept. 8 | Ball St. | W, 52-27 |
| Sept. 15 | Furman | W, 41-7 |
| Sept. 22 | at Florida St. | L, 49-37 |
| Sept. 29 | at Boston College | W, 45-31 |
| Oct. 6 | Georgia Tech | W, 47-31 |
| Oct. 20 | Virginia Tech | W, 38-17 |
| Oct. 25 | at Wake Forest | W, 42-13 |
| Nov. 3 | at Duke | W, 56-20 |
| Nov. 10 | Maryland | W, 45-10 |
| Nov. 17 | NC State | W, 62-48 |
| Nov. 24 | South Carolina | L, 27-17 |
LSU roster
OFFENSE DEPTH CHART
| No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
| Quarterback | ||||
| 8 | Zach Mettenberger | 6-5 | 222 | Jr. |
| 17 | Stephen Rivers | 6-7 | 220 | Fr. |
| Running Back | ||||
| 33 | Jeremy Hill | 6-2 | 225 | Fr. |
| 11 | Spencer Ware | 5-11 | 223 | Jr. |
| 42 | Michael Ford | 5-10 | 215 | Jr. |
| Fullback | ||||
| 44 | J.C. Copeland | 6-1 | 280 | Jr. |
| 43 | Connor Neighbors | 5-10 | 233 | So. |
| Wide Receiver | ||||
| 3 | Odell Beckham, Jr. | 5-11 | 183 | So. |
| 10 | Russell Shepard | 6-1 | 185 | Sr. |
| Wide Receiver | ||||
| 80 | Jarvis Landry | 6-0 | 190 | So. |
| 21 | Paul Turner | 5-11 | 186 | Fr. |
| Wide Receiver | ||||
| 86 | Kadron Boone | 6-0 | 195 | Jr. |
| 82 | James Wright | 6-2 | 201 | Jr. |
| 81 | Armand Williams | 6-3 | 200 | So. |
| Tight End | ||||
| 88 | Chase Clement | 6-5 | 251 | Sr. |
| 41 | Travis Dickson | 6-3 | 230 | So. |
| Left Tackle | ||||
| 68 | Josh Dworaczyk | 6-6 | 301 | Sr. |
| 73 | Chris Davenport | 6-4 | 320 | Jr. |
| Left Guard | ||||
| 70 | La’el Collins | 6-5 | 320 | So. |
| 55 | Elliott Porter | 6-4 | 278 | So. |
| Center | ||||
| 64 | P.J. Lonergan | 6-4 | 305 | Sr. |
| 55 | Elliott Porter | 6-4 | 278 | So. |
| Right Guard | ||||
| 56 | Trai Turner | 6-2 | 332 | Fr. |
| 74 | Josh Williford | 6-7 | 324 | Jr. |
| Right Tackle | ||||
| 78 | Vadal Alexander | 6-6 | 315 | Fr. |
| 71 | Jonah Austin | 6-6 | 322 | Fr. |
| Kicker | ||||
| 30 | Drew Alleman | 5-11 | 183 | Sr. |
| 30 | James Hairston | 6-0 | 200 | So. |
DEFENSE DEPTH CHART
| No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
| Defensive End | ||||
| 49 | Barkevious Mingo | 6-5 | 240 | Jr. |
| 59 | Jermauria Rasco | 6-3 | 225 | So. |
| 87 | Chancey Aghayere | 6-4 | 279 | Sr. |
| Defensive Tackle | ||||
| 77 | Josh Downs | 6-1 | 287 | Sr. |
| 9 | Ego Ferguson | 6-3 | 283 | So. |
| Defensive Tackle | ||||
| 18 | Bennie Logan | 6-3 | 287 | Jr. |
| 90 | Anthony Johnson | 6-3 | 294 | So. |
| Defensive End | ||||
| 99 | Sam Montgomery | 6-4 | 260 | Jr. |
| 89 | Lavar Edwards | 6-5 | 264 | Sr. |
| Strongside Linebacker | ||||
| 25 | Kwon Alexander | 6-2 | 220 | Fr. |
| 23 | Lamar Louis | 6-0 | 220 | Fr. |
| Middle Linebacker | ||||
| 46 | Kevin Minter | 6-2 | 242 | Jr. |
| 22 | Ronnie Feist | 6-2 | 225 | Fr. |
| Weakside Linebacker | ||||
| 57 | Lamin Barrow | 6-2 | 229 | Jr. |
| 45 | Deion Jones | 6-2 | 202 | Fr. |
| 35 | Lorenzo Phillips | 6-2 | 215 | Fr. |
| Cornerback | ||||
| 28 | Jalen Mills | 6-0 | 185 | Fr. |
| 32 | Jalen Collins | 6-1 | 184 | Fr. |
| Cornerback | ||||
| 24 | Tharold Simon | 6-3 | 187 | Jr. |
| 13 | Dwayne Thomas | 6-0 | 175 | Fr. |
| 19 | Derrick Raymond | 6-1 | 175 | Fr. |
| Strong Safety | ||||
| 6 | Craig Loston | 6-2 | 208 | Jr. |
| 34 | Micah Eugene | 5-11 | 194 | Fr. |
| Free Safety | ||||
| 1 | Eric Reid | 6-2 | 208 | Jr. |
| 26 | Ronald Martin | 6-1 | 200 | So. |
| Punter | ||||
| 38 | Brad Wing | 6-3 | 184 | So. |
| 38 | Jamie Keehn | 6-4 | 222 | Fr. |
SCHEDULE
| Date | Opponent | Score |
| Sept. 1 | North Texas | 41-14 |
| Sept. 8 | Washington | 41-3 |
| Sept. 15 | Idaho | 63-14 |
| Sept. 22 | at Auburn | 12-10 |
| Sept. 29 | Towson | 38-22 |
| Oct. 6 | at Florida | 14-6 |
| Oct. 13 | South Carolina | 23-21 |
| Oct. 20 | at Texas A&M | 24-19 |
| Nov. 3 | Alabama | 21-17 |
| Nov. 10 | Mississippi St. | 37-17 |
| Nov. 17 | Mississippi | 41-35 |
| Nov. 23 | at Arkansas | 20-13 |
