2018 College Football Playoffs: ‘Bama Fourth Seed But Favored to Win Title

After a regular season filled with several upsets and back and forth high scoring games, the field for the 2018 College Football Playoffs is set and odds makers have released their opening lines.

As any football pundit, fan or bettor knows, the four teams in college football’s version of the Final Four are the Clemson Tigers, Oklahoma Sooners, Georgia Bulldogs and Alabama Crimson Tide.

The Sugar Bowl will pit Clemson versus Alabama. This will be the third consecutive season the two teams have met in the CFP. Each time has won once in the two head to head games prior to this one.

Georgia will face Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl. The winners of those two bowls will meet for the national championship on January 8 in Atlanta.

Alabama enters the CFP as the No. 4 seed but odds makers like them to win the national title and have put them atop the board as the favorite at +190.

Crimson Tide did not win this season’s SEC championship. Alabama are also the only team of the four in the playoff to not win their respective conference title. They are one of only five schools in the Power 5 to end the season with just one loss.

Playoffs

Clemson is seeded No. 1 entering the playoff, but is an underdog against Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. It has the second best odds to end the CFP as the national champion at +250.

Clemson’s defense is one of the best in the nation. It’s offense has come together of late under Kelly Bryant their star quarterback.

In addition, Georgia and Oklahoma both have odds of +333 to win the national championship. The Sooners behind the offensive prowess of quarterback Baker Mayfield will look to outscore their opponents since the Sooners defense is not that strong and will give up points.

Mayfield is considered by odds makers as the favorite to win this year’s Heisman Trophy later this month. The Sooners offense is as explosive as there is in college football and will meet a solid defense in Georgia

The Bulldogs have a complete team on both sides of the ball with possibly the best athlete in college football in linebacker Roquan Smith. On offense, the Bulldogs are led by freshman signal caller Jake Fromm and also a strong running game that will wear down the opposing defense.