College football week 5 and the North Carolina Tar Heels will travel to Clemson Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina to take on the Clemson Tigers. The game has a start time of 7:00 pm (Eastern) and will be televised on ESPN U. Current Vegas odds have the Tigers listed as 14.5 point favorites, while the total is set at 67.5.
Analysis: The North Carolina Tar Heels have been very consistent in the last 6 years, grabbing either 8 0r 7 wins in each year. Now with 15 starters back and being in the 3 rd year of Larry Fedora’s systems, they are looking to take the next step and walk away with the Coastal Division in the ACC. The Heels are not playing like a possible ACC contender so far this year. Yes they are 2-1 but struggled with Liberty in their opener before running away late and then won by just 4 over San Diego State at home in their next games. The Heels followed those 2 lackluster performances with a 70-41 loss last week to East Carolina. In that game the Heels allowed ECU 343 yards on the ground, 446 yards through the air and also allowed them to convert 12 of 17 firstdowns. Defense has been a sore spot for this team so far, as they come in ranked 126th in yards allowed (548 ypg), 125th vs the pass (325.3 ypg) and 121st in points allowed (42 ppg). The offense has been solid for them, as they rank 21 st in scoring (41.7 ppg) and 72 nd in total offense (425.3 ypg)
The Clemson Tigers had a super 2013, in which they went 11-2 overall and 7-1 in the ACC, while ending the year with a 40-35 win over Ohio State in the Orange Bowl. This year much of their offense must be replaced, but still the Tigers will again be a factor in the AAC this year. The season has not started out well for the Tigers, as they come in a 1-2 on the year, losing to Georgia and Florida State, while beating South Carolina State. Last week the Tigers had a golden opportunity to upset the Noles, who were playing without Jameis Winston, but they just couldn’t get the job done even though they outgained the Noles by 90 yards in the game and held them to just 13 yards rushing on 27 carries. The defense has been very good for the tigers this year as they rank 12th in yards allowed (273.3 ypg) and 68th in points allowed (25 ppg), while the offense has not been as explosive as last year, as they come in ranked 36th in total yards (477.7 ypg) and 42nd in scoring (37 ppg). Cole Stout is no Tahj Boyd as he has thrown for just 486 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT so far.
Pick: I would look for this to be a shootout, but with the way that Clemson has played defense this year It's hard to look that way, especially with how high the OU line is. This Clemson defense has been very tough this year so far as they have allowed just 2723 ypg so far, which is 12th in the nation. I know that the Carolina defense sucks, but it will be very hard for these teams to hit 68 points. Maybe the upper 50s at best.
Get Teddy Cover's 3* Big Ticket Shootout of the Month!!! For Free- No Obligation - No Credit Card Required - Becoming a member is Fast and Free!
Stay on top of the latest odds and line moves for Football Season with our real-time odds from Las Vegas and offshore!
College Football Free Picks: Colorado vs California Betting
What college football bettors need to know about betting Colorado Buffaloes vs California Golden Bears on Saturday (9/27/14) - a free pick from Pregame.com's Ken Thomson with added insight from Dave Cokin.