- Clemson and California are even on the spread at some books, and Clemson lays no more than 1.5 points anywhere.
- True freshman Tait Reynolds starts his second career game after Christopher Vizzina went down with an elbow injury.
- Cal has won two straight since an opening loss to UCLA, capped by a 49-7 rout of Wagner.
- The point total sits at 50, almost identical to the 48 combined points in Clemson’s comeback win over North Carolina.
BERKELEY, Calif. — Clemson is a pick ’em on the road at California this Friday night, even though the Tigers are one week into starting a true freshman quarterback.
A Number With No Favorite
The spread sits at pick ’em on some sportsbooks and a point to a point and a half for Clemson on others, and the money line tells the same story: California costs $105 to win $100, Clemson $115. The 10-cent gap between those two prices leaves neither side with a real cushion going into kickoff.
The total is 50, well under the 61 and 69 combined points Clemson and California gave up in their respective season-opening blowout losses, and almost exactly the 48 points Clemson and North Carolina combined for last week. Across legal sports betting markets, Friday is being priced like that competitive ACC game, not a repeat of either team’s rout of an overmatched opponent.
Clemson Bets On A Freshman
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney turned to true freshman Tait Reynolds last week against North Carolina, and Reynolds rallied the Tigers from a 17-6 halftime deficit to a 28-20 win, finishing 20 of 29 for 215 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Swinney said Reynolds had earned the opportunity to start on mistakes and body of work. At that point Reynolds had a 60.6% completion rate and no interceptions in relief, while Vizzina was averaging 4.4 yards per attempt with two interceptions, one returned for a touchdown in Clemson’s 51-10 season-opening loss at LSU.
Vizzina, sidelined by an elbow injury to his non-throwing arm, is probable for Friday but won’t start. Clemson will also be without 11 other players, and starting nickelback Corian Gipson is questionable after playing only two snaps against North Carolina. The comeback was also Clemson’s first Atlantic Coast Conference win of the season; the 22-7 win over Georgia Southern, the game Vizzina left hurt, was a nonconference date.
Cal’s Healthier Hand
California is 1-0 in ACC play in Tosh Lupoi’s first season as head coach, answering a 45-24 season-opening loss to UCLA with a 21-18 win at Syracuse, decided by Kingston Lopa’s fourth-quarter interception return for a touchdown, one of his three picks, and a 49-7 rout of FCS Wagner. Quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele threw two interceptions in the UCLA loss but has been clean since, going 27 of 33 for 413 yards and three touchdowns against Wagner.
Sagapolutele has not thrown an interception since that opener; Reynolds threw his first as a starter against North Carolina. The Golden Bears are missing running back Carter Vargas, doubtful and likely to sit a third straight game after an injury in the opener, and defensive lineman Nate Burrell, who sat out last week after starting the first two games.
Kickoff at California Memorial Stadium is set for 10:30 p.m. Eastern on ESPN, with college football betting markets treating the Golden Bears’ home field as the only edge on the board.
