First Clemson-Florida State point spreads released for key ACC football game
Clemson football hasn’t been a home underdog in a long time.
But that’ll change next Saturday against No. 4 Florida State, according to a review of early Week 4 betting lines for one of the ACC’s top regular-season games of 2023.
FSU opened as a 2.5-point betting favorite against Clemson on FanDuel and DraftKings and a 3-point favorite on BetRivers and Caesars, according to those websites. The consensus line on VegasInsider.com is Florida State -2.5.
Clemson, which made six straight College Football Playoffs from 2015-20, has only been a home underdog three times in the last decade, according to Odds Shark data.
The Tigers most recently closed as a 1-point home underdog to Louisville in 2016 (a memorable AP Top 5 game they won 42-36).
Clemson was also a 4.5-point home underdog to FSU in 2013 (lost 51-14) and a 1.5-point home underdog to Georgia in 2013 (won 38-35).
The Tigers (2-1, 0-1 ACC) blew out Florida Atlantic, 48-14, on Saturday while Florida State (3-0, 1-0 ACC) escaped Boston College with a 31-29 win in its first conference game of the year.
Quarterback Cade Klubnik had four total touchdowns, the offense had zero turnovers and the defense forced four turnover as Clemson got what coach Dabo Swinney deemed its “most complete” game of the season. The Tigers experienced some early-season turbulence, losing at Duke by 21 points in their season opener and starting slow against FCS Charleston Southern.
Swinney emphasized Saturday that, despite Florida State nearly blowing a 21-point lead, the Seminoles are still a team to be reckoned with. The Seminoles, led by quarterback Jordan Travis and coach Mike Norvell, made a major Week 1 statement by routing then-No. 5 LSU in primetime.
“Certainly the biggest challenge yet this week with a really, really good veteran group,” Swinney said Saturday of FSU. “Veteran group, dynamic quarterback, great receivers ... Got a good tight end, good defense. Complete team.”
Florida State dropped one spot from No. 3 to No. 4 in Sunday’s Week 4 AP Top 25 poll, ceding that spot to Texas after a close win over unranked Boston College. Clemson, for a second consecutive week, was unranked but first among teams receiving votes (essentially No. 26).
Florida got 103 votes to Clemson’s 76 votes and jumped into the No. 25 spot this week after upsetting Tennessee in Gainesville.
Clemson trails the all-time series with FSU 20-15 but has won seven consecutive games dating back to 2015. Last year’s result, a 34-28 Clemson win in Tallahassee, was the closest in the series since 2016.
Kickoff for next Saturday’s Clemson-FSU game is set for noon from Memorial Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ABC.
This story was originally published September 17, 2023 at 1:19 PM with the headline "First Clemson-Florida State point spreads released for key ACC football game."
