No. 14 Syracuse football at No. 5 Clemson best bets for week 8

Syracuse football is perfect through the first half of its 2022 regular season, and the No. 14 Orange (6-0) now looks to spring a huge upset of No. 5 Clemson (7-0) this Saturday on the road.

This Atlantic Coast Conference collision is pivotal for several reasons. Number one, the ‘Cuse and the Tigers are the sole remaining undefeated squads in the ACC. Additionally, Syracuse football and Clemson are the top-two teams in the league’s Atlantic division.

Whichever group comes out on top could end up having the inside track on capturing the Atlantic division and getting to Charlotte, N.C., for the 2022 ACC championship game on Saturday, Dec. 3.

Of course, there are lots of games remaining in this year’s regular season for the ‘Cuse, so even if Syracuse football can conquer Clemson, the Orange still has to square off with the likes of Notre Dame at home, Pittsburgh on the road, Florida State at home, No. 13 Wake Forest on the road, and Boston College on the road.

This past Saturday, the ‘Cuse defense was mighty impressive in holding a top-15 N.C. State group to just a trio of field goals. The Tigers, on the other hand, squeaked out a six-point triumph at Florida State in week seven.

Best Syracuse football bets week 8

Here’s what I like from a betting perspective as the Orange travels to Clemson on Saturday, Oct. 22, with the kick-off scheduled for noon and television coverage on ABC.

I like the ‘Cuse to cover the spread
At the time of this writing, WynnBET had anointed Clemson as a 13.5-point betting favorite in its game with the Orange. I recognize that the Tigers are at home in this ACC encounter, and Clemson has a long winning streak going on its own turf.

That being said, 13.5 points, to me, is a big, big spread. Especially considering that the Syracuse football defense, so far in the 2022 stanza, has proven pretty spectacular. Assuming the Orange’s Mob defense continues to play at a high level, Syracuse football doesn’t commit a lot of turnovers or rack up a flood of penalties, and the team’s offense is solid, I think that the ‘Cuse will cover this spread, even if the Orange doesn’t end up prevailing versus the Tigers.

Go with the under
WynnBET has set the over/under at 50.0 points.

Per ESPN statistics, both Syracuse football and Clemson average more than 35 points on offense. Those are fairly large numbers. However, the Orange boasts one of the top defenses nationwide, only allowing 13.2 points per game.

The Tigers are pretty solid on defense as well, giving up around 20 points per meeting. Unless there are a bunch of turnovers that result in quick scores, I think that the two defenses will produce a relatively low-scoring game, and I’d recommend taking the under here.

The moneyline is iffy on both sides
WynnBET, when I penned this piece, had the moneyline at +405 for Syracuse football and -565 for Clemson. This is a straight-up bet, with no spread involved. As I noted earlier, I think that the Orange is going to cover the spread, but do I believe the ‘Cuse will knock off the Tigers?

Unfortunately, I feel that Clemson will prevail in this ACC clash. But the Tigers’ moneyline bet means you would have to bet $565 to win $100, or some denomination of that. I don’t love that bet. By extension, for the ‘Cuse, if you wager $100 and Syracuse football defeats Clemson, you’d collect $405.

That’s a strong payday, but to reiterate, the Orange would have to best the Tigers in Death Valley. I don’t see that happening. By the way, all-time in its series with Clemson, Syracuse football is just 2-8.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.