On Saturday, Clemson and Florida State were opponents as the Tigers beat the Seminoles, 23-13. On Sunday, a former Tiger and a former Seminole teamed up to help the Buffalo Bills smack the Miami Dolphins, 33-17.
Sammy Watkins, a former Clemson standout, must have found some extra inspiration from his former school’s success. He torched the Dolphins secondary with 8 catches for 168 receiving years and a huge touchdown.
Karlos Williams, the former Seminole, rushed for 110 yards and 2 touchdowns. The second dashed any legitimate chance the Dolphins had to win.
Watkins, a graduate of South Fort Myers, Fla. High School, eclipsed his entire season’s output of 147 yards. He has been limited this season due to an ankle injury.
Things started off badly for the Dolphins when a bad snap on their first offensive play resulted in a safety. The Bills then took the ensuing free kick and went 80 yards in 5 plays, capped by LeSean McCoy’s 48-yard touchdown run for a 9-0 lead. McCoy finished with 112 yards rushing.
After a Lamar Miller touchdown run, Williams scored on an 11-yard run to increase the Bills’ lead to 19-7 with 2:26 left in the half. On their first possession of the second half, Miller scored his second touchdown to bring Miami within 19-14.
The game took a decisive turn in the last 5 minutes of the third quarter. With 4:40 left, Dolphins’ quarterback Ryan Tannehill was sacked and fumbled at the Buffalo 42 yard line.
After the Bills recovered, Watkins hauled in a 44-yard scoring pass from Tyrod Taylor with 2:21 remaining to extend the lead. Williams helped the Bills put the game out of reach with a 38-yard sprint off left tackle with 8:35 left to play.
Tannehill had a respectable day with 27 completions in 36 attempts for 309 yards. Miller rushed for 44 yards on 12 carries and the two touchdowns along with 97 receiving yards out of the backfield.
After winning his first two games, interim coach Dan Campbell suffered his second consecutive defeat. The Dolphins are now 3-5 and in fourth place in the four-team AFC East.
Miami hosts the Philadelphia Eagles at Sun Life Stadium next Sunday.
