College Football Playoff Alabama Crimson Tide vs Michigan Wolverines: Odds, Tips and Predictions 01/01/24.

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Prediction: Bet Michigan to cover

• Over/Under: Alabama vs Michigan (44.5)
• Spread: Michigan -1.5
• Pick: Bet Michigan to cover

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After a slow start to the season, the Alabama Crimson Tide are back playing for a National Championship. The quarterback was an issue at the start of the season until Jalen Milroe got things figured out. The Tide upset the Georgia Bulldogs to advance to the College Football playoffs. Michigan beat Ohio State for the third straight season to get back to College Footballs biggest stage; the Wolverines look better equipped than ever to get it done this season. The biggest question surrounds Alabama’s Head Coach and if this is his last season at the helm of the Crimson Tide.

Are the stars finally aligning for Michigan Wolverines’ head coach, Jim Harbaugh, this season? His squad has started strong at 13-0 overall and is undefeated against ranked opponents, beating Ohio State for three consecutive years for the first time since 1997 (when they last claimed the College Football National Title).

Michigan’s offense is led by one of the nation’s premier ground games. Blake Corum leads this attack with 1,028 yards on 218 carries and 24 touchdowns to set an impressive pace for their offense. Donovan Edwards provided valuable veteran backup to J.J. McCarthy at quarterback, rushing 109 times for 382 yards and three scores on just 109 carries. At wide receiver, Edwards also led with 30 receptions on the season. At quarterback, McCarthy led them with 18 touchdowns. McCarthy completed his season by throwing for 2,630 yards and amassing 17 touchdowns and only four interceptions while throwing 41 passes for 662 yards and 11 touchdowns to senior Roman Wilson, his favorite target, who finished with 41 catches for 662 yards and 11 touchdowns this season. Overall, they are currently ranked 26th in points per game with an impressive 62nd ranking in running the football and 72nd rank through the air.

Defense has been Michigan’s key strength this season. Junior Colson led all tacklers with 79 tackles, while Jaylen Harrell led with 6.5 sacks, followed by Josaiah Stewert’s 4.5. Senior Mike Sainristil led in the secondary with five interceptions – sixth against run and second against pass! Furthermore, Michigan ranks first nationally for takeaways per season at 28%!

The Alabama Crimson Tide are back where they belong: in the College Football Playoffs. Having lost to Texas early on in the season, it appeared this might not be their year, but since then, they’ve won 11 consecutive games, including their SEC Championship game victory over then #1 Georgia, which ended their 29-game winning streak and now find themselves making history by competing in an unprecedented eighth College Football Playoff appearance under Head Coach Nick Saban in search of seven national championships.”This game represents an exceptional opportunity and challenge for our players, but no one owes you anything when it comes to playoff games; each match-up acts like one game season, so we need to put everything we have into this effort and work hard towards doing just that,” Saban stated in anticipation of this matchup.

Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe has made up for any shortcomings at quarterback this season by throwing for 2,718 yards, 23 touchdowns and only six interceptions since being benched following the Texas loss. Milroe also rushed for 468 yards with 12 touchdowns for Alabama but will need to await Jase McClellan’s availability as he is questionable with a foot injury; he led his team with 803 rushing yards this season. Roydell Williams is an adequate substitute runner, having amassed 561 yards this season at an average of 5.1 yards per carry. Milroe likes targeting wideouts Isaiah Bond and Jermaine Burton for receptions. Bond led Alabama with 44 receptions while Burton averaged 22.2 yards per catch and scored eight touchdowns this season, leading them to 26th in scoring in the nation overall and ranking 83rd on the ground and 63rd through the air – as well as being 59th for giveaways this year.

On defense, Alabama was impressive. Caleb Downs led his team with 99 tackles – including 3.5 for loss – and two interceptions this season. Justin Eboigbe and Dallas Turner led Alabama’s defensive front with nine sacks each, while Eboigbe was right behind with seven. Alabama also used their secondary with 12 interceptions by Terrion Arnold leading with five. Overall, Alabama finished 17th nationally for points allowed this year while ranking 26th against both runs and passes and an impressive 11th in takeaways this year!

The Michigan Wolverines have had a turbulent season. Head coach Jim Harbaugh has been suspended twice, and the future of Michigan football remains unclear, although this team likely marks his most impressive entrance into the playoffs so far. His playoff record to date is 0-2; they haven’t advanced to the championship game yet. Yet this team was built around him – they are experienced, hard-nosed and rarely make mistakes. Michigan boasts a solid ground game capable of drawing Alabama defenders into the box and reliable quarterback McCarthy to make accurate play-action reads. Alabama quarterback Jack Milroe is an explosive performer, capable of running the ball and passing it, but more often he stays in the pocket down the stretch. Michigan and Alabama have done exceptionally well against ranked opponents this season, with Michigan going 3-0 against them while Alabama 5-1; Michigan’s experienced secondary will force Milroe into making errors that will prove decisive in this otherwise evenly-balanced matchup. We like the Wolverines in a close hard fought battle. Michigan 23  Alabama 20.

Tip:

Michigan to Cover

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