The Clemson Tigers can punch their ticket to a second consecutive College Football Playoff with a win over the Virginia Tech Hokies in the ACC Championship Game. Clemson made it to the national championship game a year ago and returned a lot of talent, so many believed it could make a repeat run.
The Tigers have lost once but are still in good shape to make the national semifinals with a win. Virginia Tech is out of that running but can play spoiler and capture the conference crown by pulling the upset. Clemson is a heavy favorite to win this and qualify again for the College Football Playoff.
Watch this regular season Week 14 matchup live on Saturday, December 3, 2016, at 8 p.m. ET at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida.
College Football Odds at BookMaker.eu
Virginia Tech +10
Clemson -10
Over/Under
Odds Analysis
The Tigers will need to win this one convincingly to cover, and the bettors are on board as Clemson is taking in more than 83 percent of the action to cover.
The Tigers are 11-1 straight up but only 6-6 against the spread this season as they have often been heavy favorites. Clemson has only been an underdog one time in 2016.
Virginia Tech is 9-3 straight up and 6-6 against the spread. The Hokies have only been the underdog twice, covering in one of those games.
Player to Watch
Deshaun Watson -- The Clemson quarterback has been excellent once again this season as he again leads the Tigers to big-time success. Louisville signal-caller has been the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy for much of the season, but his team’s slow finish could allow for the battle to heat up.
Watson is in the conversation as he has been impressive all season. Watson has completed 279-of-420 passes for 3,279 yards with 28 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He has added 425 rushing yards and four touchdowns, keeping defenses honest with his legs when needed.
While Watson isn’t the Heisman front-runner, a strong finish can give him some support down the stretch. He will be a key in this one, as Virginia Tech is quite stingy against the pass and will aim to slow him down. When Watson is on, he can throw the ball on any defense in the country and hopes to get the Tigers out to a quick lead.
Key Stat
2. That’s the total number of losses in the past two seasons combined for Clemson, which lost a thriller to Alabama in last year’s national title game and a regular season affair to North Carolina this year. The Tigers have badly wanted another shot at the College Football Playoff, and should get it a long as they take care of business here.
The Crimson Tide is undefeated and looking like the best team in the country, so Clemson could very well get a chance at them in a national championship rematch by taking care of business over the next two games.
Clemson has been among the best teams in the country the past couple seasons and controls its own destiny in making the national semifinals. It just needs to keep that loss total at two for another week.
Free ATS Pick
Virginia Tech is a good team but not nearly as strong as Clemson. The Hokies’ top offensive threat is dual threat quarterback Jerod Evans, who has thrown for 2,792 yards with 24 touchdowns this season while adding a team-high 675 rush yards and seven more scores. He has only thrown five interceptions and will need to take care of the ball against a good defense.
The Hokies have a good record but each of their past three wins have come by a field goal, so they are not exactly blowing away conference foes. Virginia Tech did a nice job to get to the conference title game but won’t have the firepower to keep up with the Tigers.
Clemson should win this one to once again make the College Football Playoff and cover the spread in the process.
College Football Odds: Clemson 34, Virginia Tech 21
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