Clemson Football: Early spread, total and lean for Tigers vs. Louisville

After getting throttled by Notre Dame last Saturday Clemson football must regroup quickly as they host the Louisville Cardinals in Death Valley on Saturday afternoon on Military Appreciation Day.

Louisville is 6-3 and on a 4-game winning streak with victories over Virginia, Pittsburgh, Wake Forest and James Madison.

Clemson’s last two games have been a struggle as the Tigers had to rally to beat Syracuse 27-21 and then were never really in the game in the 35-14 loss to Notre Dame.

The Tigers still hold the nation’s longest home winning streak at 38 games, but that will be tested Saturday as a touchdown favorite.

The game can also be streamed on Fubo TV.

This game opened at Clemson -7.5, with the over/under at 52.5 and the hook made that number a tough sell for me, especially given the Tigers offensive performance the last two weeks.

The new total of 52 implies a score of 29.5-22.5 in Clemson’s favor, which seems like a bit high to me, until you consider the Tigers struggles to block on punts and D.J. Uiagalelei’s recent propensity for pick sixes and fumbles returned for touchdowns.

As bad as it looks in the headlines, Notre Dame actually only scored 21 points on the Clemson defense, with another seven coming via a blocked punt and seven more via a 96-yard interception return.

Can the Clemson football offense reach 30 points against Louisville?

I find it difficult to believe the Tigers will reach the 30-point mark, too, at least as I write this.  That could change as the week progresses, but I think we see a large dose of Will Shipley this week, especially after Brandon Streeter’s comments after the Notre Dame debacle.

RubbingtheRock.com will have more on the spread and total as the week develops, but early on I like the under 52 for Clemson vs. Louisville.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change