The College Football Playoff semifinals are set as Alabama takes aim at its sixth national title in 10 seasons. The Crimson Tide, who used an epic comeback to win the SEC Championship Game, will play Big 12 champ Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 29. It's an 8 p.m. ET kickoff from Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Bookmakers list the Tide as 14-point favorites, with the over-under for total points scored set at 81 in the latest Alabama vs. Oklahoma odds.
A pair of undefeated teams clash in the first semifinal when Notre Dame (12-0) plays Clemson (13-0) earlier that day in the Cotton Bowl. Kickoff from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, is at 4 p.m. ET. Sportsbooks list the Tigers as 11-point favorites, with the over-under set at 55 in the latest Notre Dame vs. Clemson odds. Before you make any College Football Playoff semifinal picks and predictions, see what college football guru Josh Nagel says.
A Nevada-based SportsLine expert who has won numerous handicapping contests, Nagel enters bowl season on fire, having nailed eight of his past 11 picks, including the SEC and Big 12 championship games featuring Alabama and Oklahoma. That's part of a bigger 52-35 run in which Nagel has returned nearly $1,300 to his followers.
For the SEC title game, Nagel urged readers to grab Georgia +13, saying the Bulldogs were "hungry for revenge from last year's memorable national title game and have the personnel to provide matchup problems. Look for a classic SEC title game that goes to the wire and take the points." It played out just as Nagel predicted: Georgia led almost the whole way before losing a thriller 35-28. Anyone who followed him cashed with points to spare.
Now, Nagel has broken down Notre Dame vs. Clemson and Oklahoma vs. Alabama and released strong college football picks for both games. He's only sharing them over at SportsLine.
We can tell you Nagel is leaning under in Clemson vs. Notre Dame. He knows the Tigers rank second nationally in scoring defense (13.7 points per game) and the Fighting Irish aren't far behind at ninth (17.3). Each starter on Clemson's defensive line -- ends Clelin Ferrell and Austin Bryant and tackles Christian Wilkins and Dexter Lawrence -- projects as a high NFL Draft pick.
The under is 11-5 in Clemson's past 16 college football bowl games and 4-1 in Notre Dame's past five neutral-site games.
Nagel knows which way the lines for each semifinal game will move, and you need to jump on them now before they change. He's only sharing over at SportsLine.
Who covers Alabama vs. Oklahoma and Clemson vs. Notre Dame? Visit SportsLine now to see which sides of the spread you need to be all over in the College Football Playoff semifinals, all from the No. 1 college football expert who nailed the SEC and Big 12 championship games.
