The No. 2 Clemson Tigers get their 2016 season underway on Saturday, September 3rd with a tough road matchup against the Auburn Tigers of the SEC. The Tigers have won each of the last two meetings, including a 26-19 road victory in their most recent battle in 2012.
Clemson is coming off its best season in school history with a 14-1 record. The only blemish was the 45-40 loss to Alabama in the National Championship Game. But the Tigers showed well, racking up 550 total yards on the Crimson Tide defense.
Auburn has gotten worse in each of Gus Malzahn’s first three seasons on the job. It went from 12-2, to 8-5 and then to 7-6 last year. That was a very disappointing season considering the media actually picked the Tigers to win the SEC West.
Kickoff inside Jordan-Hare Stadium is set for 9:00 EST Saturday night with ESPN providing the television coverage. Taking a look at the odds in Las Vegas, I find Clemson favored by 7.5 over Auburn with a total set of 63 points.
The Tigers are coming off a 14-1 season and hungry for more after falling just five points short to Alabama in the National Championship Game for their first and only loss of the season. With the talent that head coach Dabo Swinney has returning, the Tigers are clearly contenders again.
The offense is loaded with eight returning starters from a unit that put up 38.5 points and 515 yards per game. The key is getting back Heisman Trophy favorite Deshaun Watson, who threw for 4,104 yards and 35 touchdowns against 13 interceptions, while also rushing for 1,105 yards and 12 scores.
Almost all of the top skill players are back, including leading rusher Wayne Gallman (1,527 yards, 13 TD) and leading receiver Artavis Scott (93 receptions, 901 yards, 6 TD). The Tigers also have the luxury of getting back Mike Williams, who missed all but one game last year due to injury. Williams had 1,030 receiving yards back in 2014. They also bring back three starters on the offensive line.
Nobody expected Clemson’s defense to be so good last year because it returned just three starters and lost several players to the NFL. But it was solid once again as it allowed just 21.7 points and 313 yards per game. That’s why I’m not concerned about the fact that they only return four starters on D this year. Swinney has recruited the talent that will make this D great once again.
I just don’t think Auburn can be trusted. This team was supposed to compete for an SEC West title last year, but instead they finished just 7-6 and barely made a bowl game. Now they have just 12 returning starters this year and many more question marks.
The offense still has questions at the QB position after putting up only 27.5 points per game last year. But the defense may be the bigger concern. After returning eight starters last year, the Tigers now lose four of their top five tacklers and will be shaky on this side of the ball. Look for Watson and company to score at will on this Auburn D.
Auburn is 1-10 ATS in its last 11 home games after going 0-6 ATS at home last year.
Auburn is 1-10 ATS in its last 11 home games after going 0-6 ATS at home last year. Clemson is 6-1 ATS in its last seven September games. Auburn is 5-16 ATS in its last 21 games overall and 1-8 ATS in its last nine non-conference games.