Georgia Tech Clemson Betting – Inconsistent Jackets, Erratic Tigers Face Off This Weekend
The ACC has a lot of so-so teams jumbled up in the middle of the conference. Two of them will stare down each other this weekend in the state of South Carolina.
NCAA football betting: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets @ Clemson Tigers
Online Betting Odds: Clemson -5
Why To Bet On Georgia Tech
This is yet another game in which both teams’ best arguments for winning center around the opponent’s deficiencies. The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets’ best claim to victory is the fact that Clemson just isn’t showing very much quality this year.
There are lies, damn lies, and statistics – Clemson lived a lie last Saturday in its most recent ACC Betting contest. Just consider the cold numbers that emerged from the Tigers’ most recent game against the Maryland Terrapins: Clemson quarterback Kyle Parker finished the day 7-of-20 for 106 passing yards with no touchdowns. Clemson threw for just 119 total passing yards and ran the ball for under 100 yards (94, to be precise). The Tigers' offense scored only two touchdowns and went 4-of-16 on third downs. Maryland outgained Clemson, 350 yards to just 213. The Terps had five more first downs (18 to 13) and slightly more than three times as many pass completions (25 to only 8). Clemson won the game, 31-7, due to an 87-yard kickoff return by Andre Ellington and a late tack-on touchdown courtesy of a pick-six by cornerback Xavier Brewer, who ran back an interception 61 yards for a score. Clemson’s offense tallied just 17 points against a mediocre Maryland defense at home. If Georgia Tech doesn’t gift-wrap points for Clemson, the Yellow Jackets have a very good chance of winning this game outright.
Why To Bet On Clemson
Georgia Tech’s struggles continue in 2010, despite what the scoreboard might tell you. Something with the offense is amiss. Yes, the Yellow Jackets rolled to a relatively easy win over a Middle Tennessee State team last Saturday, 42-14. The Blue Raider team Tech defeated is a team that should be better than its record, now that star quarterback Dwight Dasher returned from his September suspension. Yet, it remains difficult to think that the Georgia Tech team of the last few years – the team that was a force in the ACC and won the 2009 league title – would have gone into halftime with only a 14-7 lead against Middle Tennessee. The 2009 Jackets wouldn’t have sunk that far. Considering the fact that Tech won the turnover battle 6-2 in that game, the margin of victory should have been much more than 28 points for the Yellow Jackets.
The offense just isn’t as productive as it has been in past years, and the defense isn’t dominant, even against below-average opponents. Quarterback Josh Nesbitt has a decent stable of running backs, and Anthony Allen can be explosive, but Nesbitt doesn’t seem to trust Allen or the other running backs like he did Jonathan Dwyer last season. Nesbitt led the team with 106 rushing yards against Middle Tennessee. Allen added 75 yards. No other back had more than four carries for Tech – all in all, that’s not imposing stuff against Middle Tennessee, a Sun Belt Conference team. Clemson will be playing a very flawed and vulnerable opponent at home. That’s why the struggling Tigers are favored.
How The Game Will Play Out
This is not an easy game to read or feel. It probably will be close, and that fact alone suggests that Georgia Tech is the better pick against the spread. Maybe Clemson will put all the pieces together, but the Tigers are so unreliable, even at home, that the Yellow Jackets – given their triple-option offense – will have a higher-percentage chance of scoring at a consistent rate. Take Georgia Tech plus the points; the verdict here is that the Jackets will win the game, too.
Georgia Tech Clemson Betting Pick: Georgia Tech
