Clemson vs Virginia Tech 2011 ACC Championship Picks: Virginia Tech (11-1) and Clemson (9-3) will meet in the Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship Game, today at Charlotte's Bank of America Stadium. Virginia Tech is making its fourth appearance in the championship game and is the defending ACC Champion. Clemson is making its second appearance in the title game in three seasons. The two teams have never met in the ACC Championship game and will reprise their Oct. 1 meeting in Blacksburgh, won decisively by the Tigers 23-3. ESPN will televise the game with kick-off set for 8:05 p.m. ET.
The Hokies are listed as 7-chalk favorites at online sports book TopBet.com with combined score total (over/under) of 53. Tigers backers are getting +225 odds on the College Football Odds moneyline while the Hokies are priced at -265 ($265 wager to win $100).
Clemson enters the game having dropped three of its last four games after winning its first eight. The Hokies have won seven in a row since its loss to the Tigers. Clemson features the nation's 18th-ranked passing attack while Virginia Tech ranks 9th nationally in pass efficiency defense, 9th in rushing defense, 7th in scoring defense and 8th in sacks. Clemson QB Tajh Boyd ranks 18th nationally in total offense with a 291.3 per game average. Clemson running back Sammy Watkins ranks 4th nationally in all-purpose yards and 15th in receiving yards per game and is the leading freshman receiver in the nation in yards and receptions per game.
Clemson sophomore QB Tajh Boyd has enjoyed a strong sophomore campaign in his first season as the Tigers’ starting quarterback. Boyd has accounted for 32 touchdowns, throwing for 28 and running for 4 more. Boyd has tied former FSU QB Danny Kanell for 7th best single season total with two games remaining, His TD pass average of 2,33 would be the 7th- best in league history while his averages for total offense and passing yards are just out of the top 10. His 3,496 yards of total offense is already the 8th best single-season total in ACC history.
In case you haven't noticed, Virginia Tech and Clemson are trending in opposite directions over the past month. The Tigers lost to rival South Carolina 13-34 in the final regular season game, the third loss for Clemson in the last four games. The Tigers, who looked like a BCS contender through September and most of October, seemed to hit a wall through November. Of the three late season losses, two were by three or more touchdowns. Since losing to Clemson back on October 1, Virginia Tech has reeled off seven consecutive victories to claim the ACC Coastal Division. Virgina Tech has the hot hand right now while Clemson has been playing with a short deck; or so it seems. My Pick – Virginia Tech -7.
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