Clemson vs. Syracuse point spread: Picking Tigers vs. Orange

The Clemson Tigers were dealt a devastating defeat on Saturday by the Florida State Seminoles, 31-24 in overtime. The Tigers still battled valiantly and put together an impressive performance in one of the best games of last weekend.

This week, Clemson will look to regroup as they take on the Syracuse Orange, a team that has given them plenty of problems in the past. On Wednesday evening, Andy Staples and Ralph D. Russo took some time to give their picks in the matchup between Clemson and Syracuse.

Syracuse currently has a 4-0 overall record and the Tigers sit at 2-2 overall. Clemson is currently a 6.5 favorite in Saturday’s matchup. And Ralph Russo thinks the Tigers pull it out, but the game is close. Syracuse quarterback Garrett Shrader is currently averaging 9 yards per pass attempt. He’s also leading his team in rushing, averaging 6 yards per carry.

“I’m gonna take the points,” Russo began. “I cannot see though, Clemson, going to 0-3 in the ACC. I just can’t get my arms around that. But, I see the way Shrader has played. Now, Syracuse has done this thing before. First of all, when I say they’ve done this thing before, they have stressed out Clemson a lot. They have stressed out Clemson a ton over the last few years.

“Now they’ve only beat them once in the last six years, but they have continually put Clemson in a vice and made them have to sweat out some victories. You’re going into the dome, Shrader’s a good playmaker.”

“Clemson, to me, is still a good team. I can’t imagine we get to the end of the year and Clemson isn’t in that nine-win range. So, again, I can’t see them starting the season 0-3. But I also, I’m gonna assume here that Syracuse does this thing again to Clemson. It’s a home dog. The dome gets loud. I’ll take the 6.5 because why wouldn’t you not take the 6.5 on a home team,” Russo said.

“They’re pretty healthy coming in (Syracuse). Good vibes in the dome. I can just see Clemson getting bogged down again in this game,” Russo said regarding the matchup.

Even though Andy Staples still has some concerns about the Tigers’ schedule the rest of the way, he thinks they will cover the spread on Saturday.

“Here’s what I will say. There was no quit in Clemson after the Duke game. They came very prepared for Florida State. Florida State’s a better team than they are. They gave them a hell of a fight. I think Clemson’s gonna go to the dome. I think they’re gonna cover this spread. I don’t know that they’re gonna be a nine-win team. And even though after that game I said, they can win the rest of their games. I don’t know if they can. I don’t know if they can win two of Notre Dame, North Carolina, Miami. And they’re maybe another one in there that maybe N.C. State or something becomes tricky as well. But I do think they can cover here. Syracuse is 4-0. They have looked good, but look at who they’ve beaten,” Staples said on Wednesday.

“I think Clemson will be fine. I actually think they’re gonna get better as the season goes on,” Staples continued. “I thought we saw them get better every week. And here’s my thing with Syracuse. One of the teams they’ve beaten is Western Michigan. That’s the one they gave up 41 to Iowa. One of the teams they’ve beaten is Purdue. We saw Purdue lose to Fresno State, which there’s no shame in that. Wisconsin had the easiest time in the world with Purdue on Friday night. So, I think that Clemson covers this fairly easily.”