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2012 Discover Orange Bowl: Mountaineers vs. Tigers Odds

West Virginia Mountaineers vs. Clemson Tigers 2012 Orange Bowl college football betting action. Both squads have deadly passing attacks, with the Mountaineers being led by Geno Smith. There is no doubt that Smith is an excellent college QB. The Discover Orange Bowl should absolutely belong to the team donning orange and purple.

Orange Bowl Picks – West Virginia vs Clemson

Every college football fan eagerly awaits early January and the BCS bowls. This year’s Orange Bowl features two of the best teams from two rather battered AQ-conferences in the Big East (West Virginia) and the ACC (Clemson).

Discover Orange Bowl
West Virginia Mountaineers (9-3) vs. Clemson Tigers (10-3)
Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2012, 8:30 pm EST
Sun Life Stadium, Miami FL
Betting Lines from Sportsbook.com
MoneyLine: WVU +145, Clemson -165
Spread: WVU +3.5, Clemson -3.5
Over/Under: 60.5

This should still be an entertaining clash, with plenty of offensive fireworks.

Both squads have deadly passing attacks, with the Mountaineers being led by Geno Smith. It will be a homecoming for the junior pivot, who grew up playing ball in Miami. Smith has put up video game-like numbers for West Virginia this season, throwing for just shy of 4,000 yards (3,978) and 25 TDs to just seven picks. With last year’s graduation of speedy RB Noel Devine, Smith is definitely the most important tool for the Mountaineers’ success. His prolific ball delivery has led to two WVU receivers – sophomore Stedman Bailey and junior Tavon Austin – eclipsing 1,000 yards receiving. Bailey also has hauled in a tidy 11 TDs. Needless to say, Clemson’s secondary will be busy in south Florida.

Yet it is much the same for the Clemson Tigers. First-year starting QB Tajh Boyd has had a great year, tossing for 3,578 yards and 31 TDs. The Tigers are multi-dimensional on offense, as they also have a horse at RB in Andre Ellington (1,062 yards, 10 scores). Speedy freshman WR Sammy Watkins has 1,153 yards and 11 TDs in his own right. DeAndre Hopkins is a nice supplementary receiving target also.

These teams have much in common: they are both adept at scoring points, but are only mediocre at preventing them; Clemson ranks 62nd and West Virginia ranks 63rd in the nation when it comes to points against. When the defenses have been yielding (as they often have) and the offenses aren’t quite clicking at full capacity, that’s when these football teams run into trouble. Still, West Virginia is often near the top of the heap in the somewhat uninspiring Big East and Clemson has to be content with a 10-win season, after much underachieving in the ACC in recent years. [soliloquy id=”82219″]

Clemson did not look good in consecutive losses to NC State and nemesis South Carolina in November, but it truly redeemed itself with a fantastic showing in the ACC Championship Game, crushing a good Virginia Tech team 38-10 on Dec. 3. Such a good result makes it seem evident the Tigers are back on track, which does not bode well for the Mountaineers.

There is no doubt that Smith is an excellent college QB and playing in front of friends and family in Dade County will surely cause him to bring his A-game. However, Clemson is a more talented program than West Virginia and it should be a very fast game, which should suit both programs with their influx of speedy Floridian athletes on the rosters. Yet, I believe that Clemson is both a little bit faster and a little more dangerous than its opponent to the north.

Smith and West Virginia’s calculated passing attack can single-handedly derail a team, and there is the possibility of that happening in the Orange Bowl. But I think Clemson showed in the title game versus V. Tech that its game is back where it needs to be, the same kind of form responsible for the Tigers ripping off eight straight wins to start the season.

If Boyd comes out commanding the offense like he did during that stretch, the Discover Orange Bowl should absolutely belong to the team donning orange and purple.

Game Prediction: Clemson 35, West Virginia 24
Over/Under Prediction: 59

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By James Hayes

James has been naming every player on the EA Sports video game rosters for half a decade now, he’s finally putting his knowledge to better use writing for us here at CappersPicks.com. Your comments are welcome below…Give Us Your Take!