Just as candidates for college football’s playoff are whittled to a manageable number with Clemson ultimately in command of its fate, so too are the Heisman Trophy candidates with quarterback Deshaun Watson leading several lists after his performance against Florida State.

Surprised to learn Monday that SI.com moved him atop its Heisman Watch, Watson promised the notoriety would not become a distraction over the remainder of the season though he clearly enjoyed the news.

“No, it won’t be a distraction for me. I’m still going to continue to be myself and be a team player and keep doing what I’m doing,” he said. “It’s all good. It’s a great honor. But it’s still a lot of ball to play, and I still have to prove myself and continue what I’m doing and we’ll see what happens in December.”

For a half last week Watson was ordinary, missing open receivers and making a mistake when he spiked the ball on third down near the end zone in the final minute of the first half forcing Clemson to settle for a field goal.

“It was a learning lesson,” Watson said. “Everyone is not going to be pretty. I’m going to make mistakes.

“Saturday I made that mistake on the spike. One mistake can’t affect me the whole game. We knew we had another half. Deep down we knew we had the better team, and if we played Clemson ball we could not be stopped.”

Frustrated by missed opportunities, Clemson didn’t come off script. Florida State hadn’t done anything uncharacteristic.

“We were right where we needed to be,” said co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott.

“You can’t abandon the plan. The thing I’ve learned in my life, when things get bad you’ve got to stick with what you know. There was never a point I felt like the calls weren’t there.

“We were moving the ball. (We) just weren’t connecting on some of those critical situations. But you’ve got to stick with it.”

Each game this season has been a step forward for Watson. “I’ve been growing up each and every game and getting better,” he said.

His passing and total offense numbers aren’t on the same stratosphere as Trevone Boykin’s at TCU or Seth Russell’s at Baylor, both early Heisman possibilities. But Boykin threw four interceptions in a loss to Oklahoma State, Russell injured his neck and is out for the season, and Alabama held LSU running back Leonard Fournette to 31 yards.

Others are worthy of consideration – receiver Corey Coleman (Baylor) and running backs Ezekiel Elliott (Ohio State), Derrick Henry (Alabama) and Christian McCaffrey (Stanford) – but there’s a sense that as long as Clemson continues to win, Watson’s profile should continue to grow.

“I never really look at it (Heisman). The only time I really look at it is when it pops up on my TV or I see it on social media,” Watson said. “I don’t ever go looking for it.

Watson brushed off a reminder that he and the team have done this in his first full season as a starter.

“Really, it doesn’t matter what age you are or what year you’re in,” said Watson, 14-1 as a starter over two seasons, and already fifth at Clemson in touchdown passes (35). “You’re going to make mistakes. Every player is not perfect. It’s hard to be perfect.

“I embrace the position we’re in. We celebrate what we work for,” he continued. “It’s hard to get to this point, 9-0, and do the things that we did, so of course I enjoy it and celebrate it.”

The last Clemson team to begin a season 10-0 won a national championship 34 years ago. This week’s game at Syracuse will be played indoors on a rug and the early betting line favors Clemson by 26½.  The second College Football Playoff ranking will be announced tonight, and nothing happened to jeopardize Clemson’s perch, so style points won’t be part of the plan this week.

“Not from my perspective, and that’s not how Coach Swinney is,” Elliott said. “The biggest thing I want to stress to the offense is we’ve got the desire to be one of the most explosive, one of the best in the country. Let’s go chase that. Let’s go be that.”

Watson shrugged. He won a high school state championship in the Georgia Dome, and after Notre Dame and Florida State he’s not inclined to take his foot off the accelerator.

“If we’re the underdog it doesn’t give us extra motivation. If we’re on the top it doesn’t put extra pressure on us,” he said. “If we play to the standard, we’ll be fine.”

Watson embraced the notoriety and recognized the impact around campus. “It just brings joy,” he said. “It’s all one big family.”

“I just make sure I stay focused and make sure it’s not the main priority because we have another big one this week.”