Just one more game. The Clemson Tigers need to win just one more game to make it to the College Football Playoff for the fourth straight year. Although many consider Alabama the gold standard in college football, Clemson has made a strong case for itself over these last few seasons. The Tigers have finished the regular season ranked as one of the top two teams in the country in each of the last three years, and an undefeated year would make it four straight. That’s something Alabama can’t even say. Clemson only needs to defeat the ACC Coastal champions, the Pittsburgh Panthers, on Saturday night, to get it done.
The ACC Championship will take place on Saturday, December 1, 2018 at 8 p.m. ET at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
NCAA Football Betting at BookMaker.eu
Pittsburgh +25.5
Clemson -25.5
Total Check Back Later
Odds Analysis
This line just keeps going up. A few weeks ago, some sportsbooks set a preliminary NCAAF betting line for this game at 21 flat. Some poor performances from Pittsburgh over the last couple weeks have led to that number increasing, and now the Tigers are the largest favorite we have ever seen in the ACC Championship Game. This Sunday, Clemson opened as a 24.5-point favorite per the college football betting odds, and it has gone up another point since its release.
No total has been released for this game as of Monday morning, but an over/under will come out on Monday afternoon.
Player to Watch
Coming into the season, there was a lot of hype surrounding Trevor Lawrence. Even though Kelly Bryant led the Tigers to the College Football Playoff last year, Lawrence looked so sharp in spring and summer practice that Dabo Swinney felt like he had to get him more snaps. Lawrence ended up splitting the quarterbacking duties with Bryant through the first four games of the year, and it didn’t take long for his talent to win out to the point that Swinney declared Lawrence the starter going forward after the Georgia Tech game.
That decision has paid huge dividends. Although Lawrence has had some small hiccups along the way, he is showing why he was the No. 1 quarterback recruit in the country in the 2017 class. He has completed almost two-thirds of his passes this year, and he has thrown just four interceptions in over 300 pass attempts. His decision-making has been superb, and his arm talent is out of this world.
Matchup to Watch
Pittsburgh wants to keep the ball on the ground and move the chains with its workhorse running backs Qadree Ollison and Darrin Hall. The duo have combined to run the ball for nearly seven yards a carry, and the two have a total of 2,069 yards and 19 touchdowns between them.
That’s going to be tough to do in this game though. The Panthers are going against the best defensive line in the country, and Clemson’s big boys have lived up to their reputation. Dexter Lawrence, Austin Bryant, Christian Wilkins, and Clelin Ferrell are all going to be playing on Sundays in 2019, but they make up one of the most dominant defensive lines the college football world has ever seen in the present. No one has really had success running against this front, and it’s going to be hard for Pitt to move the ball on the ground.
Live Betting Preview
For this game to stay close, the Panthers are going to need a lot of luck. Pittsburgh just doesn’t have the guns that Clemson does, and this game has the potential to get ugly quickly if the Panthers can’t run the ball. They are a mediocre team in most statistical aspects, and the Tigers have taken advantage of that all year long. I’d lay the points with Clemson here.
NCAA Football Odds: Clemson 45, Pittsburgh 14
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