For the second time in five years, these two SEC teams will meet in the national championship game, with Alabama prevailing 26-23 in overtime to conclude the 2017-2018 season. These two rivals also met earlier this season in their conference championship contest, and the Crimson Tide surprised much of the nation by overcoming a 10-0 deficit to roll to a 41-24 victory against college football’s top-ranked team and defense.
Alabama’s Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Bryce Young will be looking to replicate his performance of 412 passing yards, three touchdowns through the air, and another on the ground that he put up in their last meeting. For Georgia, they’ll need to find a way to stop Alabama the same way they bottled up Michigan in their 34-11 semifinal victory.
Georgia vs. Alabama Betting Preview
Alabama Crimson Tide Preview: Just Want to Keep Rolling
The Tide dominated an overmatched Cincinnati team in the national semifinals, holding the Bearcats to 218 total yards while piling up over 300 rushing yards behind Bryan Robinson’s 204 yards on 26 carries for an average of 7.8 yards per attempt. Young added three touchdown passes to run his total for the season to 46 while completing 68% of his pass attempts in 14 games.
After closing the regular season with a pair of close wins over Arkansas and Auburn, the Tide have been virtually unstoppable in their last two contests, averaging 509 yards a game on offense against two defenses that were ranked in the top seven in the nation. The most impressive statistic is that against Georgia, they threw for 412 yards, and in the semifinal, they were able to run the ball on the Bearcats, making Alabama difficult to game plan for.
Georgia Bulldogs Preview: Getting a Second Chance
The Bulldogs have played outstanding defense the entire season, with the only blemish coming in the game with Alabama, where they gave up 41 points and 536 total yards, more than double their season average. They bounced back nicely against Michigan, holding the Wolverines, who averaged 216 rushing yards a game, to just 91 yards on the ground while forcing three turnovers.
Following a sub-par outing in the SEC Championship game where he tossed two interceptions, Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett carved up the Michigan defense, completing 20 of 30 pass attempts for 313 yards and three touchdowns. Although he was able to throw for 340 yards in the first meeting against Alabama, much of that production came when the game had already been decided and with Georgia in desperation mode.
Who to Bet on Bulldogs vs. Crimson Tide
- Moneyline: Georgia -130 vs. Alabama +110
- Spread: Georgia -2 (-115) vs. Alabama +2 (-105)
- Total: 52 (-110 o/u)
Both teams are coming off dominating performances in the semifinals, setting up a title game contest between two teams that were at or near the top of the polls and then the College Football Playoff rankings for most of the season.
Look for Georgia to play much better defensively than they did the first time when they were shredded by Young and the rest of the Alabama offense. If the Bulldogs can do a better job of protecting Bennett, they should be able to settle in and keep the Tide offense off the field.
Take Georgia and give the points for the Bulldogs to return to form on defense to win their first national title since 1980.