CFP Championship Betting Preview: Alabama vs Ohio State Odds and Pick

The College Football Championship is set as the Alabama Crimson Tide will take on the Ohio State Buckeyes to determine the 2020-2021 National Champions.

The Buckeyes got revenge against Clemson in the Rose Bowl and dominated one of the best teams in the country. Notre Dame was nothing more than a Sugar Bowl speed bump as Alabama cruised to another CFP Championship appearance.

Will the Buckeyes pull off the upset or will the Crimson Tide win another National Championship under the Saban Empire? Kickoff inside the Hard Rock Stadium is at 8PM ET on January 11^th.

CFP Championship Live Odds and Betting History

The following odds are courtesy of BetOnline:

CFP Championship Game Preview

Although the betting trends are limited, these two teams have played against each other four times. The Buckeyes lead the all-time series 3-1.

Ohio State defeated Alabama in the 1978 Sugar Bowl, the 1995 Citrus Bowl and the 2015 Sugar Bowl, which was a semifinal of the College Football Playoffs. The Crimson Tide won the 1986 Kickoff Classic.

Other than Michigan, these two teams have won the most games over the last century with Ohio State having 931 victories and Alabama tallying 928 wins.

Between these two programs, they have 23 National Championships as Alabama has won 15 and Ohio State has won 8.

How Alabama Got to the CFP Championship?

The Crimson Tide secured their 5^th undefeated season under the Saban regime as they went 10-0 in SEC play. They beat their conference foes by an average of 15 points or more. In fact, seven of their wins were by 28 points or more.

Alabama’s toughest game was the SEC Championship where they beat Florida 52 to 46. That was the smallest margin of victory for the Crimson Tide this year.

Alabama entered the College Football Playoffs as the #1 ranked team in the country and steamrolled Notre Dame 31 to 14. The win improved their CFP semifinal record to 5-1.

Nick Saban is looking to capture his 7^th National Championship which would give him the most championships in College Football history. He has five with Alabama and one with LSU.

How Ohio State Got to the CFP Championship?

The Buckeyes didn’t get to play as many games as the Crimson Tide did due to the Big Ten conference not starting until late-October. Furthermore, they had a few games cancelled due to covid.

Yet, the Buckeyes rolled through conference play and then went on to beat Northwestern in the Big Ten title game for their 40^th conference championship. Ohio State went 3-0 against ranked opponents during the Big Ten season.

In the Rose Bowl, Ohio State got revenge against Clemson who had beaten them before. It was an emphatic win as the Buckeyes crushed the Tigers 49 to 28.

The Buckeyes are looking to win their 3^rd National Title since 2002. They last won in 2015 when they beat Oregon 42-20 with Urban Meyer at the helm. It was the first CFP championship game under the new format.

Ryan Day took over for the departed Meyer and has gone 23-1 in two seasons.

Head to Head Betting Trends

• Ohio State 1-0 SU
• Ohio State is 1-0 ATS
• The Over is 1-0

Ohio State Buckeyes Betting Trends

• 7-0 SU this season
• 5-0 SU in their last five January games
• 5-1 SU in last six Neutral site games
• 8-1 SU in last nine non-conference games
• 16-1 SU versus winning teams
• 8-1 ATS in last nine games as Underdog
• 13-7 ATS in last 20 games
• Over is 5-0 in last five games

Alabama Crimson Tide Betting Trends

• 12-0 SU this season
• 12-0 SU as a Favorite this season
• 7-1 SU in last eight Neutral site games
• 14-3 SU versus winning teams
• 7-2 ATS in last nine games
• 7-2 ATS in last nine games as the Favorite
• 7-1 ATS in last eight Big Ten games
• 9-8 ATS versus winning teams
• Over is 5-1 in last six Monday games

The spread opened with Alabama favored by 7 points and rose as high as 8.5 points, before settling at 8 points with most College Football betting sites. The Over/Under opened at 76 points, but has come down to an O/U of 75 total points with most online betting sites.

Free CFP Championship Bet and Prediction: Alabama -8 (-115)

These two teams feature two of the best offenses in the country:

Alabama Crimson Tide

• 6^th in Total Offense at 535ypg
• 46^th in rushing at 185.6ypg
• 5^th in passing at 349.3ypg
• 1^st in scoring at 48.2ppg
• 1^st in 3^rd down offense at 59.26%

Ohio State Buckeyes

• 4^th in Total Offense at 544.9ypg
• 5^th in rushing at 272.5ypg
• 31^st in passing at 276.3ypg
• 5^th in scoring at 43.4ppg
• 6^th in 3^rd down offense at 50%

Looking over the stats from these offensive juggernauts, you can see why the O/U is set at 75 total points. Yet, I think the winner of this game is the team that will play the best defense.

With that said, it’s hard to argue against Alabama winning this championship game. They have the best offensive line, the best WR, the best RB, and one of the best QBs in the country.

I believe that Alabama has the better skilled players than Ohio State does. The big advantage for Alabama is their wide receivers led by DeVonta Smith who will most likely win this year’s Heisman Trophy award. He’s already won the AP college football player of the year.

Ohio State gave up 261.3 passing ypg in their first six games of the season and Trevor Lawrence had 400 passing yards in the Rose Bowl game. Alabama is the best offense that Ohio State has seen and I believe they will take advantage of a suspect Buckeyes secondary.

On the flip side, if Alabama’s defense can force Ohio State to be one dimensional then they should have an easy day at the office. Take away Ohio State’s run and it limits their play action passing as well. Furthermore, it puts all the pressure on Fields and I don’t see him having another career performance.

I think Alabama will win this game by 10 points or more. This offense is unstoppable and I don’t see Ohio State keeping up the scoring pace. It should be an exciting game, but Alabama will pull away late.

The X-factor in this championship will be the kicking game where the Crimson Tide has the advantage. Alabama kicker Will Reichard went 12-of-12 this season on field goals and 73-for-73 in extra points.

Riechard should win the Lou Groza award as the best kicker in the country. Ohio State went 6-of-10 on field goals this year.

Alabama is 7-2 ATS in their last nine games as the betting Favorite and 7-1 ATS in their last eight Big Ten games. Ohio State is 2-4 ATS in their last six Neutral Site games and 8-9 ATS versus winning teams.

Ohio State vs Alabama Betting Recap:

• Oddsmaker: BetOnline
• Moneylines: Ohio State (+245) vs Alabama (-290)
• Spread: Alabama -8 (-115)
• Over/Under: 75 total points (-110)
• Prediction: Alabama 41 – Ohio State 30