If Clemson has been busy cooking up a few new wrinkles for Florida State during the bye week, the trigger men on offense certainly aren't tipping their hand.

Chad Morris loves Deshaun Watson, but he downplayed the freshman's role in Saturday's game plan.

QB Cole Stoudt wants to look deep a bit more often against Florida State, but of course, he'll take what he's given.

The Seminoles haven't exactly looked as dominant on defense as they did a season ago, but don't go asking the Tigers if they've found a weakness to exploit.

"It's all in the strategy and game plan," Stoudt said. "We could have the same thing [as earlier games]. We could have something different. We'll mix it up."

In other words, don't bother asking. You'll find out Saturday.

But just because Clemson isn't touting any matchup advantages this week doesn't mean it hasn't been studying hard for what promises to be its biggest test of the season.

There's some juicy tape to watch on both sides of this matchup, Morris said, and that's a good thing.

Clemson's offensive hibernation in the second half against Georgia was an eye opener, and the fireworks the freshmen set off a week later against South Carolina State provided some much-needed reps for some inexperienced offensive talent.

On the flip side, Oklahoma State helped magnify some of the weak links on Florida State's defense, and while Morris certainly isn't suggesting the Seminoles aren't still loaded with talent, he said one of the big takeaways of the early season has been how much FSU misses some of last year's key contributors.

"The guys they lost were big-time players," Morris said. "To find the right combination -- they're a lot like we are offensively -- it takes some time to find the guys to play that role. The dynamics for them have changed because of the playmakers they've lost. That's what you see out of the first two games with those guys."

That's what makes this matchup so intriguing. FSU is trying to adjust to life without Telvin Smith and Christian Jones and Timmy Jernigan up front. Clemson is wondering just how sharp its offense can be with Sammy Watkins and Tajh Boyd gone and Stoudt and a cast of unknowns taking their place.

The first two games of the season set a template. This week's matchup should answer some major questions for both teams.

"Even if you're a veteran, you haven't gotten into the groove of playing and first games are like Forrest Gumps. They're a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get," Jimbo Fisher said of his young defenders in new roles. "At time we were in good shape and at time we became hesitant. Those are things we can't let happen, you have to go and play those guys and that's what we did last week and we'll continue to do this week."

The same is true on Clemson's offense, where Morris spent much of Week 2 giving his young talent a long look. Watson saw increased action and looked sharp. Freshman receiver Artavis Scott emerged with six catches for 164 yards and a TD. Adam Choice and Wayne Gallman -- both freshmen -- led the ground game.

The strong running of the young backs is particularly encouraging as Clemson looks to establish a ground game against a battered Florida State front.

"Those guys are good," Clemson defensive lineman D.J. Reader said. "They work hard in practice, and there's a bunch of guys back there that run hard. They find the holes."

But, of course, big numbers against South Carolina State won't mean much against Florida State.

"They've got to continue to grow, absolutely," Morris said. "We knew they would be great players for us, but it's bringing them along at the right time."

For Florida State, the bye week has provided some answers. Defensive tackle Eddie Goldman returned to practice this week and should be good to go against Clemson. Linebacker Ukeme Eligwe could be back, too, which would be a huge boost to the Seminoles' defensive front.

At Clemson, Morris thinks he has a better handle on his players, too, even if he's not sharing much of that information yet.

Will Watson play more? Will FSU's young linemen take a step forward? Will the Tigers' ground game be a focal point?

That's the fun of a mid-September matchup, really. No one really knows much of anything yet.

"We'll have to see when we get to game day what works best," Stoudt said. "Sometimes you go into games thinking one thing and then something else works better. We'll have to see when we get out there."