For the ninth time in the SEC Championship history, the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Florida Gators will meet in a winner-takes- all SEC title game. The #1-ranked Tide have been the class of the nation, entering this title game with an undefeated record through the regular season and a guarantee to notch one of the four playoff spots in the postseason. The #15-ranked Gators haven’t been as dominant as the Tide, but they did manage to finish the regular season as repeat winners of the SEC East division, and that should count for something as they seek to measure up to Alabama. Will the Crimson Tide hold serve as heavy Week 14 NCAA Football betting favorites, or will the Gators shock the sportsbooks with an upset? Find out as we offer our expert online betting preview and picks in the section below.
Alabama vs Florida SEC Championship Odds & Betting Pick
Where: Georgia Dome, Atlanta, GA
When: Saturday, December 3 – 4:00 p.m. ET
TV: CBS
Radio: Alabama / FloridaStream Option: CBSsports.com
NCAAF Lines: Alabama (-24), OVER/UNDER 40.5
Why Bet on Alabama?
From owning a flawless 12-0 record this season to going 16-0 in their last 16 games against SEC opponents or even winning the last five straight meeting against Florida by at least 14 points, the Crimson Tide have nearly everything going on in their favor ahead of this game, so it comes as no surprise that they are heavily favored to get the job done this Saturday. Apart from those trends, Alabama has been one of the most balanced units in the nation this season, owning an efficient Jalen Hurts-led offense that can make plays both aerially and on the ground, complemented with a mean defense that is giving up just 11.42 points per game (good for #1 in the nation) and has impressively not allowed a single TD in its past four games. Against a Gators team that has virtually nothing going on for them (besides their defense), Bama should be good for an easy win this Saturday.
Why Bet on Florida?
Florida QB Austin Appleby hasn’t performed any better than former starter Luke Del Rio, but he’s been comparably less error-prone and has shown the ability to make key plays under pressure—like the game-winning TD against LSU—and the hope is that he will be able to bring more of that against the Tide this week. Obviously, it is a tall order for the inexperienced Appleby and his oft-anemic offense that totaled just 13 points against FSU last week and has gone beyond the 20-point scoring mark just twice in its last six conference games. But with everything to play for, the Gators should have sufficient motivation to bring their A-game this weekend. This should especially be encouraged by the fact that Florida’s offense will be supported by the stingy Gators defense that is allowing 14.6 points per game this season (good for #5 in the nation).
Expert Alabama vs. Florida SEC Championship Prediction and Picks
When the Gators and the Crimson Tide met in last year’s edition of the SEC title game, Alabama cruised to a 29-15 victory. With both teams playing more-or- less the same way they did last season, we expect Alabama to dominate this game once again for a double-digit win. Even so, Florida’s defense is more than capable of hurting Hurts and his offense, and based on that, the Gators should have a chance of keeping the damage respectable enough, giving Florida (8-3 ATS in its last 11 games) a chance to cover the bloated 24-point spread. Plus, with the college football playoffs at stake soon, Nick Saban will probably just want to take a decent lead before using his defense to scrimmage out the win rather than risk his starters in the whole game for the sake of running up the score.
Final Score Prediction: Alabama 30, Florida 13
Writer’s NCAAF Picks: Florida (+24), OVER 40.5
