MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Orange Bowl: No. 6 Tennessee (10-2, SEC) vs. No. 10 Clemson (11-2, ACC), Friday, 8 p.m. Eastern (ESPN)
FanDuel Sportsbook College Line: Clemson by 5 1/2.
Series record: Tennessee leads 11-6-2.
WHAT’S AT STAKE
Tennessee can win 11 games for the first time since 2001, which was the last season in which the Volunteers finished as a top-5 team in the AP Top 25. Clemson can get to 12 wins for the sixth time in the last eight seasons; before that stretch, the Tigers hadn’t posted 12 wins in any season since 1981.
KEY MATCHUP
Tennessee QB Joe Milton vs. Clemson QB Cade Klubnik. Obviously, one won’t be facing the other head-to-head. But this game could easily be decided by which quarterback handles the big stage better.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Tennessee: DE Byron Young — who has worked for Dollar General and Burger King, among others — will head to the NFL draft after this game. He leads the Volunteers with five sacks this season.
Clemson: RB Will Shipley has 1,110 rushing yards this season and leads the Tigers with 15 touchdowns. He is next to impossible to bring down behind the line of scrimmage; on 193 carries, he’s lost only 19 yards.
FACTS & FIGURES
Tennessee coach Josh Heupel’s teams have scored at least 30 points on 53 occasions in his first 61 games as a head coach. The Vols could get shut out on Friday and would still break the school record for points per game in a season; they’re at 47.3 per game right now and the school mark is 42.8 set in 1993. … Clemson’s defense has allowed only four rushes for more than 25 yards this season. But the Tigers have given up more than 25 yards on 24 different pass plays. … In each of the last 12 Orange Bowls, at least one of the teams involved has scored 31 points or more. … The rivalry between the programs started in 1901, when they played to a 6-6 tie. They also played to a 5-5 tie in 1905.
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