Clemson vs. Auburn: Point Spread, Total & Prediction

DeShaun Watson has Clemson as one of the favorites to win the national title. (Getty)

Clemson travels to Auburn for a difficult opening week matchup. Clemson is coming off a season where they found themselves a few plays away from defeating Alabama for the national title.

According to OddsShark, Clemson enters the contest favored by 7.5 points. The over-under is set at 62.5 points. The OddsShark computer likes Clemson by a wide margin. The computer projects Clemson to roll to victory 43.4-25.1 over Auburn. OddsShark likes the over in the matchup.

There is reason to be bullish about Clemson’s chances in this game. They are the more experienced team and return key players who are coming off a season where they were heavily tested against the best teams in the country in the College Football Playoff.

Quarterback DeShaun Watson will be the best player on the field and gives Clemson an instant advantage despite opening the season on the road.

The S&P+ projections are not quite as optimistic as OddsShark but still project Clemson to win by a margin of 8.2 points. The projections give Clemson a 68 percent chance of winning the opener.

Auburn is coming off a season where they barely made a bowl game despite lofty expectations entering the season. Shaun White will start at quarterback for Auburn but did little to move the needle last season after taking over for Jeremy Johnson. To White’s credit, not much went right for the Auburn offense, and he should have more to work with this season.

Heavy likes Clemson to win and win big in the opening game. If you ask yourself what is most likely to happen, Clemson’s talent, experience and advantage at quarterback lead to a clear path to victory against an over-matched Auburn team.

Heavy’s Pick: Clemson 41 Auburn 17. Clemson -7.5 points. Under on the point total.