One Year Later, Same Two Teams

A full year has passed and the same two teams have returned to play for the college football national championship.

The only real difference for this season to last is where the game is being played. Last season the game was played in Phoenix, while this season it will take place in Tampa.

Even the betting options are similar this season to last, when the Clemson Tigers played the Alabama Crimson Tide for the national championship. The two meet again on January 9 to determine the national champion.

Alabama opened as a 7.5-point favorite but that has gone down to -7 on many sportsbooks, while the total remains at 51.

If the defenses of both teams come to play the 51 is far too high for this game. Both defenses played extremely well in their games this past weekend.

Alabama fell behind early 7-0 then shutout Washington the remainder of the game to win 24-7. The Tide covered as 13-point chalk, while the combined total for both teams of 31 fell close to three touchdowns short of the closing line of 51.

Clemson shut Ohio State out 31-0 in its semifinal game. The line closed with Clemson +1 and the point total on 56.5. The Tigers defense allowed the Buckeyes just 215 yards on offense and forced 3 turnovers. The total fell 25.5 points short of the closing line on most sportsbooks.

Both offenses did not perform as well as their respective defenses. Jalen Hurts the Alabama quarterback looked rattled at times in his first bowl game. Clemson’s star quarterback Deshaun Watson threw for 259 yards but was intercepted twice.

Clemson has played Alabama 16 times. The first game was in 1900. The Tigers won the first three games head to head with Alabama. However, the Crimson Tide has won the past 13 straight dating back to 1909.

With the way the defenses for both teams are playing, the game could turn into a punting fest and a turnover late could be the deciding factor.

As it looks now, the UNDER appears to be a solid choice in this national championship game.