Published on Monday, 10/7/24, at 8:45 p.m. Eastern.
Updated on Tuesday, 10/22/24, at 11:30 a.m. Eastern.
UPDATE: FanDuel has updated its numbers for the hypothetical matchup in this year’s ACC Championship Game. The book now has Clemson as a 1.5-point favorite (at a -115 price) vs. Miami with a total of 63.5. The Tigers are -126 on the money line, leaving the Hurricanes with +105 odds on the comeback.
FanDuel has released a hypothetical line for the ACC Championship Game.
The betting shop has Miami (6-0 straight up, 3-3 against the spread) installed as a 1.5-point home favorite (at a -102 price) vs. Clemson. The money-line price is -110 either way, and the total is 59.5 points.
The Hurricanes stayed unbeaten in Berkeley, where they trailed California 35-10 with less than four remaining in the third quarter. Cam Ward sparked a 29-3 run the rest of the way, though, and Cristobal’s team edged the Golden Bears, 39-38.
Miami failed to cover the number as a 10-point road favorite, but it has to be thrilled to escape the Bay area unscathed. Bettors backing Justin Wilcox’s squad to win outright for a +300 payout were left in disbelief.
Ward wouldn’t let his team lose in the fourth quarter. Down 38-18 with 10:28 remaining, Ward hit Isaiah Horton on an 18-yard scoring strike to cut Cal’s lead to 13 points.
Then with 4:04 left, Ward made it a one-possession game with a 24-yard TD run. With 26 ticks remaining, the transfer from Washington St. found Elijah Arroyo for a five-yard TD pass.
UM has an open date in Week 7 ahead of playing at Louisville on Oct. 19.
Clemson (4-1 SU, 3-2 ATS) improved to 3-0 in ACC play with this past Saturday’s 29-13 win at FSU as a 16.5-point road favorite. The Tigers failed to cover the closing line, but gamblers had Sunday through Friday to bet them at a better number for a winner.
Since a bad second half in Atlanta during its 34-3 season-opening loss to Georgia, Clemson has ripped off four consecutive wins. The Tigers have the win in Tallahassee and home scalps over Appalachian St. (66-20), NC St. (59-35) and Stanford (40-14).
QB Cade Klubnik has completed 92-of-143 passes (64.3%) 1,219 yards with a 14/2 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He’s added 168 rushing yards, four TDs and a 6.0 yards-per-carry average.
Ward has connected on 148-of-214 throws (69.2%) for 2,219 yards with a 20/5 TD-INT ratio. He has 161 rushing yards, three TDs and a 5.8 YPC average.
Miami’s remaining games include home contests vs. FSU, vs. Duke and vs. Wake Forest. The ‘Canes, who are 2-0 in ACC play, also have road assignments at U of L, at Ga. Tech and at Syracuse.
Clemson is at Wake Forest this Saturday and has November road games at Va. Tech and at Pitt. The Tigers take on Virginia, Louisville, The Citadel and South Carolina in their remaining home contests.
Who are the threats in the ACC to potentially prevent a Miami-Clemson showdown on the first Saturday of December. Well, the remaining schools who are still unbeaten in league play include SMU (2-0), Virginia (2-0) and Pitt (1-0).
We can go ahead and eliminate UVA. The Cavaliers play at Clemson on Oct. 19 when the Tigers have two weeks to prepare.
UVA also has road assignments at Pitt and at Va. Tech in which it’ll be a generous underdog.
SMU (5-1 SU, 4-2 ATS) is a serious threat, however. The Mustangs don’t have to play Clemson and Miami. They’ve turned it on since their open date in Week 4, ripping off impressive wins vs. TCU (66-42) vs. FSU (44-16) and at Louisville (34-27).
The toughest remaining game for Rhett Lashlee’s squad is at home vs. Pitt on Nov. 2. The Mustangs might be favored in all of their remaining games, including road tilts at Stanford, at Duke and at UVA.
Pitt (5-0 SU, 5-0 ATS) is one of the nation’s biggest surprises thanks to the emergence of Alabama transfer QB Eli Holstein, who has completed 65.5 percent of his passes for 1,564 yards with a 15/3 TD-INT ratio. He also has 265 rushing yards, three TDs and a 5.5 yards-per-carry average.
The Panthers don’t have to play the ‘Canes and have Clemson at home on Nov. 16. In addition to playing at SMU, they have road dates at Louisville and at Boston College.