NCAAF Week 1 Top Game: Defending National Champions Georgia vs Clemson, Expert Analysis & Picks

The marquee matchup around college football in Week 1 is clearly a matchup of recent national champions, as No. 14 Clemson faces No. 1 Georgia in a neutral-site game Saturday from Atlanta.

The Dawgs are nearly two-TD favorites on the NCAAF odds.

Clemson Tigers +390

Clemson was just 4-4 through eight games in 2023 but won its final five to finish at 9-4 and build some momentum entering this year – although it was the first time the Tigers railed to reach double-digit wins since 2010, which was Dabo Swinney’s second year as the school’s head coach.

Last Year

A total of 10 starters are back from last year, with eight of those on the offense. Quarterback Cade Klubnik is one of those returning. The former top recruit has been good if not great so far, but is on several preseason award watch lists. He enters the year having completed 351-of-554 career passes for 3,541 yards with 21 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 1,198 career snaps over 23 games (14 starts) has also rushed for 321 yards and six touchdowns on 167 career carries.

Cade Klubnik

Recently, Swinney revealed the one main area that Klubnik has to improve this season. Inconsistent play at quarterback since Trevor Lawrence left has been one of the factors in Clemson failing to make an appearance in the College Football Playoff the past three seasons.

Swinney believes there are many reasons for Klubnik’s rising confidence level, with one of those being his performance on the Tigers’ game-winning drive against Kentucky in the Gator Bowl. Klubnik hit on all eight of his pass attempts on that drive, including picking up 16 yards on a critical 3rd and 18.

Beaux Collins

No. 2 wideout Beaux Collins left for Notre Dame, but leading receiver Tyler Brown is back after catching 52 passes, and TE Jake Briningstool is one of the ACC’s best midrange targets.

Phil Mafah

Last year, the Tigers averaged 174.3 yards per game on the ground, with Phil Mafah rushing for a team best 965 yards and 13 touchdowns. When former Clemson running back Will Shipley was healthy, Clemson had one of the best one-two punches in the country at running back. Shipley is now in the NFL, so Mafah will be the primary guy. There is no clear separation on whom the No. 2 running back is at this time.

Barrett Carter

While only a couple of starters are back on defense, the Tigers are always strong on that side of the ball, despite losing guys to the NFL every year. Barrett Carter might be the nation’s best linebacker in 2024, and he was named a preseason first-team All-American. Last season, Carter finished behind only Jeremiah Trotter Jr. in total tackles on the team with 88. He also had 9.5 tackles for loss, six pass breakups, and an interception. He could have opted to go pro but chose to return. Carter is a Georgia native and says this game is personal for him.

Georgia Bulldogs -549

Georgia was unbeaten yet again in the 2023 regular season but then upset in a terrific SEC title game and then left out of the College Football Playoff, meaning UGA was not even given a shot to try and three peat as national champion. With the new 12-team playoff, the Dawgs won’t have to worry about missing out again for likely a long time.

Carson Beck

The Star QB opted to return to Athens rather than go pro, and he could be the top overall pick in the 2025 . Beck put together a strong season as a first-year starter in 2023, completing 302-of-417 passes for 3,941 yards, the most in the SEC and third-most in the country, with 24 touchdown passes and six interceptions. His 72.4 completion percentage was fifth-best in the country and smashed the single-season program record set by Stetson Bennett in 2022 (68.28%). Beck had the second-most passing yards in a single season at Georgia, just 186 yards behind Bennett (2022–15 games). His 167.9 passer rating for the 2023 season was fourth-best in program history. Pro Football Focus ranks Beck as the country’s top QB in 2024.

He was among 15 Georgia players named to a preseason All-SEC team. Joining Beck on the first team were junior running back Trevor Etienne, senior offensive lineman Tate Ratledge, senior defensive lineman Nazir Stackhouse and junior safety Malaki Starks.

Trevor Etienne

Etienne is a transfer from Florida who had a DUI arrest back in March, but apparently will not be suspended. He rushed for 1,472 yards and 15 touchdowns in two seasons at Florida. Defensive back Javon Bullard was suspended for a game in 2022 after a DUI incident. Wide receiver Marcus Rosemy-Jack saint served a game suspension last season after his arrest for reckless driving and multiple speeding incidents.

London Humphreys

Meanwhile, Georgia is replacing four of its five leading receivers from last year. London Humphreys had 22 receptions for 439 receiving yards and four touchdowns and is poised to step into a large role this year, especially following UGA’s dismissal of receiver Rara Thomas. He was booted after being arrested in late July on multiple family violence charges.

Rara Thomas

Thomas started eight games for the Bulldogs last season, catching 23 passes for 383 yards with one touchdown. He was sidelined for three games with a broken foot. Thomas was expected to be an integral part of Georgia’s passing game in 2024 after star tight end Brock Bowers and wide receiver Ladd McConkey departed for the NFL.

Malaki Starks

Starks could be the first safety chosen in the 2025 NFL Draft. As a five-star recruit, Starks arrived in Athens with a ton of hype. He answered the expectations immediately with an interception in his first career game, the 2022 season opener vs. Oregon and Bo Nix. He then took a jump between his freshman and sophomore seasons and was the only Bulldogs defender with double-digit passes defended last year, which earned him consensus All-America honors. Starks finished the season with 52 tackles, including 31 solo stops and three interceptions.

Clemson vs Georgia NCAA Football Info

Clemson vs Georgia Series History

Georgia leads all-time 43-18-4. The schools last met in the 2021 season opener also at a neutral site when the No. 5 Dawgs beat the No. 3 Tigers 10-3. There are essentially no key players back from those squads this year. Georgia has won 10 of the past 11 overall in the series.

#5 Georgia’s Defense vs #3 Clemson’s Offense (2021)

SEC vs ACC

• Clemson finished with 2 Rushing Yards on 23 attempts
• Georgia sacked DJ Uiagalelei 7 times
• Georgia scored the only TD of the game on a pick six
• Clemson finished with just 180 total yards of offense
•… pic.twitter.com/Aq8cAlgeSE

— College Football Report (@CFBRep) July 25, 2023

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