ATLANTA – It’s Game Day where No. 13 Clemson battles No. 7 LSU in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl.
Location: Georgia Dome
Kickoff: 7:30 PM
Television: ESPN
2012 Record: Clemson 10-2 LSU 10-2
ACC Record: Clemson 7-1
Series History: LSU lead 2-0
Last Meeting: LSU won 10-7 in 1996
Clemson Has Rich Bowl History
Clemson has 16 bowl victories which is the 19th best in the FCS. The Tigers biggest bowl win was in 1982 when they defeated Nebraska in the Orange Bowl to win the National Championship.
Clemson’s first bowl victory came in their first ever bowl in the 1940 Cotton Bowl when they defeated Boston College 6-3. The Tigers won their first three bowl games.
Clemson has lost five of their last six bowl games. The 2009 Music City bowl was the last victory for the Tigers.
Ranked Bowl Games
The Tigers are 11-11 in bowl games against teams ranked in the top 25.
Phillips Legacy
Both Dabo Swinney and Les Miles can thank Terry Don Phillips for their careers. Phillips gave both coaches their first head coaching job.
Phillips hired Les Miles as the head coach at Oklahoma State in 2001. In 2008 Phillips named Dabo Swinney as the interim head coach when Tommy Bowden was dismissed.
Ten Win Tigers
Both Clemson and LSU have won ten games the past two years. Only 11 teams have done that the past two seasons.
It was the first time since 1987-1990 that Clemson had at least two straight ten win seasons.
Common Opponents
Clemson and South Carolina played two common opponents in 2012, South Carolina and Auburn. Both teams defeated Auburn in close games. LSU defeated South Carolina 23-21.
Top 15 in BCS
Clemson was No. 14 in the final BCS standings. It was the third time in six years that the Tigers finished in the top 15 in the final BCS standings.
Ranked for 28 Weeks
Clemson was ranked in the top 25 in the AP and USA Today coaches poll for the 28th straight week. It was the longest streak since 1989-1992. Clemson, Alabama, Oregon, Stanford, LSU and South Carolina are the only teams that have been ranked for the past 28 weeks.
TCI Prediction
Robert – Clemson 24 LSU 31
Will – Clemson 17, LSU 27