Two of the most ravenous fanbases in the nation will watch their teams go head-to-head on New Year's Day at the 2019 Sugar Bowl in New Orleans. No. 5 Georgia will take on No. 15 Texas at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for an 8:45 p.m. ET kickoff. Both teams suffered tough losses in their conference championship games to teams that wound up in the College Football Playoff, and both programs could use a win as they head into into an important offseason. That should make for exciting action at the 2019 Allstate Sugar Bowl, with the Bulldogs listed as 12-point favorites and the total at 59 in the latest Georgia vs. Texas odds. But before you make your own 2019 Sugar Bowl picks, you'll definitely want to make sure you check out the Georgia vs. Texas picks and predictions from SportsLine senior analyst Josh Nagel.
A Nevada-based expert with 20 years of experience in the sports wagering industry, Nagel specializes in handicapping college athletics. He's having another solid season for SportsLine members, hitting on 60 percent of his spread selections. During Championship Week, Nagel delivered with a slew of picks that wound up converting, including Georgia +13, Washington -4.5 and Under 52.5 in Boise State vs. Fresno State. Anyone who followed him was way up.
As both teams prep for Sugar Bowl 2019, Nagel knows that the Longhorns will be looking to their vastly improved run defense to limit Georgia's high-powered rushing attack.
And while that will be a tall task, there's reason to believe that they can slow them down. Oklahoma has one of the best rushing attacks in the NFL, with two dynamic running backs and Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray as an exceptional at quarterback. In Texas' first meeting, the explosiveness was on full display as the Sooners averaged 7.2 yards per carry and ran for 222 yards.
However, in the Big 12 Championship, the Longhorns were able to limit Oklahoma to 3.2 yards per carry and just 129 yards on the ground. Considering the Bulldogs haven't had much success when they struggle to run the ball, if Texas can be similarly stout on New Year's Day, they'll have a great chance at the cover.
However, Nagel knows that few can match up with Georgia from a talent perspective, making Texas covering the 2019 Sugar Bowl spread anything but guaranteed.
The Bulldogs gave Alabama everything it could handle in the SEC Championship Game, and many UGA players left feeling like they were actually the better team. To get back on track, they'll have to run the football with authority. In Georgia's losses to Alabama and LSU, the Dawgs averaged 3.8 yards per carry. In their 10 wins, they averaged 6.5.
We can tell you Nagel is leaning toward the under, but he has also identified a crucial X-factor that makes one side of the spread a must-back. He's only sharing what it is, and who to back, at SportsLine.
Who wins Georgia vs. Texas? And what crucial X-factor makes one side of the spread a must-back? Visit SportsLine right now to see which side you need to jump all over at the 2019 Sugar Bowl, all from an expert who's on a 9-1 run on spread picks involving Texas.
