Clemson Football: Last Minute Predictions vs. LSU Tigers

The Clemson football team will take on the LSU Tigers tonight in the National Championship. Here are some last-minute predictions for the game.

The Clemson football team comes into the National Championship listed as a 6-point underdog, courtesy of the Action Network.

The Tigers are slated to take on the LSU Tigers in New Orleans at 8 p.m. tonight live on ESPN.

Here are a few last-minute predictions for Clemson football as we head into this game.

Last Minute Predictions vs. LSU

• The offenses start out slower than expected

If you ask basically any analyst around the country, they’ll tell you that this is going to be a shootout. No one believes Clemson has even the slightest chance of slowing down LSU’s prolific offense.

Well, our first prediction is that the offenses start out a little slower than expected. Though we may see some fireworks in the first quarter, I believe it’ll be at minimum. At the end of the first, we may be looking at a 10-7, 7-7 or 10-3 type score.

• Joe Burrow looks human

Throughout this entire season, Joe Burrow has not made many mistakes. He has put up big-time video game numbers and won the Heisman because of it.

I’m not sure how it will happen or what Brent Venables will do scheme-wise, but I think we see Burrow make a couple of mistakes. Perhaps he throws an interception, maybe he misses a target that he normally wouldn’t. I think LSU is going to have to grind out this game and it will be the team who has more grit that comes away with the win.

• Travis Etienne proves his point

Clemson football RB Travis Etienne has a chip on his shoulder heading into this one, and I think that’s a good thing.

Etienne knows this is his home-state school. He has openly talked about how he felt they didn’t treat him right in the recruiting process. Tonight, he gets an opportunity to show what they missed out on firsthand and I think he takes advantage.

• The mistakes show the winner

If you want to know who’s going to win this game, keep a running tally of mistakes throughout the game. Whether that be a missed block that results in a sack or negative-yardage play, a turnover, an obvious blown coverage, miscommunication, special teams miscue, or anything else.

The team that makes the least mistakes will win this game.

Will it be Clemson? Will it be LSU? That remains to be seen, but mistakes matter in a game with this much talent and it will be the indicator of how this one plays out tonight in New Orleans.