Stone Cold Lock of the Night

Georgia Tech -5 vs. Clemson

Maybe with Tommy Bowden gone Clemson won't be such a freaking enigma, but I'm not betting on it. They were 2-7 on Thursday nights under Bowden (random meaningless stat alert!), and they always seemed to have just enough talent to be enticing, but sucked just enough to completely shit the bed whenever they played a really good team. Here, they face a really good team. Georgia Tech runs the crazy Paul Johnson triple option, and they have quite possibly the best running back in the country in Jonathan Dwyer (it's either him or Jahvid Best). I also generally like to bet on the home team on these ESPN Thursday night games-- the crowd is always wild for these games and the players generally always seem pumped up (except for NC State last week, who turned in one of the worst displays of organized football I've ever seen. I blame that on their fans for wearing "Beat Carolina" shirts. You were playing freaking South Carolina. They aren't good.). So, don't fear laying the points here because this spread should be more like 10; I think Clemson has sucked Vegas into thinking they're better than they are once again, and Georgia Tech seems to be underrated since Paul Johnson came to town because people don't trust the triple option in a BCS conference. Their offense is for real, Paul Johnson is for real, Georgia Tech is for real, and Jonathan Dwyer is for real.

Georgia Tech 31, Clemson 13

Also of note... the NFL is back tonight. I'm obviously excited, but I'm not particularly excited to watch two conservative, defensive minded teams battle tonight. At gunpoint, I'd take the Titans with the 6 points just because i think it'll probably be a low scoring, close game, but I'm not touching this game. I don't think the Titans are going to be particularly good this year (I'm thinking 8-8 or 9-7), they are pretty one dimensional offensively, and losing Albert Haynesworth is a huge blow to the defense. So my recommendation for the night is take what you would've put on this game on Georgia Tech, and head to your local watering hole so you can watch both games. And revel in the fact that football is back.

More picks for the weekend to come tomorrow.