Miami at Clemson College Football Expert Analysis

Trevor Lawrence and the top-ranked Clemson Tigers will look to take care of business at home when they host the visiting seventh-ranked Miami Hurricanes in a prime time, nationally televised ACC conference clash on Saturday. With both of these teams sitting at 3-0 and looking to improve their chances of getting into the College Football Playoff, let’s find out which team is offering the best value against their college football betting odds.

No. 7 Miami (3-0) at No. 1 Clemson (3-0) | NCAA Football Betting

Game Details

When: Saturday, Oct. 10, 2020 at 7:30 PM ET
Where: Memorial Stadium

NCAAF Odds

Clemson -14
Total: 62 | Bet on the Game Now!

Why Bet on No. 7 Miami

Miami beat UAB 31-14 at home in their opener before taking out Louisville 47-34 on the road in their second game of the season. The Hurricanes then smacked in-sate rival Florida State senseless in their convincing 52-10 rout at home on Sept. 26 as quarterback D’Eriq King passed for 267 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions while adding 65 rushing yards in the win. Miami rushed for a stellar 317 yards and four scores in the win. Defensively the Canes recorded three interceptions and now, Miami wants to make an even bigger statement against the premier program in all of college football.

"This is a great opportunity for us to test ourselves against a team that’s very comfortable in these settings," Miami coach Manny Diaz said. "This is not a big game at Clemson; this is just what they do, you know what I mean? And we’ve got to get our program where it’s the same way."

Miami is ranked 12th in rushing, eighth in scoring (43.3 ppg) and an impressive 16th in points allowed (19.3 ppg). King, who transferred from Houston, has thrown for 736 yards and six touchdowns while rushing for 157 yards and another score.

"He’s a great quarterback — he can do it all," Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. "There’s really nothing he can’t do. He can make all the throws and when he runs it, he’s a running back. He’s got that mindset of a running back, too. You’d better have your big-boy pads on. He’s averaging 5.4 yards after contact, so this is a very physical player."

Trends

Hurricanes are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games following a straight up win.
Hurricanes are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 conference games.
Hurricanes are 3-12 ATS in their last 15 games in October.
Hurricanes are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games following a straight up win of more than 20 points.

Why Bet on No. 1 Clemson

The Tigers beat Wake Forest 37-13 in their opener before routing overmatched The Citadel 49-0 in their second game of the season on Sept. 19. Clemson overpowered Virginia 41-23 last weekend as Trevor Lawrence passed for 329 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Running back Travis Etienne had a spectacular game with 73 rushing yards and one score while adding 114 receiving yards and another score. Defensively, the Tigers picked off quarterback Brennan Armstrong twice while recording three sacks in the win. This season, Lawrence has passed for 848 yards and seven touchdowns while adding three rushing scores. Clemson is ranked 15th in passing, ninth in scoring (42.3 ppg) and a stupendous seventh in points allowed (12.0 ppg).

Trends

Tigers are 6-1-1 ATS in their last 8 games in October.
Tigers are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games following a ATS loss.
Tigers are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 home games.
Tigers are 18-8 ATS in their last 26 games following a straight up win.
Tigers are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games overall.

Expert Analysis and Prediction

I like the way Miami has played for the most part, but I believe their 47-34 win over Louisville was very telling and a precursor to what is going to happen in this ACC showdown. Louisville’s Micale Cunningham passed for 307 yards with three touchdowns and one interception in that loss and that tells me that Trevor Lawrence could be in for a big day passing the ball.

Miami’s D’Eriq King is definitely going to be difficult to stop in this matchup, but if any team can contain the dual-threat star, it’s Clemson’s now, perennially elite unit. The Tigers rank 23rd against the pass and a stellar 11th against the run. Miami ranks 12t in rushing nationally, but I like Clemson to keep their rushing attack largely in check.

Hurricanes are 5-1 ATS in their last six games against a team with a winning record and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games following an ATS win, but Clemson has gone Tigers are 17-5 ATS in their last 22 conference games and an incendiary 24-1 SU in their last 25 games overall. The Tigers are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games as a home favorite and 10-4 ATS vs. a team with a winning record. Miami has gone 1-5 ATS in their last 6 meetings against the Tigers, but I like the Canes to cover in something of a thriller.