Arkansas vs. Alabama Spread, Line, Odds, Predictions, Picks, and Betting Preview

Alabama (9-1) looks to continue its push toward yet another College Football Playoff appearance as it hosts Arkansas (7-3) in an SEC showdown on Saturday, November 20.

Arkansas has done nothing except improve under head coach Sam Pittman. Last year the results on the field showed a vastly improved team, but a 3-7 record didn’t bear out the process. Year Two under Pittman has yielded fruit, as the Hogs sit at 7-3 and found themselves ranked in the top-10 of the AP Poll at one point in the season.

The bread and butter for this Razorbacks offense has been a dominant rushing attack averaging 234.5 yards per game — fourth in the country among non-option teams. The issue in this matchup is that Alabama’s strength lies in a dominant defensive front led by destroyer-of-worlds Will Anderson (19 TFL, 11 sacks). The Tide are holding opposing offenses to only 81.7 rushing yards per game on 2.6 yards per carry. 

We saw another dominant rushing attack play the Tide earlier in the season, and the results won’t inspire much confidence in Arkansas fans. Ole Miss sports the top rushing attack (239.8 yards per game) among non-option teams but managed only 78 yards on 27 carries against the Tide — only 2.3 yards per rush. 

In total, Alabama has held all but two opponents below 100 rushing yards and 3.0 yards per carry. Arkansas’ rushing attack has been stymied only once this season, and that game got ugly in a hurry (37-0 loss to Georgia).

While this appears to be a tough matchup for Arkansas, our strongest play is on the total. It’s difficult to imagine Arkansas scoring with regularity (barring a superhuman performance from wideout Treylon Burks). With a rivalry matchup against Auburn on deck, Alabama is unlikely to keep its foot on the gas for a full 60 minutes. We’re playing the Under.

Pick: Under 58.5