Even if you strip away Saturday's College Football Playoff setting, when you have two players like Oklahoma's Kyler Muray and Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa sharing the field, you can expect exciting things to happen. And with No. 1 Alabama taking on No. 4 Oklahoma at the 2018 Orange Bowl in a national semifinal at 8 p.m. ET, you set the table for what could be one of the greatest offensive showdowns in recent memory. The latest Alabama vs. Oklahoma odds reflect that, with the total set at 80.5 and Alabama listed as a 14.5-point favorite at the Capital One Orange Bowl 2018. Alabama hasn't lost a game this season, while Oklahoma's lone setback was a 48-45 defeat at the hands of Texas. With two high-octane offenses, you'll want to check the top Alabama vs. Oklahoma picks from the advanced computer model at SportsLine before locking in your own 2018 Orange Bowl predictions.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every FBS college football game 10,000 times, and those who have followed it have seen massive returns. Over the past three years, this proprietary computer model has generated a jaw-dropping $4,210 profit for $100 bettors on its top-rated point-spread picks.
The model made some huge calls during Championship Week, including Ohio State (-16.5) against Northwestern and Oklahoma (-9.5) against Texas. And when it comes to all top-rated picks, the model has been red-hot, entering the 2018 college football bowl season on a blistering 45-25 run. This same model has also nailed almost 70 percent of bowl picks straight-up over the past three years. Anybody who has followed it is way, way up.
Now, the model has evaluated the latest Orange Bowl odds and simulated every possible play for Alabama vs. Oklahoma 10,000 times. We can tell you it is leaning toward the Under, but it also says one side of the spread cashes a whopping 60 percent of the time. You can only see that pick at SportsLine.
The model knows that as both teams set their sights on the Orange Bowl 2018, Alabama will look to take advantage of an Oklahoma defense that has struggled throughout the season.
Thanks to a strong running game and the big-play ability that quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has provided off play-action, Alabama's offense has been extremely efficient. The unit averages 7.9 yards per play, and in the past five weeks of the season, Oklahoma's defense has been diced for 7.3. The Tide's defense, by comparison, has allowed just 4.5 yards per play this season. And even if Tagovailoa sits with an ankle injury, backup Jalen Hurts has proven more than capable.
Just because Alabama can move the ball doesn't mean it's a lock to cover the two-touchdown Orange Bowl spread.
While it made their pursuit of a College Football Playoff spot hazardous, one advantage Oklahoma will have over Alabama based on this season is their experience in close games.
The Crimson Tide beat every regular-season opponent they played by at least 22 points and were only tested in the SEC Championship Game by Georgia. And while Alabama acquitted itself well in that game by coming back to remain unbeaten, the Tide face an Oklahoma offense that hasn't blinked under pressure.
Even in their loss to Texas, Oklahoma stormed back from a 21-point fourth-quarter deficit to tie the game before a late field goal did them in. Then, they went on to avenge that loss in the Big 12 Championship Game and also have the experience of winning one-possession games against Army, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State and West Virginia. If the Sooners can keep Alabama within sight, that 14-point cushion is one they can backdoor with ease.
So who wins Alabama vs. Oklahoma? And which side of the spread hits in a colossal 60 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see the which side of the Alabama vs. Oklahoma spread you need to jump on, all from the model that has returned over $4,000 in profit for $100 bettors, and find out.
