It’s the holiday season and that means the college football season is winding down. However, the best action is yet to come, as the college football playoffs (CFP) are set to begin on Saturday.
#1 Alabama will play #4 Washington in the Peach Bowl at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, while #2 Clemson will play #3 Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale.
The winner from these two games will play in the 2017 NCAA Football National Championship on January 9th 2017.
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#1 Alabama vs. #4 Washington Preview
The Alabama Crimson Tide (13-0) are –14.5 point favorites against the Washington Huskies (12-1). Nobody are giving Washington a chance to pull off the upset with bookies offering 5/1 odds for a Huskies victory.
One thing’s for sure, we’re going to find out how real the Huskies offense is on Saturday. This is an offense that has averaged 44.5 PPG (3rd) but they also haven’t played a true shutdown defense yet this season.
Alabama have played a much stronger schedule and have still managed to score 40.5 PPG (13rd). Alabama also boast the #1 defense in the nation that has only allowed an average of 11.8 PPG this season.
This game will come down to whether Jake Browning can have the game of his life. Browning is likely going to be a solid NFL QB in the next several years, but does he have the talent around him to beat this defense?
My money is on no. The Crimson Tide are going to win and cover ATS. I expect the Huskies to keep this game close early, but Nick Saban is going to want to show the nation how much better his team is than Washington.
#2 Clemson vs. #3 Ohio State Preview
The college football playoff is hard to please and Penn State were burned in my opinion.
Sure, the Ohio State Buckeyes (11-1) are often regarded as the second best team in the nation behind Alabama, but they lost to Penn State and didn’t even play in the Big Ten Conference Championship Game.
Anyways, it is what it is at this point and this game is going to be great regardless.
OSU rallied off a close win against Michigan (30-27) to end the regular season and they have a talented young roster with stars all over the field, including J.T. Barrett and Curtis Samuel on offense.
Clemson (12-1) had an inexcusable loss against Pittsburgh (43-42) earlier in the season, but the Tigers were able to win out, including a win against Virginia Tech (42-35) in the ACC Championship Game.
Deshaun Watson and Mike Williams are two of the most NFL-ready players in college football. OSU are going to have to worry about the pass, which could lead to more running room for Wayne Gallman.
Clemson are actually +3 point underdogs and I love getting a FG in what should be an extremely close game that could end up being decided by a single point. The Tigers offense will get the last laugh in a high-scoring game.
I expect Alabama and Clemson to meet in the 2017 National Championship for the second year in a row.
