ACC Football Betting Preview: Week 14

By week 14, you don’t usually get a slate where half the games feature spreads north of 20. Yet here we are. Thanks, 2020.

Western Carolina Catamounts @ North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina -49; Over/Under 69.5

This is going to be the classic case of a team getting up 49-0 at the half and me sweating bullets while I’m taking the under. But I like to live dangerously and I think UNC runs all day on the Catamounts keeping the clock moving. The game won’t ever be in doubt, but if Western Carolina scores, it makes covering the fifty points a tall task. Give me the under.

Pick: Under 69.5

Syracuse Orange @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Notre Dame -33.5; Over/Under 51

This game has an implied final score of 43-9. Syracuse won’t even sniff nine points against this defense. Notre Dame has its ACC Championship spot in hand and won’t lose any College Football Playoff points by only winning by 20. Notre Dame has been great at taking care of business all season, but like North Carolina, I like the Irish to run early and keep running it. Once again, I’m looking at the under.

Pick: Under 51.5

Boston College Eagles @ Virginia Cavaliers
Virginia -3.5; Over/Under 55

After taking two unders, let’s get a little crazy. I like what the Hoos have been doing offensively in the last four games and Boston College has been great under Phil Jurkovec. After leaving the game against Louisville with an injury, Jurkovec is expected to play this week against the Hoos. Even if he doesn’t suit up, I still like BC’s ability to throw on this Virginia secondary. It should be a fun up and down battle, though UVA laying points has a lot to do with Jurkovec’s situation. Let’s hope the Hoos can pull it out, but either way, I expect scoring.

Pick: Over 55

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets @ NC State Wolfpack
N.C. State -6.5; Over/Under 59.5

Up until last week, N.C. State had done a really good job of beating bad teams while struggling against good teams. However, after only beating Syracuse by seven, the line of this game against the Yellow Jackets is a little tighter than it maybe should be. Meanwhile, Georgia Tech is coming off a decisive win over Duke. That says more about Duke than it does against Georgia Tech and with the Wolfpack at home, I like them to roll against the Jackets.

Pick: N.C. State -6.5

Clemson Tigers @ Virginia Tech Hokies
Virginia Tech +22; Over/Under 67

Last week, Clemson beat Pitt by 35. Two weeks ago, Pitt beat VaTech by 34. Ipso facto, Clemson by 69 this week (nice!). While it’s not that easy, there is a greater power at play here and it’s the rule to just bet on Clemson. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Hokies can keep this close, but I still think Clemson has too much to play for to let this one slip away. While they’ll be able to take care of business if they beat Notre Dame in the ACC title game, they could still use an impressive performance against VaTech to improve their standing in the eyes of the committee. The Hokies need to run the ball to win, and they’ll come up short in this game.

Pick: Clemson -22

Miami Hurricanes @ Duke Blue Devils
Duke 14.5; Over/Under 62

Don’t look now, but Miami is 7-1 and ranked in the top ten in the country. Duke is not very good and it all starts with turnovers. Miami will take advantage of those turnovers and this game won’t be close. The Hurricanes still have a shot at the ACC Championship game, so there will be no let up against the Blue Devils.

Pick: Miami -14.5

Record: 38-27-1