The NCAA football fans are up for a real treat on Saturday night, as two of the top 5 teams in the Nation will square off. The game between the Louisville Cardinals (3rd) and the Clemson Tigers (5th) is one of the most anticipated match-ups of the ACC and the regular season. We spoke with the Legend himself Jon Price reviewed as the best living sports bettor with over 100 million dollars of lifetime earnings from sports betting and a popular weekly radio show guest on Greenville ESPN Upstate radio to look at this weeks most popular game between the two undefeated teams.
Another reason why this game is highly anticipated is the fact that it will be a face-off between two of the most exciting quarterbacks in the nation as Lamar Jackson will try to lead his Cardinals pass Deshaun Watsons and the Clemson Tigers.
Emerging as one of the biggest college football surprises, the Cardinals are at a 4-0 record this season, simply devastating their opponents. Their most important win thus far probably, came on Sep. 17th when the Cardinals faced the 2nd ranked Florida State Seminoles, and mildly put, crushed them with a 63-20 score. But this was not the only time the Cardinals offense was dominant, as they have beaten their opponents with a 41 points difference, on average.
On the other side, Clemson Tigers are the last years ACC champions and national runner-ups, who also sit at a 4-0 record. The last year’s Heisman trophy finalists, Deshaun Watson is leading the Tigers offense perfectly and is still one of the top QB this year. So far he has completed 60% of his passes for 996 yards and 9 touchdown passes, while rushing for 120 yards.
KEY FACTS AND PREDICTIONS
- The Cardinals offense has been magnificent thus far, averaging 63.5 points per game (40.5 points/game in the first half only) leading the FBS. On the other side, the Clemson’s Tigers offense is not up to the last year’s averages, as they are averaging only 33 points/game (38.5 last year).
- It’s not just the Cardinals offense that has skyrocketed them among the nation’s Top 5 teams. The Cardinals defense (ranked 13th nationally in total defense) has been extraordinary as well, allowing only 22.5 points per contest. On the other side the Clemson’s Tigers defense has allowing 218.5 yards per game which ranks them 2nd in the ACC and 3rd in the FBS.
- LAMAR JACKSON. We have left Jackson for the end on purpose as he will be the one who will decide the game. Jackson has been phenomenal this year ranking 5th in rushing (682) and 1st in rushing TD (12). So far he has collected a total of 1.330 passing yards which puts him on the 9th spot. He tops the nation in scoring with 12 rushing touchdowns so far for a total of 72 points (18 PPG). He has also collected over 1.300 passing yards (13 touchdowns). How phenomenal Jackson has been this season, proves that fact that out of all NCAA teams, only Michigan State has thrown more TD than Lamar Jacksons 25 touchdowns this season.
In conclusion, it is important to note that Clemson has won both of their two previous meetings (narrowly) and that Clemson has won 18 of their last home games. However, if the Cardinals jump to a quick start like they did thus far in the season, alongside a great performance by Lamar Jackson, our pick is that the Cardinals will win this game. The bookmakers have the total point margin at 67.5, and once again it will all depend on the Cardinals start, but we predict that both teams will score OVER the total point margin.
ODDS (taken from the www.sportsinformationtraders.com website):
LOUSVILLE -2
CLEMSON 2
Line: 67.5 OVER
Date: Saturday, Oct. 1
Game Time: 8:00 pm
Venue: Memorial Stadium, Clemson, SC
