Clemson
Tigers
CLEM
Last 5 ATS
W/L0-1
ATS0-1
O/U1-0-0
FINAL SCORE
10
-
51
LSU
Tigers
LSU
Last 5 ATS
W/L1-0
ATS1-0
O/U1-0-0
Last 5 ATS
0-1
Win /Loss
1-0
0-1
Spread
1-0
1-0-0
Over / Under
1-0-0
SPREAD
MONEYLINE
OVER/UNDER
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With so many new pieces at LSU and Clemson still not back to where they need to be, I am going to go with a low-scoring affair. SP+ has these two defenses ranked 2nd (LSU) and 16th (Clemson) this season. QB Cade Klubnik is gone, replaced by senior Christopher Vizzina, who also gets Chad Morris’s return as offensive coordinator. RBs Gideon Davidson and SMU transfer Chris Johnson lead a backfield that will have to improve on last year’s 105th-ranked rushing offense. Last year, LSU had the SEC’s worst ground game, averaging just 104 yards per game. Sam Leavitt was one of the top QBs in the portal, but he didn’t exactly blow the doors off at ASU
I've been adamant that Clemson's glory days are behind it, and this might be the worst roster (talent wise) Dabo's had in a decade. LSU has plenty going on, but should prove to be the much better team over 60 minutes at home.
I talked about the under on a few shows this week and decided to make it an official pick for a half unit. Clemson has an inexperienced offensive line protecting an inexperienced quarterback. That's not a recipe for success versus good teams early in the season. While I expect Dabo's offense to struggle, Clemson's defense is still good enough to compete in this game. LSU has a lot of new faces on offense and it could take a couple of quarters for the Tigers' offense to get going. I see both defensive fronts controlling the line of scrimmage, with LSU winning an ugly 24-13 kind of game. Go under 50.5 or higher.
Overall, this is a really tough spot for Clemson considering the atmosphere. Night games in Baton Rouge are always tough for the LSU opponents, not to mention it's Lane Kiffin's debut and Clemson is breaking in a new quarterback. Expect Blake Baker's defense to dominate Dabo Swinney's offense. On the other side, I'm not expecting LSU to be a well-oiled machine offensively just yet. In another low-scoring affair between these two teams, I like LSU to win at home. LSU 23, Clemson 10.
Is this the beginning of the end for Dabo Swinney at Clemson? The fans are calling for his job. They play in the weak ACC and have been one of the slightly better-than-mediocre teams in conference play the last two years. What happened? Wasn't this team just fighting for championships? But I think this year will be different as Swinney brings back several key starters from last year. Christopher Vizzina starts at quarterback after being Cade Klubnik’s backup. I think Swinney does something spectacular with his boys in the first game against Lane Kiffin at LSU.
