Clemson vs. Georgia score prediction by college football expert model

What the analytics predict for Georgia vs. Clemson in this Week 1 college football game.

Expert score prediction for Clemson vs. Georgia in this Week 1 college football game. / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Week 1 of a historic 2024 college football season gets underway with a colossal SEC vs. ACC matchup in Atlanta that finds national championship favorite Georgia squaring off against Clemson.

The last time these schools met was the 2021 season opener, the first game in what culminated in the first of Georgia's back-to-back national championships.

Despite losing key targets like Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey, the Bulldogs return quarterback Carson Beck and the bulk of an elite defense.

Clemson also presents a formidable defensive front despite its losses to the NFL and quarterback Cade Klubnik remains in place, but there's still the question of how the Tigers can produce an elite receiving target the program has lacked during its absence from the College Football Playoff.

What do the analytics suggest about the matchup? For that, let's turn to the SP+ prediction model to get a preview for what to expect as Georgia and Clemson kick off the 2024 season.

Clemson vs. Georgia prediction

The simulations favor Georgia to pull out the win against Clemson in the opener, and by a favorable margin.

SP+ projects the Bulldogs to defeat the Tigers by an expected score of 36 to 20 and to win the game by a forecasted 15.4 points.

The model expects Georgia to win the game with a favorable 83 percent margin outright.

SP+ is a “tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency” that attempts to predict game outcomes by measuring “the most sustainable and predictable aspects of football.”

Georgia vs. Clemson game lines

Georgia is a 13.5 point favorite against Clemson, according to the lines at FanDuel Sportsbook, which set the total at 48.5 points for the game.

FanDuel lists the moneyline odds for Georgia at -610 and for Clemson at +440.

If you're using this projection to bet on the game, you should take....

• Georgia -13.5
• Georgia to win -610
• Over 48.5 points

Computer predictions

Other analytical models also project Georgia will defeat Clemson in the Week 1 game.

That includes the College Football Power Index, a computer prediction model that simulates games 20,000 times and uses data points from each team to pick winners.

The index projects Georgia will win the game in 82.4 percent of simulations, while Clemson is expected to win the game in the remaining 17.6 percent of sims.

The model forecasts that Georgia will be 14.6 points better than Clemson, also enough to cover the point spread.

Georgia vs. Clemson game time, schedule

When: Sat., Aug. 31
Time: 12 p.m. Eastern
TV: ABC network

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

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