Clemson
vs.
Georgia Tech
College Football
Pick – Analysis
11/15/14
Playing in the ACC, it’s hard to gauge these teams, yet we have a quiet Top 25 matchup right here. Both teams are on a roll and have a chance to pull upsets in their season finales against SEC teams. The Tigers are -3 point road favorites at Georgia Tech as seen at 5 Dimes and sportsbook.ag.
Clemson has won six straight Games and its only two losses have been at Georgia and at a James Winston-less Florida State in overtime. Those are not easy Games to win, which makes them an interesting team. They also have close wins over Louisville (23-17) and at Boston College (17-13). Once an offensive-focused team, now has one of the better defenses in the country.
Georgia Tech also has two losses, but those were against Duke and North Carolina. The Yellow Jackets didn’t really challenge themselves outside of the ACC which doesn’t help their case (especially with a 42-38 win over Georgia Southern), but they have won big in three straight difficult matchups at Pittsburgh and NC State, and home to Virginia.
When these teams meet, there’s usually a lot of points and that’s been the case the last two years with Clemson winning both big at home, 55-31 last year and 47-31 the year before. This year, however, the matchup goes back to Georgia Tech.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, Tajh Boyd was the difference in those last two wins as he threw for 340 yards and Four TDs last year. But on the positive end of things, freshman QB Deshaun Watson will return for this Game after missing the last few with a broken bone in his hand. While senior Cole Stoudt (5 TDs, 5 INTs) has attempted twice the amount of passes as Watson, it’s Watson with the much better numbers (12 TDs, 2 INTs). It should be mentioned that nine of those touchdowns came against SC State and the porous UNC defense. Watson was the starter against Florida State, though, and he tossed for 266 yards while completing 67.9% of his passes.
Watson is the future of this team and the fan base is ready to see him in action again. The problem for the Tigers is that the run Game hasn’t done a whole lot this season, averaging just 3.3 yards per carry as a team. Wayne Gallman has given a spark recently with 100-plus yards in back-to-back Games.
Clemson has some monsters on the defensive end and they haven’t allowed more than 20 points in five straight Games. On the other side, Georgia Tech has scored at least 35 points in Four straight Games. What will budge?
As usual, the Yellow Jackets run a triple-option offense that tends to tear apart weaker defenses. This is probably their hardest task of the season, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens. They average a ridiculous 6.1 yards per carry as a team with quarterback Justin Thomas leading the way. The good news for GT is that leading running back Zach Laskey returns after missing the last three Games. No matter, they still have a slew of other guys that can carry the ball.
If anyone were to stop Georgia Tech this season, it would be this defense. The Yellow Jackets ran for 248 yards last year, but this is an improved and more experienced unit.
The Tigers have not covered in Four straight Games, but are 5-2 ATS in their last seven against teams with a winning record. The Yellow Jackets are 4-1 ATS in their last five vs. a team with a winning record, but only 2-5 ATS in their last seven home Games. The home team has covered Four straight Games in this meeting.
We think this one goes either way. In which case, we’ll grab any points available. Ga Tech +2.5