Staff score predictions for Clemson’s ACC opener against North Carolina

The start of conference play gives Clemson an opportunity to put a disappointing opening two weeks behind it, but the Tigers will have to overcome some offensive concerns to do so.Bill Belichick and unbeaten North Carolina visit Death Valley on Saturday for a noon showdown that could provide an early indication of where Dabo Swinney's team stands in the ACC.

The Tigers enter the matchup at 1-1 after suffering a 51-10 loss to LSU and following it up with an uneven 22-7 win over Georgia Southern. The Tigers have struggled to establish consistency up front, and their inability to finish drives resulted in five field goals from Nolan Hauser last weekend.Adding to the uncertainty is a change at quarterback. Freshman Tait Reynolds will take over the starting job after Christopher Vizzina suffered an undisclosed injury. Reynolds completed 16 of 27 passes for 178 yards against Georgia Southern and now faces his first test as a college starter.

The Tar Heels have enjoyed a much different beginning to the season. North Carolina opened with an upset of TCU in Ireland before handling East Tennessee State, 35-3, to improve to 2-0.History favors Clemson, which owns a 41-19-1 record in the series and has won seven of eight meetings under Swinney. The Tigers also cruised to a 38-10 victory in Chapel Hill a year ago. Saturday's contest will air nationally on ESPN.

Here’s our staff score predictions for Clemson’s Week 3 matchup against North Carolina.

Alex Turri: Clemson 24, UNC 28

Clemson is stuck in a brutal routine, and I think that continues on Saturday. This is almost a battle of who’s more dysfunctional and I’ve got to be honest, I think it’s the Tigers.

I don’t see the Clemson offense producing, even against a mediocre defense that’s now without a defensive coordinator. I’m taking UNC here.

Steve Holley: Clemson 17, North Carolina 20

Clemson didn't show any marked improvement in its win over Georgia Southern. Far from it, in fact. The offensive line has been dreadful, and those issues aren't typically ones that get fixed overnight and especially with a lack of depth. I expect a low-scoring, tight game, but I've seen nothing from Clemson these first two weeks to inspire much confidence, even against a team that's had as much turmoil as UNC has faced under Belichick

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This article originally appeared on Clemson Wire: Staff score predictions for Clemson’s ACC opener against North Carolina