Clemson Tigers vs. Ohio State Buckeyes Free Fiest Bowl Prediction, 12–28–2019
Free Fiesta Bowl Pick by Ethan Alexander of SportsInvestorCentral.com
Clemson Tigers (13–0) vs. Ohio State Buckeyes (13–0)
Time: Saturday, December 28, 8:00 PM EST
Current Odds: Ohio State +2, O/U 63
The Clemson Tigers and Ohio State Buckeyes will do battle in the Fiesta Bowl on Saturday night at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, AZ. On the season, the Tigers are 10–3 ATS while the Buckeyes are 9–4 ATS.
Clemson continues down the path of defending their National Championship but they face their toughest test to date. This is truly a clash of college football titans as the Clemson Tigers enter with the #3 ranked offense and #1 ranked defense while the Ohio State Buckeyes feature the 5th ranked offense and the 2nd ranked defense. The offense for the Tigers has been one of the best in the nation and they have been even better of late, averaging 54.2 ppg over their last six games. The Tigers hung up 62 points on 619 yards of total offense against a very good Virginia defense in the ACC Title game. While the Tigers have been knocked for their easier schedule, it may be an advantage as their star players received plenty of rest throughout the season.
Ohio State didn’t skip a beat from the departure of head coach Urban Meyer last season. The Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day aims to accomplish what Urban Meyer failed to accomplish in 2016, beat Dabo Swinney. In their last game, Ohio State beat number eight Wisconsin Badgers 34–21 and won the Big Ten Conference title. The Buckeyes were actually tested in this game and found themselves down 21–7 at the half. Quarterback Justin Fields has 2,953 passing yards, 40 TD, 1 INT and leads this potent Buckeyes offense but the anchor is RB J.K. Dobbins has rushed for 1828 yards and 20 touchdowns. OSU averages 272 rushing yards per game and they will test Clemson’s 9th ranked rushing defense which allows 106 yards per game. Defensively the Buckeyes are led by potential #1 draft pick, DE Chase Young who has 16.5 sacks and is an electrifying game-changer on the defensive side of the ball. Young’s ability to get after Trevor Lawrence will be pivotal to Buckeye’s defensive game plan.
This College Football Playoff game has the makings of a slugfest. It’s hard to ignore that the Tigers breezed through a watered-down ACC but the Buckeyes finished the season beating Penn State, Michigan and Wisconsin in consecutive weeks by double digits when it mattered the most. That’s a trio of top-15 programs and the Buckeyes dropped them all by double digits. Clemson’s marquee win was over then #12 Texas A&M who ultimately finished the season (7–5) so there is no schedule comparison. The Tigers are an experienced football team and will certainly keep close tabs on the Buckeyes but I feel that Ohio State has proven they can beat a top program and I can’t say the same for Clemson and I am unwilling to rely on the Tiger’s success from last season. Ohio State +2 is the pick.
