Vegas veteran Benjamin Eckstein, author of America’s Line, brings three decades of experience to make weekly picks in his “Ecks & Bacon” column
College Football Championship Game Pick
LAS VEGAS — Very, very, VERY tough to ignore 29-0! Some teams know how to win, but Clemson DOES NOT know how to lose.
Got an email from a brilliant guy after the LSU-Oklahoma game and he told me, DON’T ever go against Joe Burrow. No doubt that Burrow, or Burreaux if you like, laid down one of the GREATEST performances I have seen in my almost 40 years on the gambling beat. And that was just the FIRST HALF!
But, and there’s ALWAYS a but, those video game stats came against an Oklahoma defense that has gone from Swiss cheese to Battleship game proportions. Lemme explain. You know the game. The one where you try to sink the other guy’s battleships. Just got some Swiss cheese out of my fridge, and each slice had like five or six holes.
If you haven’t played Battleship, Google the game board and you’ll notice approximately 100 holes. There’s your Oklahoma D. Still a YUGE fan of Burrow, but this time he’s gonna SEE a defense. And did I mention that it’s very, very, VERY tough to ignore 29-0! Say whatever you want about Clemson’s devastating march through the paper-thin ACC, but 29-0 is TWENTY-NINE AND OH! Don’t care if it’s the ACC, flag football or Pop Warner.
Back to the Tigers D, the Tigers from South Carolina, that held an Ohio State team that was averaging 48.6 points per game to ONLY 23. Then take a look back at last year’s run to the crown, where they gave up just three points to Notre Dame and 16 to Alabama.
So that’s 42 points in three playoff games, for an average of 14 ppg. Gotta believe that the Tigers, from Louisiana, will put up more than 14, but it ain’t gonna be 63. Sure, LSU has a home-state advantage, with the game in New Orleans, but these Clemson kids ROCK the road, covering 12 of the last 13 (92%). What about as an underdog? Still MONEY, with six covers in the last seven as a dog (86%).
LOVE coach Eddie O and cannot wait to hear him talk again, but gonna roll with the old adage, good defense (Clemson is No. 1 in points allowed per game) beats good offense (LSU is No. 1 in points scored). Finally, and for the last time, very, very, VERY tough to ignore 29-0!
Benjamin Eckstein is a nationally syndicated sportswriter/oddsmaker. His column, America’s Line, with the Ecks & Bacon appetizer, has run in the New York Daily News and over 100 other papers since 1988. You can follow him online at www.americasline.com. He is beloved by most, when he picks winners, and detested by others, when he picks the occasional loser. If you wanna piece of Eck, hit his email...ben@americasline.com.
