This week’s game between the Clemson Tigers and the North Carolina State Wolfpack lost a little bit of luster after Notre Dame throttled NC State. The Irish were able to gash the vaunted Wolfpack defensive line on the ground and that effectively ended any chance that NC State had two make it to the playoff. However, the Wolfpack are still in the driver’s seat in the ACC Atlantic and have the chance to put a hammerlock on the division with a victory over the Tigers here. That would put them two games up on every other team in their division.
Watch this regular season Week 10 matchup live on Saturday, November 4, 2017, at 3:30 p.m. ET at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, North Carolina. This game will be broadcast on ABC.
College Football Opening Odds at BookMaker.eu
Clemson -7
North Carolina State +7
Over/Under 51
Odds Analysis
Clemson has notched some big wins this season and it’s no surprise to see the Tigers ranked as the fourth-best team in the nation according to the CFP committee. The Tigers have knocked off Auburn, Virginia Tech, and Georgia Tech this year and now have a chance to notch another victory against NC State.
NC State was ballyhooed through the early part of the season, but its wins don’t look near as good as they used to. Victories over Florida State and Louisville were impressive at the time, but look much more mundane now that both schools have collapsed. Still, the Wolfpack will likely be favored in their final three and stand a very good chance at finishing conference play with just one loss.
Matchup to Watch
Dabo Swinney must have raised an eyebrow after he saw what Notre Dame did to NC State on the ground. The Irish ran for 318 yards against the Wolfpack defense and completely controlled time of possession. That was a bit of a surprise, and now Clemson is likely to pound the rock often against this defense.
The Tigers have a very good ground game and quarterback Kelly Bryant is a big part of that. Bryant showed that he wasn’t afraid to run the ball after suffering a concussion just two weeks ago against Syracuse and that means this offense can play to its full potential. Clemson is averaging 5.1 yards per carry this season.
Player to Watch
It’s very hard to run against Clemson’s amazing defensive line, so the pressure will be on Ryan Finley to beat the Tigers defense through the air. Finley has been a steady hand in his second season with the Wolfpack, completing over 66 percent of his passes and he has tossed just one interception this year.
Last season, he really struggled against Clemson and that cost them a chance to upset the Tigers. NC State still took Clemson to overtime, but Finley only completed 50 percent of his passes and threw two interceptions.
Free ATS Pick
The Tigers have been great in a lot of aspects this season, but the kicking game has been abysmal. Clemson is just 5 of 11 on field goals this season and has been unable to find consistency despite using two different kickers. This team has just made one of five kicks beyond 40 yards.
Jaylen Samuels is a matchup problem for most teams. Samuels is used at both fullback and tight end and his flexibility allows the Wolfpack to exploit mismatches. That versatility is enhanced in the red zone, where he has 39 touchdowns over the past three seasons.
Clemson has continually answered the bell this season. The Tigers have responded to almost every challenge and will do so again here. They are going to be a very popular public pick, but even the squares get them right sometimes. Clemson will get a big victory here.
College Football Odds: Clemson 34, North Carolina State 20
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