Two of the best teams in the nation who are both undefeated will clash this coming weekend, as the Notre Dame Fighting Irish host the Trevor Lawrence-less Clemson Tigers. Will the reigning ACC champions continue their unbeaten start to the season after a close call last week? Or will the Fighting Irish be the first team to give Clemson a loss this season?
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Betting Preview for the Clemson Tigers vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish NCAA Week 10 College Football Game on November 7, 2020
Where: Notre Dame Stadium
When: Saturday, November 7, 2020, 7:30 PM ET
Line: Clemson Tigers (-5.5) vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (+5.5) – view all 2020 NCAAF lines
TV Broadcast: NBC
Betting on the Clemson Tigers (-5.5)
Record: 7-0 Overall / 6-0 Conference
Everything’s still fine in Clemson. Despite not having Trevor Lawrence under center as the future first-round pick in the NFL is currently dealing with COVID-19, the Tigers managed to eke out a 34-28 win over the Boston College Eagles at home last Saturday. It may not be the drubbing Clemson fans wanted it to be, but at least it showed that freshman quarterback DJ Uiagalelei is up to the task of mitigating the impact of Lawrence’s absence. Uiagalelei passed for 342 yards and two touchdowns on 30-of-41 completions — not bad for his first start in for Clemson. Lawrence is not going to be back in time for Clemson’s date with Notre Dame, so Uiagalelei will once again be called on to start this coming Saturday. And thanks to his performance error-less performance in the Boston College game, he just had the right confidence-builder to feel good about himself heading into the meeting with the Fighting Irish. Travis Etienne and Clemson’s ground game will be counted on by Dabo Swinney to help carve up Notre Dame’s defense. Etienne rushed for 84 yards and a touchdown against Boston College. Defensively, look for the Tigers’ pass rush to make an impact. Clemson, which had four sacks against the Eagles, is second in the ACC with 28 sacks.
The over is 3-0 in Clemson’s last three games overall.
Betting on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (+5.5)
Record: 6-0 Overall / 5-0 Conference
Sure, Clemson still looked stable even without Lawrence last week, but a Tigers team run by a quarterback not named Trevor Lawrence will always be the easier Clemson squad to deal with, and that’s what the Fighting Irish are going to get at home this coming Saturday. The Fighting Irish are coming off a 31-13 road win over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to keep their undefeated record intact and spotless. Notre Dame’s ground game was on full display against Georgia Tech, as the Fighting Irish rushed for 227 yards and three touchdowns on 44 carries. Quarterback Ian Book, meanwhile, had 199 passing yards (18/26) and a touchdown. Book and the Fighting Irish are going to be a handful for Clemson’s defense. While Clemson’s defensive line is one of the best in the nation, Notre Dame’s pass protection is also among the elite in the ACC. In fact, Notre Dame has allowed just 11.0 sacks this season, the fewest in the conference. As for their own defense, the Fighting Irish are tough to get past on third downs. With still an unproven quarterback in Uiagalelei, the Tigers could struggle to reset their downs against Notre Dame’s defense that is fifth nationally with a 24.36 opponents’ third-down conversion percentage. Notre Dame is also fourth overall with just 10.3 points allowed per contest.
Notre Dame is 6-4 against the spread in its last 10 games as the home team.
Writer’s Prediction
Notre Dame wins, 35-27.
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