I agree. In the past, I would say that a matchup with Bama would be another SEC giant against (insert any other conference here) David. But this is different. I think Florida State would beat Bama by at least ten if they should end up playing each other. Seminoles are for real.
No, they didn't. ND was completely one dimensional, they struggled to put points most of the year. That is nothing like this FSU team that has completely dominated every team it's played.
No SEC would beat Clemson by 37 in Clemson. They're the best team in the country.
Florida also had probably the best defense in college football at that time. Go back and look at FSU's last 3 or 4 recruiting classes. Their main guys are the same guys that Bama, LSU, Florida, etc were recruiting. It has nothing to do with the ACC and who they've beaten. It has to do with their overall talent level.