Last Updated on July 20, 2010 6:37 pm by drew
Clemson Season Odds
Clemson is coming off a 9-5 2009 season but can the Tigers contend in the ACC with C.J. Spiller no longer around?
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Dabo Swinney is in his second full season as head coach of the Tigers. He is 13-8 in 21 games as the skipper. The Tigers have always been a competitive team in the ACC but also been a bit of an under-achiever given the talent it has had.
This season the big key for the Tigers will be replacing Spiller, who accounted for 21 touchdowns last year and was one of the top candidates for the Heisman Trophy. Clemson will have to replace Spiller with a lot of bodies, led by sophomore Andre Ellington, who rushed for 491 yards and four scores last year. Look for Jamie Harper to also get a lot of carries at running back.
Where Clemson should be okay is at quarterback. Sophomore Kyle Parker showed a lot of promise in his freshman year, throwing for 2,526 yards and 20 touchdowns. Parker returns four of his five starters on the offensive line, so protection should be good.
While the Tigers lose their top three receiving leaders from a year ago, Parker should make up for that some. Senior Xavier Dye is going to have to step up in the receiving corp. as the Tigers will use a lot of younger bodies around him.
On defense, Clemson returns six, including three from a front seven that accumulated 36 sacks last season. Jarvis Jenkins had 10 tackles for loss last year at defensive tackle and is back for his senior year. In the secondary, Clemson brings back First Team All-American DeAndre McDaniel, who had 102 tackles with eight interceptions in 2009. As a whole, Clemson allowed just 163 yards passing per-game in 2009.
Oddsmakers from online sports book SPORTSBETTING.com currently list Clemson as 40/1 to win the 2011 BCS National Championship. The Tigers are also given 12/1 odds to win the ACC and 5/2 odds to win the ACC Atlantic Division.
Clemson could be a contender in the ACC, but the big issue comes with the schedule, where the Tigers have conference road games at
2011 BCS Championship Odds: Clemson Tigers 40/1
2010 ACC Championship Odds: Clemson Tigers 12/1
2010 ACC Atlantic Division Championship Odds: Clemson Tigers 5/2
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Posted: 7/20/10 6:37PM ET