The initial betting lines are out for the highly anticipated Palmetto Bowl rivalry between Clemson and South Carolina. Early odds favor Clemson as a narrow home favorite. As of Sunday morning, DraftKings set the Tigers as 3-point favorites, while FanDuel pegged them at 2.5 points, with an over/under of 51.5 points. Meanwhile, Circa Sports slightly diverged, listing Clemson as a 5-point favorite.
Clemson, ranked No. 17, enters the matchup at 9-2 (7-1 ACC), while No. 18 South Carolina is 8-3 (5-3 SEC). Both teams are expected to appear in Tuesday’s College Football Playoff (CFP) Top 25, marking the first CFP-ranked Clemson-South Carolina clash since 2017. The point spread is the closest it’s been in a decade, a stark contrast to recent years when Clemson was often favored by double digits. If the current line holds (ranging from -2.5 to -5), it would be the tightest since 2014, when Clemson was favored by 4.5 points. South Carolina hasn’t been favored in this rivalry since 2013 and was a 14-point underdog during their last trip to Clemson in 2022. The current spread marks their best road odds at Clemson in 14 years.
From 2015-2022, Clemson consistently dominated the betting lines, favored by at least 11.5 points in each game, and by 20+ points four times. However, South Carolina’s resurgence has significantly narrowed the gap. Both teams set the stage for this rivalry with dominant wins over in-state FCS opponents last weekend: Clemson defeated The Citadel by 37 points, and South Carolina routed Wofford by 44.
Coaches expressed their enthusiasm postgame. “The best rivalry in college athletics, in my opinion,” said South Carolina coach Shane Beamer. Clemson’s Dabo Swinney called it “a goal of its own, a season of its own.”
By the Numbers:
- Clemson leads the all-time series 73-43-4.
- Swinney is 9-6 against South Carolina, winning eight of the last nine matchups.
- Beamer is 1-2 against Clemson but scored a major upset in Memorial Stadium in 2022.
- The rivalry, played annually from 1909-2019, was briefly interrupted in 2020 due to COVID-19 but remains one of the nation’s longest-running series, with 120 total games.
The 2024 Palmetto Bowl will close the regular season during Thanksgiving weekend, continuing a century-old tradition.
Leave a Reply