BC
vs.
Clemson
College Football
Free Pick
9/23/17
Clemson doesn’t care what anyone says about them, they just keep winning. The Tigers may have had the most impressive start to the season, from clamping down on Auburn to thoroughly beating up Louisville last week in a 47-21 win. With Boston College having almost the opposite start, Clemson is a huge -34.5 point home favorite as seen at 5Dimes Sportsbook.
There’s no reason not to believe Clemson won’t repeat what it did in last year’s Game and that one came at Boston College. The Eagles also look to be at about the same level and maybe a bit worse. Clemson dominated this matchup in all facets, limiting BC from much of anything offensively while Deshaun Watson tossed Four touchdowns to go with the offense’s 6.6 yards per carry as a team. The Tigers won 56-10 so it’s a wonder why this line isn’t higher.
Only a couple weeks ago, BC fell to Wake Forest handily 34-10 and just last week it was 49-20 against Notre Dame. The Eagles usually play Notre Dame tight and actually beat Wake last season on the road. So after seeing this offense slog through the first few weeks, is there any reason to believe Boston College can Scoremore than 10 points on Clemson this year?
The simple answer is no. New quarterback Anthony Brown is only a freshman and that’s shown up with his six interceptions thrown. He still has a lot of learning to do and could be in for another performance similar to the Wake Game when he went 11-of-29 for 119 yards and three picks. Expecting Jon Hilliman and the running Game to do more than it did last year is a stretch too. The Eagles are averaging just 3.5 yards per carry and that’s probably all they’ll get to in this Game.
Clemson is coming off a Game in which it held one of the NCAA’s most dynamic players to seven points in the first three quarters. The Tigers lost a lot of guys, but they have one of the best defenses in the country yet again led by Brent Venables.
A lot of people have been off Clemson early because Watson is gone, but that hasn’t mattered much with how dominant the defense has been. And against mediocre defenses, Kelly Bryant has been just fine under center even though he only has two passing touchdowns to his name. In addition to Bryant rushing the ball, the Tigers use a trio of guys between Travis Etienne, Tavien Feaster and C.J. Fuller, which has led to 5.9 yards per carry.
BC is usually known for having a solid defense, but after giving up 515 rushing yards and seven touchdowns last week to the Irish, that may not be the case. If the Irish can do that, that means Bryant and company should find no trouble moving the ball. And as long as Clemson can reach 40 points, that will be enough to cover this Game, especially at home. Our Pick – OVER 52.5