Opening point spread released for Clemson vs. SMU ACC championship game
After backdooring its way into the 2024 ACC football championship game, Clemson will be a slight betting underdog to a conference newcomer.
That’s according to initial betting lines released overnight Saturday by major sportsbooks DraftKings and FanDuel with more lines to come Sunday.
Both websites have ACC newcomer Southern Methodist as a 1.5-point against the Tigers for next Saturday’s game at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.
If the line holds, it will mark only the second time Clemson has been a betting underdog in a game this season and the first time since its Aug. 31 season opener against then-No. 1 Georgia in Atlanta.
In its debut season as an ACC member, SMU, formerly of the American Athletic Conference, went 11-1 and a perfect 8-0 in conference play. The Mustangs, based in Dallas, clinched the top seed in the ACC title game with a win last week.
The Tigers lost at home to rival South Carolina, 17-14, on Saturday. But Clemson qualified for its league-leading 10th ACC championship game a few hours later when Syracuse upset Miami 42-38 in their regular-season finale.
The Orange’s upset win dropped Miami to 6-2 in the ACC and allowed Clemson (7-1 ACC) to take the second spot in the league title game ... despite the Tigers having lost to their biggest rival at home and finishing ACC play two weeks ago.
Clemson was a 10.5-point betting underdog against Georgia in Atlanta for its season opener, a game it lost 34-3. From there, the Tigers were favored in 11 consecutive games, by double digits on nine instances and by 16 or more points six times.
Per VegasInsider records, Clemson had also been favored in each of its past seven ACC championship game appearances (all wins) since 2015. The Tigers haven’t been a betting underdog in a league title game since 2011 against Virginia Tech.
Clemson CFP update
SMU entered the weekend at No. 9 in the CFP Top 25 rankings and Clemson at No. 12, although the Tigers will drop in Tuesday’s updated rankings after their USC loss.
In the new 12-team College Football Playoff format, the winner of the ACC championship will get an automatic bid to the field and be in good position for a first-round bye into the quarterfinal round, too.
The selection committee extends automatic bids to the top five highest ranked conference champions in its final CFP Top 25 rankings, and the top four highest ranked of those conference champs also get first-round byes.
Per the ACC, the Tigers’ bench will be on the south side of the stadium because they were the second team to clinch a spot, SMU’s bench will be on the north side and the Mustangs will also be the designated “home team” for the game.
It’ll be the first ever meeting between the two schools.
2024 ACC championship game
Who: No. 9 SMU (11-1, 8-0 ACC) vs. No. 12 Clemson (9-3, 7-1 ACC)
When: 8 p.m. Saturday Dec. 7
Where: Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC
TV: ABC
Betting line: SMU by 1.5 points
This story was originally published December 1, 2024 at 10:02 AM.
