They were impressive in disposing of their College Football Playoff Championship foes in the semifinals Friday. Alabama and Ohio State will meet on Jan. 11 in Miami and the betting line has the Crimson Tide as the favorite over the Buckeyes.
The line at BetUS has Alabama as a 7.5-point favorite with the totals for over/under at 76. Expect fireworks and plenty of scoring.
Semi-Tough
Neither semifinal was much of a contest as Alabama devoured Notre Dame, which was not a surprise, in the Rose Bowl. The only solace for those who wagered ATS on the Fighting Irish was a late touchdown that enabled them to cover the spread with the final at 31-14.
The second game, the Sugar Bowl, was an absolute stunner. Justin Fields threw six touchdown passes as Ohio State dismantled Clemson, 49-28. The Buckeyes came into the game as a 7.5-point ‘dog.
They had plenty of bark and bite as Ohio State took apart the Clemson defense and rattled Trevor Lawrence and the Tigers’ offense.
History
The schools are legendary college football programs. However, their paths don’t cross too frequently. The last meeting was in 2015 when Ohio State earned its first victory over Alabama in the Sugar Bowl.
It was 20 years earlier when the Crimson Tide and Buckeyes met for the third time. Alabama won in the Citrus Bowl, 24-17.
In their second meeting, the schools opened the 1996 season at the Meadowlands with the Crimson Tide posting a 16-10 victory.
And in their inaugural battle, the coaches were legends in their own right, Bear Bryant for the Tide and Woody Hayes for the Buckeyes. The Bear came away with a victory, 35-6, in the Sugar Bowl.
Current Stars
Alabama is loaded with top players, two are Heisman Trophy finalists. Quarterback Mac Jones has thrown for more than 4,000 yards and 36 touchdowns in 12 games. His top receiver, and the Heisman favorite, DeVonta Smith has caught 105 passes for more than 1,600 yards and 20 receiving TDs.
On the Ohio State side, Fields has been dazzling. He comes off an incredible performance in the Sugar Bowl, where he outplayed Trevor Lawrence, widely regarded as the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
His star running back is Trey Sermon, who has rushed for better than 500 yards in the last two games for the Buckeyes, who are 7-0 in this COVID-19 impacted season.
There will be plenty of ways to bet on the game as Jan. 11 approaches and the place to do it is BetUS.
