Clemson an Underdog vs. LSU on Title Game Odds

The Clemson Tigers will be aiming to claim their third College Football Playoff national championship in four years when they hit the gridiron for Monday’s title game as 6.5-point underdogs on the college football betting odds.

Clemson has dominated the college football ranks over the past two years, posting straight-up wins in 29 straight games going into the championship game at Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

The Tigers’ last SU loss came in the CFP semi-final two years ago, when they fell to the Alabama Crimson Tide by a 24-6 score in the 2018 Sugar Bowl. The team has been simply dominant ever since, claiming victory by double-digit margins in 25 of their past 29 outings. And while the Tigers needed some fourth-quarter heroics to earn a 29-23 semi-final win over Ohio State in this year’s Fiesta Bowl, they have posted against the spread wins in each of their past five outings.

Clemson has remained a reliable wager throughout the 2019 campaign, going 11-3 ATS on the college football odds. The four-time defending ACC conference champions have also paid out with regularity when playing away from the friendly confines of Memorial Stadium, going 6-1 ATS in seven road and neutral site contests this season.

While Monday’s date with LSU marks the first time that Clemson has been set as a betting underdog since their 44-16 rout of the Crimson Tide in last season’s national championship, the Tigers have risen to the occasion with regularity when sporting positive odds. The team has covered in nine of their past 11 while set as an underdog in college football betting, and has posted wins in six of their past eight. That run includes a 35-31 win over Alabama as 6.5-point underdogs that earned the Tigers their first CFP national championship three years ago.

Clemson’s success as an underdog also includes an outright victory in its most recent matchup with LSU. The ACC Tigers knocked off the SEC Tigers by a narrow 25-24 margin in the 2012 Chick-fil-A Bowl, once again while pegged as 6.5-point underdogs.

LSU Coming off Peach Bowl Rout of Sooners

However, Clemson must contend with a vastly improved LSU team this time around. The SEC Tigers make a bid for their first national title in 12 years after storming to a perfect 14-0 SU record this season, capped by a 63-28 CFP semi-final demolition of the Oklahoma Sooners as 12.5-point chalk in the Peach Bowl.

LSU leads the nation in points scored per game this season, with 48.9, and has topped that point total in four of its past five contests. Despite sporting an explosive offense, led by Heisman Trophy winner Joe Burrow, the SEC Tigers have struggled at times to pay dividends to bettors. LSU stumbled through a shaky 2-2-2 ATS run midway through the season before covering in each of their past three contests, but sport a respectable 4-1-1 ATS record in six meetings this season with nationally ranked opponents.

Perhaps more important is the Tigers’ recent success while set as a betting favorite during bowl season. LSU has won and covered in each of its past four, claiming victory by an average margin of 23 points, and ending a three-game ATS losing streak. The Tigers have also posted SU wins in eight of nine while favored by seven or fewer points, going 7-2 ATS. But in those contests the total has regularly fallen short of the 69.5 point total listed for Monday’s matchup, topping 50 on just three occasions.

*Odds as of Jan. 9, 2020

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