College Football Odds: Alabama Favored Vs. Clemson In National Championship Game
The Clemson Tigers will look to avenge last year’s loss to Alabama when they battle the Crimson Tide again Monday in this year’s College Football Playoff National Championship as six-point underdogs at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Clemson dropped a 45-40 decision to Alabama after blowing a fourth-quarter lead in last season’s title game but displayed stingy defense in its 31-0 demolition of Ohio State as 1 1/2-point underdogs at the Fiesta Bowl. Clemson takes a four-game straight-up winning streak into Monday’s Tigers vs. Crimson Tide betting matchup at Raymond James Stadium.
The Tigers entered the postseason pegged at No. 2 in the College Football Playoff rankings after posting a 12-1 SU record during the regular season, with the only blemish coming in a stunning 43-42 loss to the Pittsburgh Panthers in mid-November.
Clemson also repeated as Atlantic Coast Conference champs by hanging on for a 42-35 win over the Virginia Tech Hokies in the conference title game but failed to cover as big 10 1/2-point favorites in that game.
Overall, it has been a disappointing season at the sportsbooks for the Tigers, who own a middling 7-7 record against the spread. But Clemson has emerged as a reliable bet as an underdog, covering in six straight and 11 of 14, and claiming outright victory in four of its past five such outings.
The 14-0 Crimson Tide travel to Tampa looking to complete their first perfect season since the 2009 campaign and claim a second straight national championship.
Sitting No. 1 in the national rankings throughout the season, Alabama also leads the nation in team defense, surrendering just 11.8 points per game, and 248 total yards per game.
That defense was on display in the Tide’s 24-7 win over Washington as 13-point favorites in the Peach Bowl. The Crimson Tide held the Huskies to just 194 total yards, marking the sixth time in their past 10 games that they have limited an opponent to fewer than 200 total yards.
Alabama also is a solid 7-2 ATS over its past nine games but has struggled at times to pay out as a single-digit favorite, going 5-9-1 ATS over its past nine games when favored by fewer than 10 points, including its ATS loss to Clemson last year as 6 1/2-point chalk.
The Crimson Tide have dominated Clemson with 13 straight SU victories, dating back to 1909. Alabama held the Tigers to 14 or fewer points in the 12 meetings prior to last year’s showdown, including seven shutout wins, but faces a Clemson squad that averaged 39.5 points per game this season, scoring 42 or more points seven times.
Thumbnail photo via Jason Getz/USA TODAY Sports Images
