Prizing:

1st Place: $50 Amazon gift card

2nd-5th Place: $10 Starbucks gift card

Overview:

On Saturday, December 31st, at 11:00 A.M. the LSU Tigers will take on the Louisville Cardinals in the Citrus Bowl.

The Crowd:

“The Crowd” projects a final score of Louisville 31.6 – LSU 28.3 with an over/under of 59.9.  The Vegas Line has a final score of LSU 31.3 – Louisville 28.3 with an over/under of 59.5.

2016-17 Statistics (127 total teams):

Passing offense: Louisville 302.0 YPG > LSU 187.6 YPG

Rushing offense: Louisville 256.8 YPG > LSU 238.1 YPG

Scoring offense: Louisville 45.3 PPG > LSU 28.3 PPG

Scoring defense: LSU 16.4 PPG > Louisville 23.3 PPG

Passing defense: LSU 201.2 YPG > Louisville 206.3 YPG

Rushing defense: Louisville 110.0 YPG > LSU 121.8 YPG

Turnover Margin Per Game: LSU +0.1 > Louisville -0.6

Strength of schedule:

Louisville is (9-3) with wins over Charlotte, Syracuse, Florida State, Marshall, Duke, NC State, Virginia, Boston College, and Wake Forest.  They were defeated by Clemson, Houston, and Kentucky.  LSU is (7-4) with wins over Jacksonville State, Mississippi State, Missouri, Southern Miss, Ole Miss, Arkansas, and Texas A&M.  They lost to Wisconsin, Auburn, Alabama, and Florida.

Summary:

Louisville enters the game having lost their last two, but they still possess the second highest scoring offense in the nation at just over 45 points per game.  The Cardinals feature the Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Lamar Jackson whose dual threat ability is a nightmare for any defensive coordinator.  Louisville’s offense has exceeded 30 points in each their last six games.  LSU ranks as a top ten defense in terms of fewest points allowed per game.  Only once did the Tigers defense allow an opponent to score more than 21 points in a game.

For all the talk about Louisville’s prolific offense, their defense still ranks as a top 35 unit in college football allowing just a shade over 23 points per game.  LSU has struggled to score all season and they will be without star running back Leonard Fournette who is sitting out with injury.  Though Derrius Guice is a more than capable backup, he isn’t quite the generational talent that Fournette is.  LSU is loaded with talent defense, but Lamar Jackson can shred teams from the pocket as well as his dynamic running ability.  I like Louisville to win this one because I don’t see LSU being able to put up enough points.

**LISTEN HERE** to the latest edition of “The Berger Shop” podcast, sponsored by The Crowd’s Line.  This week’s episode features an in-depth discussion about the return of Tiger Woods with golf pro Jason Birnbaum.

Note:

To be eligible to enter a Crowd’s Line contest you must be over 18 years of age, a resident of the United States/Canada, and submit your score prediction on our prediction tool (blog widget). The winner will be selected according to The Crowd’s Line scoring methodology.  If more than one entrant has the same winning score the winner will be selected by random drawing.  Only one prize will be awarded per contest and that winner will receive their prize in 5-7 business days.