Alabama Made 9-Point Favorite in CFP Final Before Halftime of Orange Bowl
By Robert Duff in College Football
Updated: April 21, 2020 at 7:58 am EDTPublished:
- Alabama are nine-point favorites to win the College Football Playoff national title by the second quarter of the Tide’s semifinal against Oklahoma
- The Crimson Tide were up 31-10 on the Sooners at halftime
- Alabama has played in the last three national finals, winning twice
It seems that there are three things that you can count on – death, taxes, and the Alabama Crimson Tide playing in the College Football Playoff national championship game.
The sportsbooks were willing to book Alabama’s passage into the game before the Tide had officially done so.
During the second quarter of Alabama’s semifinal against the Oklahoma Sooners, sportsbooks posted odds listing the Tide as nine-point favorites to roll to their third national title in four years.
CFP National Championship Opening Odds
| Team | Spread |
|---|---|
| Clemson | +9.0 (-110) |
| Alabama | -9.0 (-110) |
*Odds taken at 8:54pm EST on 12/29; odds have since changed
Just to give you an idea of how much action that betting line instantly generated, it had dropped to Alabama minus-8 within 12 minutes of it being posted.
And it is now down to 7.5 at the time of publishing this.
Alabama is 13-0 this season and going back to last season, has won 15 successive games and 26 of the last 27 contests.
The Tide Be Rolling
Maybe it’s time for Alabama to trade in its elephant mascot for a steamroller.
Georgia, 35-28 losers to the Crimson Tide in the SEC Championship Game, are the only school to keep Alabama within three touchdowns this season.
Eight times the Tide has put up 50 points, and in eight games they’ve held the opposition under 20 points, including a pair of shutouts.
Schools don’t brag about being able to beat Alabama, they brag about being able to hold the Tide close for a spell.
.@AlabamaFTBL First Quarter points vs. The Citadel – 7 @AlabamaFTBL First Quarter points vs. @OU_Football – 21.
🤷♂️🤷♂️🤷♂️#FireThoseCannons | #TheCitadel pic.twitter.com/xhzndOya3n
— The Citadel Football (@CitadelFootball) December 30, 2018
Alabama would be the first school to play in four straight national championship finals since the playoff format was first devised by the NCAA in 1998.
You Gonna Roll The Dice Against The Tide?
Alabama owns the national championship game. Four in a row is about to happen, as is five of seven and seven of nine. The Tide have won five national titles since 2010.
Yes, Clemson did beat Alabama in 2017. But those Tigers aren’t these Tigers.
Roll Tide. All the way to another title.
Sports Writer
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.
